How do you time your xmas lunch in terms of oven logistics?

[oliveroses]

I’ve had some pretty difficult Xmas lunch-cooking experiences over the years, but I’m going to do more prep ahead and warming up precooked veg dishes this year.

I cook a roast every week so I don’t see why it always gets so complicated and takes so long. Other than it’s Christmas and the volume of food required.

two main questions: 1) I know everyone says that the heat is lower/power is reduced because the whole country has the oven on. But in a modern fan oven if it says it’s 200 degrees it is - right? So it may take longer to heat up but it should be the correct temperature during cook time?

2. I’m guessing it takes longer because there are roasties for 8 in the oven instead of 4, and the oven is full. Over the years has anyone come up with a calculation or method that successfully readjusts the timings?? Do I just put everything in half an hour early for instance?

very glad for mumsnet views on these festive matters 🤭 🍗 🥔

Last year we cooked the meat the day before as it takes longest, and then only cooked veg and sides on the day.

Yes, assuming your oven is working properly (and is not an Aga or similar) 200 is 200.

Potatoes take longer when they are more crowded in the tray. If you can, better to spread them out over two trays. It's not a temperature issue, it's about circulation of air.

If you are doing turkey, that can be cooked well before and then rest for an hour or more freeing up the oven for everything else.

If the oven is more crowded / full than usual, the fan air can’t circulate as effectively, so it takes longer, as you’re not getting the fan oven benefit as much.
And for things in big oven trays like roasties etc, the more crowded they are, the longer they take to brown nicely. I get this with oven chips - if you do them all on one tray it takes longer than spreading them out across 2 trays (I don’t mean at Xmas!!)

I don’t have any exact formulae for it, but I note how long things took in prev years under same circs, and adjust in my notes. I’ve got a big timetable for the day, and I’ve learned to stick with it!

Key thing is not trying to have turkey and roasties in at the same time. Turkey can be out and keeping warm while I cook basically everything else. I get the pigs in blankets done earlier as well and wrap them round in foil and towels to keep them warm. (Not quite as long as the turkey though).

Hostess trolley to keep everything warm?
Essentially cook the turkey and set aside whilst you do everything else.

I usually prep everything in advance.
Parboil and freeze the spuds, and cook from frozen.
Red cabbage, cauliflower cheese, nut roast ready to reheat. Pigs and stuffing ready to cook.
Buy some items - gravy, cranberry sauce. yorkies, Aunt Bessie parsnips.
Cook the turkey and leave it somewhere to rest covered in foil and towels.
Then cook the veg and sides.
Christmas pudding in the slow cooker if you have one.
Pigs in the air fryer if you have one.
Foil trays for everything (I save them during the run-up to re-use then bin).

Sort out serving dishes beforehand and label contents with a post it note.
Then when guests/family offer help, they can decant, cover and bring to the table.

Thank you - this is all very interesting and I hadn’t realised it was about air circulation. We usually do beef for Christmas but it’s slow roasted so not time-critical. We are lucky as we have a double oven so I can do meat in one and roasties in another. I heard Waitrose do good ready made Yorkies so I will try to get those! And yes, we must have pigs in blankets! it doesn’t really matter how hot they are …

@ShaunaOfTheDeadhow do you do a pudding in the slow cooker??

last year I got frozen pre prepped veg from a good place, which I won’t name as I really like them and it wasn’t their fault it didn’t work out. The oven stuff took forever and so much of it had to go in the microwave that there was a huge log jam! Never again. I know that sounds a bit horrid really - we had lovely fillet steak and it was a good meal. It should have worked but in practice it would have been easier to cook from scratch.

We do the meat, pigs in blankets and stuffing the day before. Than there’s just veg and Yorkshires to do on the day.

Turkey cooked first and wrapped in tea towels and tin foil to rest.
whack the oven temperature up for roast potatoes and parsnips to go in next.
pigs in blankets and stuffing go side by side in the top oven

We have a cold starter.
The turkey comes out and rests, along with the cauliflower cheese/leeks. It all stays hot.
Potatoes (usually frozen, ready roasted) go in, and I make gravy.
pre cooked pigs in blankets and stuffing balls go in. And we eat our starter, do crackers and fizz.

Everything gets served up. I have a hostess trolley for the veg now, but used to use the slow cooker and microwave to keep everything warm/reheat things.

We don’t do Yorkshires with turkey.

How do you heat the meat?

Just get it to room temp then the hot gravy heats it up on the plate.

Cook the meat then wrap up in foil and tea towels to keep warm and rest. Then cook sides. Prepping the cauliflower cheese etc the night before. Meat will be fine resting for a bit

Stuffing balls and pigs in blanket go in the air fryer.

I have a steamer bowl that goes in the microwave with broccoli and cauliflower.

Meat cooks first and then rests while the oven is cranked up for roasted vegetables.

Fresh pre-made yorkshires cooking in minutes.

Meat rests under a loose piece of foil and then a mountain of clean tea towels. If you’ve got a particularly cold house stick it in a cold bag to insulate it, covered in towels.