to think starters with Christmas dinner are superfluous?

[thatsgotit]

Just what the thread title says, really. How does anyone manage to do full justice to a turkey dinner if they've had their appetite blunted by a starter beforehand? (I do realise not everyone has turkey or even a roast, obviously, but I'm mainly talking here about those who do.)

This might be partly a generational thing, but personally I'd much rather leave myself more room to enjoy the main (and some Christmas pudding afterwards, which again I realise not everyone has) and it wouldn't even occur to me to plan a starter for Christmas Day. It just feels entirely superfluous. Surely I'm not the only one?

We have starters for lunch. Loads of room for a roast at around 6.

I like snacks with a glass of something before my lunch to soak up the alcohol.

Am sure you'll get loads of posters disagreeing with you but I agree. Here we do no starters or even breakfast (well except for some obligatory chocolate). I like to sit down ready to enjoy the meal.

We dont have starters but do have fizz and nibbles/canapés in the run up to lunch.

Ah, I like that idea!

I'm 41, and have been hosting my own Christmas dinners since age 18. I've never done a starter, and never plan on doing so! Can't think of anything worse to be sorting on Christmas morning on top of everything else!

This is what I've always thought. If I ate a starter,I can guarantee that I wouldn't be able to do the main course justice. I'd rather have the starter later,along with the pudding.

We don't do starters either. It always seems impossible for the cook (me) to be able to enjoy a starter AND get the dinner finished and served. I agree too, the main dinner (in our house anyway) is usually a full on affair and having a starter would take up valuable stomach space. My lot would rather have room later for a dessert, and even that has to wait because people are too full.

That's what we do too : )

We used to do starters, but found it just too much. We have dinner, go for a walk and then come back and have pudding.

It's all part of the special occasion indulgence, love 3 plus courses! We do light starters and a little break before the dinner ao it works well. Xx

Great idea

I’m a starters not a pudding person. Love my starters!

We have canapés and a glass of wine about half an hour before the turkey's ready. I don't think I would want a sit down starter directly before the roast.

We do canapés about an hour before we eat the roast, just 3 or 4 bits each to soak up the fizz. I couldn’t have a full starter I don’t think

Never had a starter when at home with parents and siblings.. l have never done a starter..nor do my daughters where l go for my Christmas dinner.. we eat about 2 ish.. would have had croissants for breakfast.. will have a pudding once dinner digested and feel hungry again..some kind of chocolate cake with fresh cream.

We don't have starters. Usually have a big breakfast and dinner is usually at 5pm. Teenagers eat their chocolate and myself and DH fill the gap with alcohol and crisps .

What, no salmon blinis?!

I’m in a small minority that really doesn’t like Christmas dinner, and especially not that idea of eating excessively. I do do turkey & ham etc but portion-wise it’s small. So I absolutely enjoy a starter - usually smoked salmon & brown bread.

We'll have starters, but probably no pudding. DS proposed oysters, which are a favourite so just organising the supplies!

No starters in this household and never when my mum and I used to cook in her house for 14 to 20 people all through the 90s! Not enough time, stomach capacity or plates!
My mother in law always did a starter. It was always melon with some ginger powder on it . Occasionally she'd dribble a splash of red wine on it too and we had no idea where this idea originated but it was not an enhancement

But starters are yummy and feel special and luxurious, so of course they are appropriate for Christmas day. And obviously, the more leftovers from the main course the better. Win, win!

We used to have starters and then realised we weren't doing justice to the roast which was a shame. We stopped doing them and enjoy the roast much more now. We will have some canapés with fizz earlier on though

We also have a ‘starter’ instead of lunch, as we don’t eat dinner until 6-7ish. So smoked salmon for breakfast, canapés/starter type things around 2ish then dinner in the evening.
However… I would actually generally prefer to have a smaller dinner and a starter than a massive roast. I like variety across a meal and get a bit bored if I just have one giant plate of main!

We do canapés a few hours before.

Agree - as the chef doing a load of starters plus the massive roast with all the trimmings is too much. So people can like it or lump it!