What to eat Christmas Eve for dinner?

[MrsPear]

I have no idea. I want something different to what I cook daily but easy. Last year I did tapas but this year I have my mother here and it will go down like a lead balloon. Any ideas?

Does it have to be dinner?

We have a Provencal tradition called treize desserts: three fruits, three dried fruits, three nuts, three sweetmeats and a centrepiece (which for us is Christmas pudding because we love it but found we didn't want to eat it after a massive turkey dinner).

I suspect it was originally designed to be eaten just before going out to Midnight, but we have it at teatime. Because of that we have Full Cooked Breakfast for lunch.

We had fajitas and tacos last year.

We were initially going to have a rack of Wild venision with roast pumpkin, kumara and parsnip, garlic creamy potato mash, with beans and broccoli. With a red wine jus.

But I have mooted that we do nibbles - things like mu-ping, chicken satay, sweet potato and sesame balls with satay sauce, greek lamb satay, mini sausages with marmalade glaze, smoked salmon and dill tarts, that kind of thing. This has had a mixed reception!

Then, it turns out, eldest daughter will be working Christmas Eve, so we could go out to our favourite restaurant, if we could get a table still.

I have also suggested doing a curry night, to which DH was shocked, I tell you, shocked! I then, for sheer shits and giggles, suggested a chinese takeaway, to which he turned a violent shade of puce, and lost the power of speech.

This is so much fun. . .

I like slow cooked lamb on Christmas eve. Easy to prep, I put lots of root veg in with it and cover it with stock and red wine and just leave it on low cooking for a long time throughout the day. Doesn't require much prep time, little washing up and tastes great.

We almost always have party food, the things you just shove in the oven and pick at over a couple of hours with lots of fizz.
Occasionally we have had Chinese takeaway too but we live too far these days.

I don’t want a sit down meal on Christmas Eve.

We get the kids together with their cousins very Christmas Eve and always have roast pork and apple sauce rolls.
It’s bloody marvellous!

We always go to McDonald’s in the car and then drive around on a Christmas lights tour.

On Boxing Day though I put a gammon in the slow cooker and we have that with either chips or leftovers. Yummy and easy.

Beef brisket in the slow cooker is dead easy, and delicious. Whack it in Christmas Eve morning and it's ready for dinner.

I can post a recipe if it appeals.

We always have a ton of M&S canapés and champagne at my parents' houses as they have loads of dosh but hate cooking. Suits me just fine.

I’d do something like homemade soup and mince rolls. It goes down a treat at Hogmany as well

Failing that I’d do the lamb a previous posted suggested.

We get fish and chips. It's a tradition because if I'm prepping for dinner for 14 on Xmas day I can't be bothered with cooking.

I don’t fancy big cooking on Christmas Eve, so we have Christmas ham with salad, pickles, and lovely fresh baguette and butter. Occasionally do Christmas ham, egg and chips instead.

Traditionally fish for us (a Catholic thing? Not sure) so it varies between fish pie (easy to prep in advance with a pack of fish pie mix), fish and chips takeaway, and nibbles like smoked salmon, garlic prawns etc.

M&S party canapés and nibbles on Christmas Eve, don’t want a big dinner before the huge Christmas greasy. Is perfect.

We go out for dinner, usually early (5ish) and for pizza. I can’t be bothered to cook and it’s nice to have a glass of wine and eat something we’re unlikely to eat for the next few days.

I agree with soup.

Also you could cook your gammon Christmas eve and then get coleslaw and do jacket potatoes and still do your tapas.

It wouldn't be a lot of work. Tesco do a lovely cooked gammon so even less to do.

We normally order pizza

We either have fajitas or oven pizzas. Nice and simple, and the DC like both. Plus DM stays over so it's easy to make a bit more where needed.

Thank you everyone. The brisket does sound good but mum only eats beef -and I'm doing that as well as Turkey for Christmas lunch. A fishy dinner sounds good - salmon Wellington, Spanish prawns and calamari with picky sides.
Pudding is easy it will be Nigella Yule log.

We have baked ham, with cauliflower cheese, red cabbage and chunky chips. Delish. Also canapés and Champagne.

I always have baked camembert.

Our tradition was always M&S canapes but the quality has not been good for the last 2/3 years so we buy different bits from different supermarkets I make some bits too and then freeze half for the NYE party. There is always a pudding, crisps, cheese and wine.

@GreeboIsMySpiritAnimal
That sounds lovely , could you post ur recipe please

I used to do posh sausage and mash with a red onion gravy from a Jamie Oliver recipe that was in Delicious magazine years ago (and actually aimed at Bonfire Night). It was a good one because my mum and I could have chicken/turkey sausages and everyone else could have pork or beef or whatever.

But now we just tend to get fish and chips. I've gone off fish but I still like it in batter with chips.

@Megan2018

We almost always have party food, the things you just shove in the oven and pick at over a couple of hours with lots of fizz. Occasionally we have had Chinese takeaway too but we live too far these days.

I don’t want a sit down meal on Christmas Eve.

I like that idea too. Mainly lots of fizz