Cooking the turkey on Christmas Eve- tips please?

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I’m not a confident cook, have a tiny oven and would really love to get the task of cooking the turkey out of the way on Christmas Eve if at all possible.

Any advice please? Especially in terms of being sure I cool it as safely as possible to store in fridge overnight, and how best to warm it up the next day before lunch.

Many thanks.

I've never done it, but definitely cook, rest and carve on Xmas Eve. It will stay just warm enough for bacteria for ever if you left it intact overnight.

Leave the sliced meat spread out so it cools quickly then pile it up in Tupperware or similar and in the fridge. You could microwave it with a few tsps of water as a steam thing or if you've got a slow cooker that would warm it but keep it moist?

If not, sprinkle water over the sliced meat, cover TIGHTLY with foil and warm in the oven for 20-30 minutes??

My mum does exactly what fusion says, but puts her gravy in the slow cooker with the turkey. It is lovely!

Why not just cook it Xmas day. It will stay warm for a couple of hours once cooked on Xmas day so you can use the rest of your oven

If I'm hosting, I always cook the turkey the night before, it helps remove the stress on Christmas Day knowing it's cooked and it carves much better. Save some of the juices.

It will take ages to cool, so I put mine in a cool room rather than the fridge. My spare room is like a fridge . I've been doing this for years and it's always been ok. In the morning it goes into the fridge.

When you're ready for the meat, carve it, pour the saved juices on, cover with tinfoil and put it into a warm oven. The meat doesn't have to be hot because served on hot plates with hot gravy, no one ever knows.

I always cook mine on Christmas Eve. Whole bird and crown. I just leave in the kitchen overnight. No-one has been ill in the last 17 years!

I'd just cook it early on the day and leave it to rest. MIL cooks hers on Christmas Eve God knows why as she only gets a crown and either does the gravy reheat method which is like stew or serves it cold and everything else hot. Neither way is very pleasant.

You could just time it so it'll be cooked 2 hrs before you eat. Put it on a plate, cover tightly in foil and a couple of tea towels and keep in a warm place and it'll be fine.

That gives you plenty of leeway for if it takes longer to cook than you think and also frees up the oven for everything else.

And I'd invest in a meat thermometer - it takes the guesswork out of roasting meat.

Thanks all.

Lots of mixed suggestions, I’m trying to decide what to do for the best.

I’d really prefer to get it out of the way the day before if possible, it would be a relief knowing I don’t have to worry about it cooking in time and the roasties etc being delayed, especially as one of our guests is quite pushed for time and is leaving soon after lunch.

Selfishly, I would also far prefer to spend the time in the morning with my young DCs rather than worrying about and constantly checking up on the turkey.

So I’ll probably carve it promptly and spread it all out as someone suggested, to cool quicker before chilling in Tupperware overnight.
Is it safe to leave it out on the side for up to an hour, or even microwave it before lunch? I’m petrified about food poisoning!

Jamie Oliver swears to cooking it in the morning and leaving it to stand for 2 hours.

It will be a million times tastier doing it like this as opposed to night before.

I've always had a turkey crown and cooked it on Christmas Eve. Leave to rest, carve and once the slices are cool put in the fridge. Serve cold the next day - everything else is hot so it's not a problem. Easy peasy. Been doing this for the last 30 years. Also prepare and freeze red cabbage ahead, just needs reheated on the day.

I put mine in late/early Christmas Eve - low, turn up to cook and brown.

I swear on The Holy Family I, ve never made anyone ill. And you wake up to a lovely smell

A million times tastier? How does that work?

Carving the turkey at thr table is lovely. No one wants pre carved microwaved slices.

Cook it in the morning, it doesn't need checking often. Just prepare it the night before, then chuck it in thr oven for the correct time, check on it half an hour before it's due to be taken out. You can't go wrong.. Take it out a couple of house before lunch and wrap it in heavy bath towels.aka the Jamie Oliver way and it will be fab and hot when you go to carve it.

It won't be as succulent if you do it the night before but it's so easy to dry it out on the day anyway, and unless you have especially picky guests, they probably won't notice.

I would rest for 20-30 minutes after cooking, under tinfoil. Then carve. Then put slices straight into fridge in Tupperware or whatever.

On the day, don't leave sitting in warm kitchen for an hour (is that what you were asking?) It needs to be thoroughly reheated to piping hot. I would suggest doing this in the gravy as a way of not drying it out. This could be in a casserole dish or baking dish in the oven, in a casserole dish in the microwave or a big saucepan on a ring on a low heat until it comes to a simmer.

I know this isn't cordon bleu, people, but this is an inexperienced and underconfident cook with inadequate facilities who is just trying to turn out a decent meal to a time constraint.

bluntness just because you don't, doesn't mean nobody else does. Carving is a faff for a lot of people and requires a decent sized table which many of us don't have. Ours is always carved the night before and I've yet to have any complaints....or leftovers.

It’s meant to be the best meal of the year. I struggle to comprehend why on earth people would cook the night before and heat up in the microwave the next day. I wouldn’t do that for a normal Sunday lunch, no mind Xmas day. With turkeys being able to be rested for a couple of hours there is simply no need to do it!

I agree, it doesn't take a lot of effort to cook a turkey, the oven does the work. I cook mine in the morning, take it out, and time it so it comes out two or so hours before lunch, wrap it in heavy towels,and it is still roasting hot and beautifully moist when we eat. You still get to spend all the time with the kids. Taking it out the fridge and shoving it in the oven takes a whole ten seconds.

There is no need to give your guests day old turkey reheated. Your oven is free if you do it the above way to cook the rest of the stuff.

You also don't need a big table to carve, just sit it at your own place setting, carve there, then put your plate down when done.

Agree with Fusion!

I agree with Bluntness. Microwaved turkey? I'll leave it, thanks!

If you always cook it on Christmas morning, you have no idea what it’s like cooked the day before. As far as taste and succulence is concerned, it makes no difference. I never carve the night before, I leave it whole.

The advantages of cooking the day before are that the pressure is off you on Christmas morning, you have more room in your oven, you can make absolutely sure the bird is cooked through and it’s easier to carve.

My family are foodie types and no one has ever noticed that the turkey was cooked the day before.

Quote
“The advantages of cooking the day before are that the pressure is off you on Christmas morning, you have more room in your oven, you can make absolutely sure the bird is cooked through and it’s easier to carve”

Have you not read the posts above?

Pressure is off - nonsense!
More room in oven - nonsense! (See above)
Easier to carve - nonsense

But the pressure is off, as you don’t have to worry about getting up early to get it into the oven, you’re not having to check it and baste it and you don’t have to worry about getting it cooked on time. I’m an experienced cook and I do mine the day before, a novice like the OP, would benefit even more.

If its already cooked and you’ve done all your prep the night before you can enjoy Christmas morning with everyone else.

If the bird isn’t quite cooked and time is marching on, you need room in the oven for everything else and it’s easy to start panicking.

And yes, any meat that’s cooked and cooled is easier to carve. It’s no use telling me this is all nonsense because it isn’t.

Another saying just cook it in the morning. It'll happily rest for a couple of hours whilst you get on with the rest.

What pressure? It’s just like a big chicken. Cook it early on Christmas Day. Lovely cooking turkey aroma in the kitchen! My big tip is to get a turkey roast bag. You literally do not need to baste because it cooks in its own juices. You just leave it for the correct time for your size of turkey. Take it out then roast everything else.

Definitely carve at the table. It’s part of Christmas. It’s easier if it’s been rested. I have cooked a turkey every year for over 35 years and it’s easy if you scale up the cooking time. Just don’t be afraid of it.

My MIL cooked hers all night. It was like eating shoe leather. Avoid this idea at all costs. Good luck with whatever you do and if you are not a confident cook, plan and write down timings.

If you always cook it on Christmas morning, you have no idea what it’s like cooked the day before

Well, ehrm, yes I do , because every single year we have masses left and we reheat it and eat it on Boxing Day too. So I'm fully aware of the difference.

There is no pressure in cooking a turkey. Prepare it the night before. In the morning, open oven door, shove it in, switch oven on, set timer. Job done. It's hardly a big deal.

You also can take it out at least two hours before lunch is to be served, so your oven is totally free.

And I'm not sure about the whole easier to carve thing either, it's defintely tougher the next day and no where near as good.