The great Christmas dinner thread

[illmonkey]

You’re not far off, the queens speech is tomorrow!

Apparently we have to have a Christmas dinner, I got a chicken, couldn’t find a turkey!

[RC1807]

The pair of you!

Jeez....

[illmonkey]

Let's have it then chaps.

Dinner for 2 this festive day for us. Have missed the deadline for turkeys from the local butchers, don't want to rely on Ocado, guess I'll be driving out to someone who will take my order.

Unless anyone knows a good online company?

[tomsugden]

We are not doing the family thing this year, so can't be bothered with all the prep and cooking of turkey and all the trimmings. We are going back to the 70s and doing a meat fondue with fillet steak, chicken, prawns, homemade sauces, and garlic bread. I'll do a ham on the big green egg on boxing day.

[geeks]

Will just be us, mother in law and wife's son this year, apparently I still have to do Turkey so there we are! Turkey (boned and rolled) and smoked black bacon ordered from the local country farm. Fortunately as there is only 4 of us (rather than the usual 8-10) it wont take long to prep or cook!

[omniflow]

tomsugden said:

We are not doing the family thing this year, so can't be bothered with all the prep and cooking of turkey and all the trimmings. We are going back to the 70s and doing a meat fondue with fillet steak, chicken, prawns, homemade sauces, and garlic bread. I'll do a ham on the big green egg on boxing day.

I love a good meat fondue - we used to have one every New Years Eve. I'd say a blue cheese sauce, a teriyaki sauce, a sweet curry (coronation chicken style) and a sweet chilli sauce would cover that protein selection nicely. Jacket potatoes are a good accompaniment to a meat fondue.

I'm totally done with Turkey - we're having beef wellington this year - chestnuts in the duxelle and sprouts as one of the veggies are my two nods to Xmas. I did a practice run a few weeks ago and it was pretty good.

[R56Cooper]

Looking forward to Christmas dinner. Got big plans this weekend to make this https://www.deliaonline.com/recipes/collections/li...

Have also been making this for the last few years and it's always gone down a treat https://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/chicken-recipe...

Oven went pop the other day so replaced with a nice new Smeg, much more internal space which will make my life easier.

Hoping for a couple of hours tucked away in the kitchen with a supply of booze, occasional nip of Auchentoshan American Oak and John Coltrane on the stereo

[prand]

R56Cooper said:

Looking forward to Christmas dinner. Got big plans....

Hmmm.... I'm not really looking forward to Christmas this year, most of the fun I get at Christmas is seeing friends out and about, a couple of trips up to the pubs in London and having family and friends over, though the whole Christmas period.

My kids have also said they're not keen on a big turkey this year, as they get fed up of endless turkey leftovers, so am considering winding back the meal to be just a roast topside of beef with Yorkshires.

Though strangely the idea of just having just 5 of us as a family together on Christmas Day does have some appeal.

Then of course we will still need a smoked ham, pigs in blankets, devils on horseback, chestnut stuffing with sourdough breadcrumbs I've been collecting in the freezer over the year, cheeses, chutneys, smoked salmon and about 5 pannetones that I eat constantly through December. And all the wine, port, beer and spirits I've been stashing away quietly.

So perhaps Christmas won't be so bad after all!

[Tickle]

This year,
Nibbles, cheese bread bowl (blacksticks blue) with pigs in blankets for dipping.
Starter, salmon with dill, caper and lemon sauce
Main, fore-rib, beef gravy, roasties, kale, roast sprouts with lardons, buttered carrots
Turkey crown, not my cup of tea but its been requested, so to accompany I’m doing two stuffing’s (traditional sage and apple and five spice) stuffing butties for Christmas eve supper!

[LeadFarmer]

For this years Xmas dinner we might resort to licking the condensation from the kitchen window, and we’ll be grateful.

[Tony Angelino]

Tickle said:

This year,
Nibbles, cheese bread bowl (blacksticks blue) with pigs in blankets for dipping.
Starter, salmon with dill, caper and lemon sauce
Main, fore-rib, beef gravy, roasties, kale, roast sprouts with lardons, buttered carrots
Turkey crown, not my cup of tea but its been requested, so to accompany I’m doing two stuffing’s (traditional sage and apple and five spice) stuffing butties for Christmas eve supper!

Pigs in blankets dipped in melted blacksticks blue?

[Tickle]

Tony Angelino said:

Pigs in blankets dipped in melted blacksticks blue?

Yes, I hired a guard for them last year.

[eyebeebe]

Christmas Eve will be truffle fondue

Christmas Day will be
Starter/nibbles: Home-cured jerk Gravadlax with orange mustard or cream cheese on crackers
Main: Bourbon brined bbq turkey, roast potatoes, honey roasted parsnips, carrots, bacon sprouts, Yorkshire pudding*, too many** pigs in blankets
Dessert: Christmas pudding and a to be determined alternative
Cheese course either before or after dessert depending on whether we are feeling English or continental on the day

Turkey will be a 5-6kg freshly slaughtered bird sourced locally. Not 100% sure how many people are coming. It could range from 4 to 6, but my girlfriend and I enjoy turkey leftovers, so turkey bacon and leek pie, turkey curry, turkey soup and turkey sandwiches will be on the menu for Boxing Day and beyond.

I‘ve had quite a lot of success this year with spatchcocking chickens for the bbq, so I may do the same with the turkey.

• it may not be a traditional accompaniment, but I like them, so we‘re having them.

• impossible

[illmonkey]

I’m having a gravy dilemma! I’ve only managed to get this stuff as a base: https://www.waitrose.com/ecom/products/essential-g...

Any suggestions on how to beef (turkey!) it up?

Or do I scratch it altogether?

[Tony Angelino]

Does anybody boil / roast the gammon on Christmas eve and finish cooking / glaze it on Christmas day?

[Big Rig]

This year I’m having findus crispy pancakes, chips & beans.

[Morvan]

Tony Angelino said:

Does anybody boil / roast the gammon on Christmas eve and finish cooking / glaze it on Christmas day?

Yes. Though I'm about to do the ham today lots of Dijon mustard, honey and dark brown sugar for the glaze.

[RC1807]

Tony Angelino said:

Does anybody boil / roast the gammon on Christmas eve and finish cooking / glaze it on Christmas day?

I cook all the meat, except pigs in blankets, on Christmas Eve, and have prepared all the veg too.
Christmas Day is then much simpler with only veg, stuffing and pigs in blankets to be cooked.

[V8mate]

RC1807 said:

I cook all the meat, except pigs in blankets, on Christmas Eve, and have prepared all the veg too.
Christmas Day is then much simpler with only veg, stuffing and pigs in blankets to be cooked.

Me too. The meat slices much better when it's cold - I then warm the slices back up in a big roasting pan with the gravy, on the hob on Christmas Day.

[Tony Angelino]

Thanks all. When cooking and glazing ahead of time, surely you miss out on the benefit of the glaze? I will defiantly boil it in advance, still need convincing to do the lot on Christmas eve though, the glaze is one of the best bits for me!

Cooking the turkey ahead of time seems a good idea, warming it back up in the gravy.