Boxing Day evening “help yourself” meal ideas

[Flippyflops2021]

Please can you tell me your plans for Boxing Day (or other similar family gathering ) evening meal?

It will need to be buffet type of things for around 8 adults and 5 children.

Normally I would do:
Gammon
Cheese
Biscuits
Salad
Homemade small sausage rolls
Pickles

You get the idea!!

Just wondering if I should maybe mix it up this year 😄Doesn’t have to be a cold meal, but definitely one I can leave out and everyone’s helps them self.

All of the above are a cold buffet, I would add
chutneys
Crusty bread
Mince pies
Christmas cake

Boxing Day is for leftovers!

Cold turkey and ham, bubble & squeak and/or salad, mashed potatoes (you can make these ahead and freeze)

Any leftover nibbles, sausage rolls, cheese, crackers etc

Mince pies, leftover Xmas pud, reheated custard

We used to have chips. So cold meat, pickles and chutneys, and a few trays of chips

@MissyB1 I didn’t really write an exhaustive list, i usually do also provide what you’ve mentioned! Along with cream, brandy butter other desserts etc.. your list is making me hungry though..

@VanCleefArpels I won’t actually have leftovers as we at family for Xmas day!! So this is ‘from scratch’ really…

@FlowersFlowersEverywhere Chips sound great!!
just thought- how about chips with toppings? Bbq pork, or a Christmas dinner (turkey stuffing and cranberry sauce) style one, or Stilton and something??

I would add warm crusty bread rolls and some kind of potatoes - baby boiled, mini baked or roast potatoes

Turkey curry! If you don't have Christmas leftovers you can make it in advance and freeze.
Heat it up and have it is a slow cooker on the 'warm' setting all evening

Is this your main meal of the day? What will you have at lunch time?

On Boxing Day we always have our main meal at lunch time, but it is usually cold meats, warm stuffing and pigs in blankets (always make double on Christmas Day specifically for Boxing Day) bubble and squeak, various salads, pickles, crushed and roasted garlic new potatoes, quiche.

Then in the evening do a supper of cheese board, pates, crackers, celery, grapes, figs, nuts etc. If people want it I may bake a Brie or Camembert with some sourdough dippers.

So basically if it ain’t broke don’t fix it!

No leftovers! We are elsewhere xmas day

@AtleastitsnotMonday it will be main for us, but my siblings will have been at other houses for lunch which will have been a roast of some sort.

So it kind of has to satisfy those who have already had main meal and us who haven’t!!

To be honest, by the time I get to Boxing Day, I want simple uncomplicated flavours, so chips with toppings is probably a step too far for me.
What I do make in the week after Christmas every year is Christmas Leftovers pasta bake: meat, chopped veg, stuffing, penne pasta and a bechamel sauce. You can also dot chunks of cranberry sauce through when you mix up the meat, veg and pasta, and then just pour the bechamel over the top of everything. Something I look forward to every year!

I see what you mean!!

I'd add things like coleslaw, potato and/or Russian salad

Sausage rolls
Mince pies
Cheese and fruit platters
Yuletide cake
Salad
Quiche

If most people will have had some kind of traditional Christmas lunch the day before, it might be nice to have something quite different, e.g. a grain-based salad rather than potatoes, a quiche, fine, but not sausage rolls as well, a couple of lighter puddings with fresh fruit instead of mince pies and Christmas cake (lemon posset, creme caramel . .). Maybe some Middle Eastern style dishes like baked stuffed aubergines and courgettes? I appreciate you might want to have some simpler stuff for the children.

Thanks @Bloodybridget I don’t think some people actually read or understood my post.

What I listed above was what I usually do, I want to do something different.

I have been looking up recipes for Moroccan food. So will do a Tagine plus other smaller things and a fresh dessert of some kind.

I would try to prepare the main dish in advance if you can, so that you can enjoy family catch ups and not be stressing in the kitchen. Maybe slow cooker roast lamb leg, really beautiful pulled texture and self saucing so no need to fuss with making gravy, could do it with Greek or Moroccan seasonings so less traditional Christmas vibes. Couscous salad with pine nuts, herbs and pomegranate, massive stack of flat breads, green/red salad, various dips, you could make or get shop bought. Easy to just pile on a table and hand everyone a plate to get stuck in.

Dessert, stick to something light maybe fruity, mini cheesecakes or pavlova? Although that's traditional Christmas in Aus where I'm from! But easy to make ahead of time just add cream and fruit when you serve it

@NewbieSM that does sound amazing and most can be prepped in advance. I always manage to do a decent roast leg of lamb. I think I’ll go for this. Will probably be a better idea than tagine, as the kids may not like the spicy/rich sauce.
Thanks ☺️

Huge disposable foil tray of macaroni and cheese, it's like molten lava when it comes out of the oven so stays hot a while. Look up the Nigella Xmas one made with condensed milk.

Leftovers
Cheese and fruit platters

Seems you've already decided but I would probably do something like pulled pork served with rolls and coleslaw, maybe some sweet potato fries or wedges.

Then a cheese platter & crackersand a chocolate and fruit platter. With a plate of mince pies/ Christmas cake/Stollen if you have any of those things in anyway.