Cooking Christmas dinner for first tome.. Help!

[Minniemee]

Hi there

Looking for some help to ease my panic about cooking Christmas dinner! My partner and I have just bought our first house so will be hosting Christmas dinner for the first time ever- for 8 people.

I have a job where I work long hours, leaving the house at 6am and getting back around 8pm.. so cooking is always the last thing I want to do when I get in and we live by the ready meal. My father in law to be is a bit of an a* and always calls me lazy about cooking, joking that Christmas dinner is going to come as a ready meal from Iceland as I can’t cook (not that he ever lifts a finger in his house).

So essentially, I want to prove to everyone that I can make a lovely, homemade Christmas dinner but trouble is, I’ve never made one for that many people! I only have a 4 ring hob and single oven, so I’m panicking how I do everything.

So far I’ve ordered the turkey from m and s and have decided I will do a gammon in the slow cooker which I’ve tried.

When it comes to veg, do I need to make it all from scratch or is there any shop bought veg that can almost pass as home made (ie red cabbage). Ive spent hours looking at different receipes on bbc good food! I’ve read some not so great reviews about the m and s veg so that’s why I never bought it.

So this is a plea for any tips anyone can give me please- what can I buy that tastes as good as home made, what can I make homemade that I can do in advance and freeze/chill in the freezer and what do I need to make on the day.

Oh and it will be aunt Bessie’s all the way for Yorkies.. I think attempting to make those might just tip me over the edge! 🙈

Thanks so much

M&S do lovely pre prepared veg. Could pick some up when you get your turkey!

The main thing is to not feel overwhelmed by it all..It's just like a roast dinner, with a few little extras!

Make sure you prep all your veg the night before.
I get my pigs in blankets, stuffing, bread sauce, gravy and red cabbage already done from m and s. No stress there you just have to heat things up!

We have a big oven, but it doesn't make any difference really, because your turkey should be cooked and then can rest on the side while you do everything else.
Stem all your veg. Only one hob ring needed then.

I put my carrots and parsnips together in the oven covered in maple syrup.
In a separate tray put your roast potatoes ( in m and s you can get roast potato seasoning packets ) I just coat them in this, they come out perfect and beautiful! Putting all veg in the oven will all take 45 minutes ish. No different timings. That's where it gets stressful!
Either put your pigs in blankets in with the veg, or cook them with your turkey and cover them in tin foil. Will stay hot for ages!

Your steamed cabbage, to finish off put in a frying pan with lardons and chestnuts (already prepared from m and s) with lots of butter and cracked black pepper.

Heat up all the other little elements. And it's done 🤗

Use frozen veg! You can even cook it in the microwave!

Have you worked out what your ‘menu’ is - exactly what veg, stuffing etc you want?

I’m generally a ‘from scratch’ kinda cook, but for Xmas dinner I buy nice gravy from Waitrose or M&S. I also buy stuffing.

Red cabbage you can make in advance (even in slow cooker!) and freeze, but have realised my lot don’t really eat it so I don’t bother now. You can make cranberry sauce a day or two before, or you can buy decent stuff.

Time your turkey so it’s out the oven an hour before you eat. Cover it with lots of foil and it’ll stay warm, and it frees up your oven for all the veg/stuffing (pre-prepared or otherwise!)

You need a list of what to do and when, so you don't forget anything and to stop it becoming stressful. This year we're hosting for 12 so I've tweaked my usual list accordingly.
This is what I'll be doing-

Christmas Eve prep veg- I will be buying pre peeled potatoes from Tesco as I hate peeling them and prepared sprouts, but will be doing parsnips, carrots broccoli and cauliflower myself.
6:45- oven on to warm up, prepare turkey (I use goose fat and bacon to cook)
7am turkey in oven, I'll then make the batter for my Yorkshire puddings then leave in the fridge to rest.
11.30 ish- turkey out of oven, roast potatoes in.
12-roast veg in oven
12.30- Yorkshire puddings in oven (veg and potatoes out)
Put veg on hob to cook.
1pm ish serve.

Do you have time, this weekend or next to just cook a roast chicken or similar? It'll help you work out what space you have in your oven. If you don't try various baking trays in your cold oven/s & visualise what will be in each.

Re veg, I do most of mine from scratch, but prep everything Christmas Eve so it's just a case of transferring it to a saucepan & cooking on the day. I do occasionally buy in supermarket pre made throughout the year though & it is good. The other bonus is it comes with microwave instructions for the whole packet, so quite hard to go wrong.

Also don't let your Fil get you worked up. Christmas lunch/dinner when all's said & done is just a roast, with a few extras.

Thank you so much, that’s been an amazing help!

I think because I’m trying to impress I’m going all out as it’s the coming together of 2 families with two different traditions, almost feel like I have something to prove which I know is silly but that’s the way the in-laws make me feel sometimes!

So for the roast I’m going to do:
Turkey
Gammon
Mash potatoes
Roast potatoes
Pigs in blankets
Stuffing parcels
Parsnips
Carrots
Sprouts
Peas
Broccoli
Red cabbage
Yorkshire puddings

Is there anything else I’ve forgotten?

I was worried about how I would do a starter when I was panic cooking in the kitchen (we have a new build house so it is a kitchen/diner) so I’ve thought maybe buy pate and have pate on toast and soup.

Desert will be shop bought- just not sure what yet!

There’s a thread from November on this board called “Hosting Christmas for the first time. Any tips....” or something like that (sorry, on phone so can’t link) but there are great tips on that one

Don’t forget the gravy!

Do you have cranberry and bread sauce?

Agree with the PP about veg prep but ialways make the mash potato the day before too.

There is nothing worse than everything being ready at the same time and having to mash potatoes too. I just bung it in the microwave for 5 mins while starting to put everything out. Been a game changer for me.

Take your time, have nibbles out if people start getting hungry. Get your turkey cooked first and baste it repeatedly to stop it going dry. Remember that leg meat takes longer to cook than breast. Anything you can buy already prepped, do it. Make sure your other half helps!

i think that is way too much op. Like you I only have 4 gas rings and one oven so it has to be manageable. I would save the ham for boxing day, do either mashed or roast potatoes not both, and ditch 3 of your SIX vegetables. I'm doing sprouts - shredded and stir-fried - , red cabbage and parsnips for example.
As others have said, buy in gravy and tart it up with a splash of port if you want, buy in veg and Yorkshires and keep it all a lot simpler. Make the table look really pretty which you can do the night before and it will all be fine.

Make life easier. Give FIL plenty of little jobs to help you.

Alternatively: ditch the mash potatoes and peas. You can do Yorkshire’s if you like but they aren’t essential. Do add in gravy (but feel free to buy two tubs of pre made of that’s easier for you.

Prep the roast potatoes, parsnips and carrots the day before so you just need to bung them in the oven. Steam the broccoli and sauté the sprouts (so much tastier).

Canapés or pate and toast is fine for a starter if you really want one.

Yes I make my mash on the 24th too. I put it in a pasta bowl in the fridge then on Christmas day I add a bit more butter then microwave it in 1/1:30m intervals mashing with a fork in between until it's hot through.

You've also reminded me I need to put suet on this weeks Tesco order for dh's stuffing so thank you!

Planning is always the key to success, OP. Decide what time you’ll be serving the meal, then work backwards on a time plan so you know exactly when things need to go in the oven, which things can be prepared in advance etc.
I always make my stuffings (plum and ginger, plus apricot and chestnut) on Xmas Eve and put them in the fridge. I soak a pack of smoked streaky bacon in whisky for two days (also in the fridge), and wrap the turkey in the bacon rashers just before it goes in the oven.
Get the turkey out of the fridge at least 30 mins pre cooking, to come up to room temp.
I make the red cabbage in November and freeze it, so it comes out to defrost on Xmas morning. The kids peel the potatoes for me and leave them in a pan of salted water until it’s time to parboil them.
The giblets go into a pan with bay leaves, a chopped carrot, a celery stick and lots of water to simmer for an hour, ready to be added to the meat juices and flour later to make gravy.

The main thing is to relax and have a happy Christmas! Get your guests involved in helping with veg etc, don’t worry about trying to impress, and be generous with the wine. Turkey is an easy meal that cooks itself while you entertain your visitors. Oh, and get the dads to carve it - they love to flaunt their macho credentials if meat is involved (think barbecues!)
Good luck, OP, I’m sure it will all go splendidly.

Agree with PPs you should cut down on the veg - do you really want mashed potatoes when you have lovely toasties? And I think parsnips, carrots, sprouts and red cabbage is plenty that's not too much trouble because you can, as you say, do red cabbage in the slow cooker, and boil carrots and sprouts in the same saucepan unless you want to dress up the sprouts with bacon etc. - personally I wouldn't bother if you have pigs in blankets.

But of course you can choose to buy some elements - I would deffo buy gravy, or make well in advance (you could make your own chicken stock if you have a roast chicken before Christmas) because I do find making gravy on the day when you're trying to finish off everything else and keep things warm is a pain.

Aunt Bessie will be obliging us with her Yorkshires too . .

I have to say, if a guest said they reckoned they'd be getting a dinner from Iceland, I'd be very tempted to provide just that!

Roasties not toasties - damned autocorrect!

Our turkey is cooked on Xmas Eve and then reheated on the stove or oven in gravy - this stops it from being being dry, frees up precious oven space and also takes the stress away from cooking it on Xmas day.

Another good tip is to keep a list to hand of what you are cooking in order that it needs to be cooked - that way you won't forget anything.

Hey, by the way, don’t get too caught up with trying to remember and mesh together everyone’s nostalgic Xmas favourites.

Your new house, you are the host, you make the new traditions. Take a step back and look at this new house of yours, and both your calendars for that week. What innovations to the meal would properly suit you (and therefore succeed better)?

Buffet laid out in another room, serve yourself?
Healthy, simplified versions of top 3 classics?
Curry?

Seriously, take Christmas by the antlers and make it your own. The beauty of hosting is that anyone who judges or whines is instantly rude & ungrateful. Somewhere on your menu, add in what YOU would enjoy. And strike anything cringingly approval-seeking or martyrish off.

You got this!

I don't do that amount of food and I'm an experienced cook, I think you are doing too much to be honest. You'll likely get yourself in a tizz.
6 different veg, two types of spuds ? Madness.

Loads of helpful advice on here, but I also think you are over complicating it - do you need a gammon as well? And mash, really? And could also lose the Yorkshires - if you are a nervous and inexperienced cook, far better to do a fewer things really well and it will be far less stressful.

If you lost those three items, buy prepped veg and gravy, and work your timings out before, you should be able to do a lovely meal and enjoy yourself

I'm fed up spending my Christmas all day in the kitchen so this year I'm making it very easy. In the days before Christmas I'll make stuffing, mashed potatoes and veg and freeze them to be reheated on the on Christmas day. I reheat mash on hob as it tested better. The veg I'll just blanch, freeze and pop in the oven on the day. I'll skip the actual turkey and use large turkey crowns and ham in their own trays. Much faster and easier to cook. I'll do some roasties in with them. Cranberry sauce from jar and bought in gravy. If I bother with starter might just do melon and ginger and dessert will be pudding and brandy butter (from a jar ) or choice of fancy cheese cake. Cheese/chutney/ fruit board later with port.

Does it taste just as good as mash that you make on the day? That would be an amazing help for me I think! Do you just bowl it up on leave it in the fridge over night?

I'd simplify what you're serving. Concentrate on doing fewer things well. Then they'll be less potential for anything to go wrong.
Turkey - put time and effort into getting this just right.
Roast potatoes - use this cheat to make them amazing www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/295196680
Pigs in blankets
Roast parsnips and carrots - use Aunt Bessie's frozen.
Sprouts
Stuffing - use packet mix
Bread sauce - use packet mix
Red cabbage - use this www.tesco.com/groceries/en-GB/products/295196742
Yorkshires - Aunt Bessie's!

I think pate is a good idea. I'd avoid doing soup or anything hot to be honest as it will take up one of your hobs right at the time when you need them most. Just before the meal we usually have all of our hobs in action at the same time - one for gravy, one for steaming veg, another for the bread sauce and another for simmering the red cabbage.

I usually make the mash without butter or milk and freeze in spoonfuls. Take out of freezer on morning I'm using it. I heat in saucepan on low heat and add butter and milk. My mum would just defrost in microwave bit I think that gives reheated taste. It should work fine just leaving in fridge overnight. You could do trial run some day you have potatoes for dinner.