NO Christmas lunch on Christmas Day!!!

[Staringatthetiles]

Has anyone ever done this and if so what was your alternative?

I don’t want to go into the reasons why but would love to hear if anyone opted out of cooking Christmas dinner especially any creative alternatives that will appeal to a family of 5 with 2 preteens.

The Indian we are going to is standard prices but they offer a special leg of lamb thing which isn't usually on the menu
It's pretty cheap to eat there and most people go repeatedly so it's like a big extended family - some of us exchange cards and gifts now!
McDonald's was open one year when I was working

@NotMyCat

Is it lamb Modhu?

It's made with honey and mint. That's my favorite from the local Bangladeshi take away.

I have not had curry for a wile, I may have to order one tonight.

@BetsyBumble

I'm amazed by all these restaurants and takeaway places being open on Christmas Day. In NI - apart from hotel-type Christmas lunches - I believe everywhere else closes!!!!! Are pizza/Chinese/Indian etc restaurants open on the 25th in each of England, Wales and Scotland then?

Maybe not in smaller places where front of house and delivery staff might be locals who celebrate Xmas but in cities where extended families who don't run takeaways then there will be plenty options. Some will close for the above reasons or simply as they don't think it's financially viable to be open but the reduced number open will generally be enough to cater for the reduced but present demand.

Doing the roast turkey with all the trimmings this year for sure.

2 years ago was In NY for Christmas and had meatballs and spaghetti with garlic bread at a fab Italian restaurant .

Love reading every ones alternatives though!

[quote sashh]@NotMyCat

Is it lamb Modhu?

It's made with honey and mint. That's my favorite from the local Bangladeshi take away.

I have not had curry for a wile, I may have to order one tonight.[/quote]
I'm not sure to be honest! I'm not a lamb fan but it's about £40 to share (for 2) and comes with loads of sides. My parents said it was lovely and it did look really good
The staff even gave me free brandy and wine to take home after seeing me eye rolling at my relatives too much

@TyrannosaurusRights

I think we’re planning our Christmas dinner for Christmas Eve. It still won’t be a roast, just whatever we fancy as a nice meal.

Christmas will be toddler focused. DH is obsessed with ‘party food’ so I’ll do that as a lunch and something easy in the evening.

My vote would be for nice bread, cheeses, etc but as I’m pregnant I’m saving that for after the birth (when I can enjoy it with a glass of wine).

We've done that, big roast for Xmas eve, then lots of nice food especially loads of artisan smoked salmon, nibbled through Xmas and Boxing Day as everyone opens presents/ plays lots of board games/ watches films or Xmas telly

Re timing, there are only 4 of us, so a Xmas roast dinner doesn't take very long to cook (the kids prefer chicken or duck to turkey).

So not difficult to do a Xmas eve dinner.

I don't have to take annual leave to do Christmas Eve turkey dinner because my work and DPs shut down at lunchtime on the 24th. The in-laws are normally staying over so they can get the turkey and stuffing out of the fridge to get it up to room temperature and put the oven on and one of us can stuff it and shove it in the oven when I get home at 2pm and then prep the veg.

We are doing steak this year

@YesThisIsMe

I don't have to take annual leave to do Christmas Eve turkey dinner because my work and DPs shut down at lunchtime on the 24th. The in-laws are normally staying over so they can get the turkey and stuffing out of the fridge to get it up to room temperature and put the oven on and one of us can stuff it and shove it in the oven when I get home at 2pm and then prep the veg.

I wfh so could stick the turkey in the oven, it's all the other bits and pieces that take the time! I am allowed to finish work at 4,30pm on Christmas Eve so theoretically could do it. There are only 6 of us for Christmas and I could rope DS2 into doing the veg prep. I might run it past the family to see what they think

A few year ago we decided to go on a Christmas Day hike in the Lake District. It was so much better than our usual plans, I often get quite bored on Christmas Day. I work them now but at the time I didn't.
We took a picnic with ham sandwiches from a gammon I roasted Christmas Eve, lots of nice snacky bits and a flask of tea. On our drive back to the North East we picked up a Chinese takeaway and ate that watching all the Christmas TV specials. It was the best Christmas I've had. Such a nice day! Had Christmas "dinner" on NYD.

This year we are doing it on Christmas Day. Our main meal is going to be a buffet picnic style meal piping hot. And a cheese and fruit platter, a must on Christmas Eve, we love nibbles around here.

It’s just me and my two kids of Xmas day - so we have the dinner in the evening and party food on the day. But no one likes Turkey so I just do the trimmings! And buy quite a lot of them in (as save on not having a Turkey)

I'm thinking of just doing a party food buffet this year. I want to do some redecorating over Christmas so saving effort on the cooking will help.

I've not made a Christmas lunch now for a few years. No way am I spending all afternoon tending to a turkey dinner!
It's a day to just relax for our family but I do make a mean brunch.
Then we just eat buffet stuff / all the cheeses etc. We have an open door policy so family and friends can come and go.
I also have something like a hotpot available just in case someone wants something more substantial. My fil loves my lamb, port and cranberry hotpot so if they pop round I've something to offer.

We go to a local Indian restaurant on Christmas day. We've done this for the last 8 years, they are lovely people and ring us every year now to ask if we are coming.

They do a choice of curry or traditional meal but we all have curry. Its perfect, we have a lovely meal, it isn't expensive and means no cooking or washing up and we can just spend time together. We have it early ish so can go for a walk after if we want.

@PuggyMum a hotpot sounds like a great idea...I might do one of those in advance for Christmas lunch and then only have the veg to prep and cook on the day itself...

Pudding is made already (Nigel Slater's fab recipe) so all I've got to do to that is steam it and add ice cream...

I feel more relaxed about it already

I usually have the traditional Turkey meal but once had German sausage and sauerkraut, had roast chicken the year after.
Heard the “trad” Christmas meal in Japan was a KFC family bucket !

Getting my bits from Iceland this weekend the frozen stuff anyway turkey crown in amongst it, love that for sandwich with pickilili but it has to be milder sort, feeling much happier now, Christmas cake brought this weekend as well.

My Mum & her partner have a lovely steak on Christmas Day

We go round on Boxing Day but usually a buffet

@beachtosunset

I would have:

oysters

smoked salmon and amazing bread and butter

Steak and chips OR a whole baked fish and some salads OR a fabulous ottolenghi veggie thing like stuffed aubergines and lentils

Lemon tart

There would be no gravy or sizzling hot anything. There would be no me in the kitchen.

7 adults and 4 kids this year. 🥳😞🥳

We’re going to an Indian restaurant this year. I’m really looking forward to it!

[quote lovablequalities]@beachtosunset

I would have:

oysters

smoked salmon and amazing bread and butter

Steak and chips OR a whole baked fish and some salads OR a fabulous ottolenghi veggie thing like stuffed aubergines and lentils

Lemon tart

There would be no gravy or sizzling hot anything. There would be no me in the kitchen.

7 adults and 4 kids this year. 🥳😞🥳[/quote]
@lovablequalitiesThat sounds delicious! Definitely something for every palate there.

Weird i was saying to the family earlier i would have smoked salmon, lemon wedges and bread. So simple yet effective.

As you are the one hosting, cooking, sweating i suggest you put this out. It's time YOU had a lovely enjoyable 'cooking free' Christmas.

Do they never host or ask you what you would like to eat?

Meantime cheers to your fantasy Christmas dinner .
Sorry i don't drink now but Merry Christmas

Well @beachtosunset let's us have Christmas dinner together! Leaving my ma who doesn't eat fish and my dad who doesn't eat veg and my bil who MUST have bread sauce and my brother who won't do without gravy and my sister who doesn't like untraditional food and my kids who only like unsauced meat and white carbs to away and see to themselves! 🥳🤩😁

Anybody else madly craving a really good curry now after reading this thread?