Xmas Dinner help?

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Its the very 1st time I'll be cooking Xmas Dinner and I've no clue what I'm doing. Dad normally cooked it for 10 of us. Dad passed away this year so to take the burden of mum they are all coming to mine. What do you normally have? What's a must?

This is not a bad place to start

www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/plan-your-christmas-lunch

You don’t need to do everything on their menu plan and you can buy ready made versions of things like cranberry sauce, but if you want to it’s all fairly simply laid out.

Also look out for the Christmas issue of BBC Good Food magazine- probably the November one and available sometime in October. It will have ideas and a time plan. The advantage of this is that they will have something new/novel so unlikely to be too like your Dad’s meals - there will be something different, even if it is still fairly similar. Because stores know lots of people will be following their recipes if they have picked a 'new' ingredient it should be easily available in supermarkets.

I'd practice a new dish or two every week between now and then and pick the ones you like best.

You say you're a confident cook and you've 2 ovens so go for it. Stuffing (2 types at least here) can be made ahead.

Veg and spuds peeled the day before and kept in pans in water.

Batter for Yorkshire's made day before

Prawn cocktail or pate starters can be made and kept cold in fridge.

Buy or make pigs in blankets

Buy ready prepped sprouts. Just less faff.

Have all your condiments and sauces and goose fat for cooking the potatoes in.

Buy disposable trays!

Keep it simple. You don’t need masses of different veg/side dishes, or 2 different sort of spuds. Just roast is fine.

I second the timetable.

Working backwards from when you want to sit down to eat, write down absolutely everything, including switching the oven on, and putting potatoes on to parboil.
Bear in mind that a turkey will keep hot for a good hour, if wrapped in foil with tea towels on top, which gives you loads of time for roast potatoes, Ps in Bs, and veg.

A smaller piece ditto for a good half hour at least.

Then write it out in time order, and put it somewhere you can easily see it, e.g. on the front of the fridge, not anywhere it’ll get splashed with fat or have something else dumped on top of it.

Did your dad have any special recipes or ingredients he liked to use that you know of? It might be nice if you could do some of the things in his style. Not if it would upset anyone of course, but I am sure he will be in your minds anyway if making the dinner was his thing and it might be nice to carry on some of his traditions.

I've just pre-ordered most of the things for ours from the butchers to collect on 24th.

We normally have turkey and pigs in blankets from the butchers, cranberry sauce, yorkshire pudding (as kids love it), roast potatoes, boiled potatoes, cauliflower cheese, sprouts, long broccoli, carrots.

Then Christmas pudding with a white custardy sauce.

It can be worth pre-ordering things so you have them reserved in advance. Exact food is up to you and lots can be bought ready prepared if that's easier for you. Practising on Sunday lunch is a great idea, it can be fairly straightforward if you stick to simple things or you can add more complex things to it. The turkey can take ages to cook so its worth checking timings well in advance for that. Our cat always gets very excited but a bit frustrated sitting by the oven for so long.

I'm keeping the Brussels recepie the same as mum loved them. I'm hoping farmfoods will be open so I can pick up some easy done bits.

I would definitely recommend practicing roast dinners with a chicken between now and then. It’ll really help you get familiar with your oven (my roast potatoes need to be on a high shelf, while the meat needs to be lower in mine to come out at their best) and get you used to working out timings. As a pp said, once you know how long everything takes, you can decide what time you want to eat and work backwards from there.

Our turkey goes in at 7-8am ish. I used to put butter in between the skin and the meat but I don’t tend to bother anymore. Make a tinfoil tent over the bird, baste it two or three times while it’s cooking and then take the foil off for the last 40 minutes to brown the skin. When it should be done, stick a skewer (or long, sharp knife) into the bottom parts of the bird. You’ll want to see clear juices coming out. If they’re still a bit pink, whack it back in. If no juices at all come out, make extra gravy! In our house, (following Gordon Ramsey) it rests for as least as long as it cooks. Cover it in tinfoil, tea towels and a normal towel and it will stay hot. Birdseye do individual packets of steamed vegetables that can be done in the microwave in 2 minutes which are an absolute Godsend. I hate aunt Bessies with a passion, so if you’re not a confident Yorkshire pudding maker, practice now and once you get a batch you’re happy with, pop them in the freezer to be defrosted Christmas Eve. Eight minutes in the oven to crisp them back up and they’ll be perfect.

I dont know if you have or would get a slow cooker? They are so handy. I always do my ham in that on Xmas eve and just saves the oven space. Again you could practice that now or for a Sunday dinner. You can put spices in, glaze or coca cola whatever works.

I've done it a few years and make what I can in advance, peel the veg etc and a cold starter like salmon or pate usually helps. Also a bit of time in between courses.

This year I am investing in those warming trays as only have 1 oven and that's my challenge keeping everything warm at the same time

Good luck it can be fun (honestly) a bucks fizz and music always helps and give others jobs to help xxx

Yes I have a slow cooker too 😁. I have most kitchen gadgets thankfully. Will be doing a trifle too which is soo easy. Can't decide if I should make meringues too. Dds favourite food.

The thing we do that makes things easier is sort out all the serving dishes, I even stick little paper labels on each. That way when things are done I don't have to work out where they're going.
Also I know it's very Delia Smith but I write out a plan with timings. (Invariably dinner is served two hours later than planned but everything is cooked, people have more fizzy wine and no one cares!)

I actually use my slow cooker for the gravy on the day as it frees up the stove (I make it a couple of days before loosely following Jamie's recipe then just add meat juices on the day)

I make loads ahead of time - roasties are done so they just get bunged on a tray to heat through/crisp up, braised cabbage done and just needs warming up, sprouts part steamed ready to stir fry with bacon. All I do on the day is cook the turkey and pigs in blankets and roast carrots/parsnips which have also been part steamed the day before.

Definitely a good idea to practice a roast a few times in the run up. If you will need to use two ovens for the day I would use both of them even if your practice roast is small enough to only need one, so you get used to the ovens, any temperature issues and using both of them at the same time.

Pigs in blankets are dead easy and quick to make in advance, and much nicer than shop ones. Best quality fat pork sausages (not chipolatas) cut into thirds with scissors, wrap each in half a rasher of streaky bacon, 2 of those on a cocktail stick, pack into a tupperware and freeze.

I make mine (lots!) a good month in advance.

I am so sorry you will be missing your dad this year. Family is so important so don't put any pressure on yourself. Raise a glass to him, remember and enjoy.

I have cooked for 17 with a single oven. My top tips - turkey rolled butterfly. This can rest for 90 mins while you cook everything else. Things like stuffing and mash and be pre cooked and microwaved. Have something in the slow cooker - I usually cook my pigs in blankets with the turkey then they sit it the slow cooker once ready.

Important note: you will probably not enjoy the dinner. You will probably think it's not very nice! It's a very unfair consequence of cooking a massive meal for hours on end. But it will be fabulous and you will love the leftovers. And you will be very proud.

Im so sorry for your loss. 💐

Go look at deliasmithonline.com

Lots of good ideas for Christmassy stuff that is a bit different. All the recipes are very reliable (she the only cook that I will do the first time with guests as it always turns out as described)

There is also a suggested timeline and adjustments to turkey timings based on the size of bird

There is a variety of difficulty so you can mix and match easy and harder dishes

My personal mantra is that anything I can, I make ahead. I will. So stuffing, bread sauce, par cooked bacon rolls all go in the freezer
Cranberry relish stays in the fridge, Pud and cake sit on a cool shelf.
All done in November.

This year as the supply chain is a bit bumpy, I am buying my turkey this week and freezing it. Usually I get a fresh one on the 23rd. I am also getting crackers and other things in early too. But I have a more complex situation as I am trying to host a British Christmas meal in the US, so cant get some stuff very easily.

The week before Christmas plan seating, dishes, where to serve from and cooking timings and then write it down so you dont forget and have a last minute panic on what to do.

Christmas Eve, carve out an hour or two to prep, lay the table, take things out of the freezer, get dishes and crackers out etc. From painful experience, dont have too many drinks before you do this!

Can you think of a few ways to honour your fathers memory at Christmas? It might be hard to be without him for the first time. Maybe have a candle burning on the table for him and put together a photo album of him to be looked at on the day?

You want to make life as easy as possible for yourself. Prep all of your veg and put in saucepans xmas eve night. A lot of recipes such a cauliflower cheese, stuffing, pigs in blankets etc can also be prepped and refrigerated the night before, only needs to be baked before eating. Cook the turkey the night before too! I also prepare and bake the yourksire puddings and red cabbage a few weeks before hand and then freeze so only need to be thawed and reheated. You could also ask other guests to give you a hand, ask someone to bring the starters if having any and someone else to bring dessert. Set the table on xmas eve too or even on the 23rd. Put out all the wine glasses, cutlery, Crackers etc.

I am so sorry for you and your family's loss. The 'firsts' are so hard, and Christmas, one of the hardest!

One suggestion, there's a lot of Christmas magazines out at the moment, a lot of them have countdowns with the relevant times to do what for Christmas dinner - and they also rate a lot of the pre-prepared options from the supermarkets - might be a help?

We have our Christmas dinner later in the day (somewhere between 4 and 5 pm usually) and it’s great - no worries about strict timelines and timings as it really doesn’t matter, it’s ready when it’s ready. Also means you don’t need to get the turkey in the oven first thing which means you can have a leisurely morning enjoying the day instead of stressing. We always have a special breakfast/brunch on the day.

It’s really not a big deal - as others have said, it’s a roast with a few extra sides, that’s all. Most important thing is not to put yourself under too much pressure to make it perfect.

The most important piece of equipment you’ll need, if you don’t already have one, is your meat thermometer - as long as you have that, you can know with certainty that your turkey will come out fantastic without any worries about potential under or over-cooking. Remember it will be much improved for resting for at least one hour, preferably a bit more, so once your turkey is done you can then focus on potatoes and sides without any stress.

We do one roasted vegetable side (something like carrots and parsnips with a lemon, honey and thyme glaze), one pre-made vegetable side (ours is always braised spiced red cabbage as it lends itself very well to being made in advance and frozen, then we just microwave it on the day), and one hob-cooked vegetable side (some variation of sprouts, first steamed then fried/sautéed with bacon & chestnuts or whatever the case may be). Then also pigs in blankets and a tray of stuffing. That’s all easily doable in the hour or so that your turkey is resting.

We make the gravy last, after the turkey has rested for a good, long while.

We always do a ham on the 23rd or 24th. It’s nice to have it ready for Christmas Day so that in the event of any drastic delays/absolute disasters, there’s something festive to be had. However you could also pop it in the slow cooker overnight so it’s ready on Christmas morning.

We don’t do starter(s). Instead, we serve canapés and bubbly earlier in the afternoon so that no one gets hungry whilst waiting for dinner. Mince pies and biscuits/chocolates are set out and tea/coffee. We have a huge dinner, so no pudding is necessary straight after dinner. Later in the evening if anyone’s peckish we serve Christmas cake, cheeses, charcuterie and accompaniments. As well as a turkey sandwich for anyone who fancies it.

Oh and I had meant to say I’m very sorry for your loss.

Very to miss loved ones especially at Christmas . This will be my first Christmas without my Dad too . Though He never cooked dinner for 10 people

My parents were not really Christmas lovers ( but both church goers so very involved in the meaning of it)
They got too frail to travel .

I know our Christmas Dinners ( and mine still is ) very traditional . No heavy sauces or heavily flavoured

If I cook any chicken it is roasted with bacon on the top to keep it moist (then take the foil off to crispy it )
Chipolata sausages for DS
DD DH and I are vegetarian so we have a nut or Quorn roast
Roast potaoes (in sunflower oil) roast parsnips
Steam carrots , sprouts, new potatoes
Swede steamed then pureed
Paxo stuffing cooked in a loaf tin , sliced
There have to be Yorkshire Puddings
Red cabbage (I buy that)
Bread sauce
Gravy (made with the vegetable water ) vegetable bisto and a Knorr vegetable squishy gravy pod
Chestnuts (I buy the precooked ones and heat them then put next to the sprouts)

What you can do ahead is make sure you have enough plates , glasses , platters , serving dishes , serving spoons or tongs . Gravy boat , sharp knife to carbe
I don't like foil trays to roast in , I have heavyweight trays (someone else washes up if I cook)

I do the vegetable preparation the night before and put in bags in the fridge . (Except potatoes , I do them on the day

I've done some parboiled , shaken up and rolled in oil then in the freezer . I'll cook them tomorrow and if it works , brilliant .

No starters.
Pudding if anyone has room otherwise it can sit a while .

When I had guinea-pigs they knew they got the vegetable trimmings
Now we have cats and they're all Chicken you say ....?

Apart from the organisational parts, it's probably worth giving some thought to the day yourself while it is still quiet. (Before the madness of the season kicks in).

The first year after a significant loss is always hard.

The first year with a new baby is always different as you figure out what still works and what you need to change to deal with the new realities of life.

Make time for yourself to acknowledge and remember DF over the course of the day and the season. Whether that's his favourite recipe for something, having a photo somewhere, having his favourite sweater over the back of a chair for DM to snuggle into. Something that you can remember him by, but not cause upset for others by being too much, IYKWIM.

Some families like to do toasts and speeches at some point in the meal. Or to say grace together (a prayer) before starting. So it could be nice to remember the good and bad things about the year and look to the new future ahead of you all.

We do it quietly in our house on 24th, when the youngest lights the Irish traditional Christmas candle and we remember the good and bad of the year just finishing, as well as those no longer with us. After that, we open our Christmas Eve hamper (some bits reused every year like DD's stocking and our family edition of "Twas the night before Christmas", some new bits yearly like new winter PJs, bath bombs and hot choc's for everyone) before starting into the bedtime routine, so its a quiet and gentle evening before the chaos of the next day.

I just mean give some thought to how you are likely to feel, and also how the rest of the family are likely to feel on the day. and on how you can reflect on and remember your DF with love, and hopefully not getting too upset. But having a quiet spot for people to go if they do want to take a moment might also be a useful thing.

The best tip I have which I think I saw on a Jamie Oliver program is to par boil the potatoes, carrots and parsnips (carrots and parsnips only cut in half so they cook at a similar rate to the spuds) all together. Fluff them up and roast in fat all together too and it makes that part of the meal easy peasy.

I agree with cooking the turkey first then wrapping it up well to rest and freeing up the oven for all the veg. Also if you're doing yorkshire puddings then home-made ones freeze really well and can just be put in the oven once the rest of the meal is almost cooked to heat through from frozen (like Aunt Bessie's but way better.)

We never do a starter.

M&S turkey
M&S cranberry stuffing
M&S pigs in blankets
M&S mash
Cranberry sauce
Nice chocolatey pudding from M&S

Homemade roasties
Homemade red cabbage (Sainsbury’s recipe with orange and port)
Gravy
Carrots
Broccoli
Homemade trifle (Delia Smith recipe)