One oven! One! Five guests. HOW??!!

[roarfeckingroarr]

I'm a control freak who loves to cook and normally do everything at my parent's house with guests and my fiancé. This year we have a tiny baby so people are coming to our London flat. It's going to be me, partner and baby, DP's sister, my dad and his dad. COVID police - bugger off, support bubbles.

We have one oven and one microwave and a job with four spaces. How can I even start to do a proper Christmas dinner?!

Even worse, I won't actually be cooking becauSe of aforementioned tiny baby, so DP and his sister are doing it all while I hold baby and drink champagne. They're not bad cooks but what can I do in advance well so I don't have to trust them with everything?

Loads can be done in advance, either by you or your dp. My sides are all done and in the freezer ready for heating on the day. You can get ahead by parboiling and slightly but not completely roasting your potatoes, parsnips, whatever else you roast and then freeze them once they’re cool with a bit of fat in a freezer bag, ready to put in the oven for half an hour on the day. I also have delia’s braised red cabbage made up in the freezer ready for reheating, pigs in blankets rolled and ready to go, these can all be in the oven whilst your turkey is out resting. Stuffing will be done the day before, and turkey will be prepped at the same time.

I’ve been doing this for the last 6 years and it’s a much less stressful day for it, no chopping or worrying about oven space. Also have some cinnamon rolls made up and frozen for breakfast. I’ve had to learn to be organised for Xmas because the next day is a birthday in our house so I have to squeeze in baking a birthday cake at some point too. It does seem overwhelming if you try to do it all on the day but get a few little bits ready now and it will make it a lot easier. Failing that there are some lovely party food bits around that are freezable, you don’t have to have a big roast.

Do you mean a single oven rather than a double oven? You don't mean you expect two separate ovens? I'd struggle without a double oven to do a Christmas dinner...

@ElizabethG81

This is pure Mumsnet. You obviously need one oven per 2.5 guests, plus one for the baby. Divide the number of ovens by 2 and you can work out how many dishwashers you need.

I have done this for years. The key is to write a timetable. For 5 get a turkey crown only (to feed e.g. 6) - that will allow more room in the oven for other things. Buy one of those extra shelf racks to make 3 shelves (from Lakeland for example). Do as much as possible in microwave (e.g. pre-prepared sprouts, gravy, bread sauce etc) leaving oven free for meat, roast veg and stuffing. Have some veg that is boiled to avoid all veg going in oven.

It’s just a roast dinner. Ok on a slightly bigger size.

I have a steamer for veg.

Turkey or whatever meat cooked and left to properly rest

Potatoes in the oven, gravy on the hob and veg in the steamer.

Sorry I'm used to having two ovens to cook with at my parent's home. Didn't realise I was being a bit ridiculous there - blame the aforementioned baby!

Will read suggestions now - thank you.

@EarringsandLipstick

I've cooked for a lot more than using one oven!

You can make a lot if Christmas dinner ahead eg Christmas ham can be done the night before; turkey could be done earlier, sliced & reheated, sides eg red cabbage, Christmas coleslaw, bread sauce etc [these are things I eat, just for examples!] can be made ahead.

Really only potatoes, green veg need cooking at the time.

And this:

I won't actually be cooking becauSe of aforementioned tiny baby, so DP and his sister are doing it all while I hold baby and drink champagne.

I know you're joking a bit here too, and of course DP & sister should cook too, but how tiny is baby?! You can still do bits for dinner with a small baby!

It'll be fine!

Ahem... baby will definitely be whatever size requires me to do little but gaze lovingly and sip champagne.

Are you joking? How do you think most of us mere mortals cook Christmas dinner? Just sort out your timings. Cook ham on Christmas Eve, turkey and pigs in blankets Christmas morning, take your turkey out to rest and use your oven then for stuffing and potatoes/parsnips. Make gravy earlier and put it on the side, this leaves 4 hob rings for sprouts, carrot and swede, red cabbage and bread sauce. Bread sauce can also be made ahead.

I do the works on Christmas Day with one old fashioned free standing gas cooker. It’s not hard, you just need to plan. Use a slow cooker to reheat your Christmas pudding.

@thelegohooverer

I’ve cooked for 19 with one oven. It’s very doable. Gammon cooked day before. Turkey rests after cooking. Finish gammon in oven (glaze) and oven veg. Hob veg and gravy. Potatoes cook while you eat starter (cold and prepped while turkey is in oven)

19...?! What were you cooking - beef a la bullshit 😂😂😂?

@Lipz

Are you serious? there's 7 of us here and I manage daily, when I have people here I can cook for 30 people. Who even has more than one oven.

I'm used to a double oven and an Aga!

It really is a non issue.

I've had 20 odd and it's fine. Cook the turkey first. Cover it in foil and clean tea towels. It'll still be hot 4 hours later. The do the rest. It's a pretty normal set up 😂

@herecomesthsun

smoked salmon for a starter, it feels special and doesn't need cooking!

microwave the pudding and serve it with cream, ice cream and ready made fancy custard.

M and S for any special trimmings.

Then what you have left is a roast dinner.

easy

(maybe someone could give you a hand if you have a clingy baby?)

My father will do some sort of cold and delightful crab and other seafood starter. Rest assured the clingy baby is being used as a solid excuse to negate any responsibility for producing sustenance for anyone but him. Plus you can drink and breastfeed on current guidance 😀.

Totally normal.

We cook Christmas dinner every year in a simple basic cooker (the type with an eye-level grill). In the last two years everything in the oven has to be cooked at Gas mark 8 or 9 and we only have three working burners on the hob.

The things we have to do are:

• practise a form of Tetris with trays and dishes to make sure we make the most of what oven space we have;

• use steamers on top of pans for veg;

• use a hostess trolley to warm plates and serving dishes and to rest the turkey and keep veg hot while we make the gravy;

• cook the pudding in the microwave - but I would do that anyway.

It is perfectly doable. Generations have done it.

@Popcorntoes

Don't be snide, people- OP is a young mum just starting to enter the true adulthood of having to be the grownup who's responsible for festive meals. Even though you cooked at you mum's before, this is actually the real end of your childhood OP - Christmas won't be the same as it was, ever again. Good luck with your Christmas adventure!

Awww that's so kind! Thank you!

Ok so what you do is you cook the turkey. Take it out, wrap it in tinfoil. Put two heavy towels round it. It stays hot for at least two hours and when you unwrap it steam will be coming off it, it will be that hot. And so well rested. It’s the Jamie Oliver way and it works.

Then you’ve got two hours to use your oven for the other things, stuffing, pigs in blankets, potatoes, parsnips etc. And the hob for gravy and sprouts.

It’s easily doable.

Christ people get really aggressive over small things. I'm finding this really amusing but if I was a sensitive new mum feeling overwhelmed then I doubt I would come back to Mumsnet for advice.

I strongly recommend having at least a double oven. Makes life much easier.

@Bluntness100

Ok so what you do is you cook the turkey. Take it out, wrap it in tinfoil. Put two heavy towels round it. It stays hot for at least two hours and when you unwrap it steam will be coming off it, it will be that hot. And so well rested. It’s the Jamie Oliver way and it works.

Then you’ve got two hours to use your oven for the other things, stuffing, pigs in blankets, potatoes, parsnips etc. And the hob for gravy and sprouts.

It’s easily doable.

😘 see that's what I needed. Thank you.

Sorry should have said two heavy bath towels. Not kitchen towels.

Op, any time good luck,😃

For 5 people?!?!

Very easily!

We normally cook for 15

We always cook our turkey the day before then everything else on the day

Cook the meat Christmas eve
Lay the table Christmas Eve
Peal the potatoes and veg early Christmas morning.

Thats just for starters really

@roarfeckingroarr

Christ people get really aggressive over small things. I'm finding this really amusing but if I was a sensitive new mum feeling overwhelmed then I doubt I would come back to Mumsnet for advice.

I strongly recommend having at least a double oven. Makes life much easier.

But everyone you know, do they all have a double oven or an Aga? How did you think other families managed? 😂

This is my first Christmas as a mum too, and I have no idea how it’s going to work. But honestly, you’ll cope fine!

Just the one turkey between all of you?

I strongly recommend having at least a double oven. Makes life much easier.

Well why haven’t you got one then? 🤔

Is it because.....shock horror........you don’t have room?

As for ‘beef a la bullshit’ - I’m not too sure why people are offering you help with comments like that