The most wonderful time of the year is nearly upon us. It’s time to wrap presents, drink mulled wine, and wonder if you’ve left enough time to finish everything.
Every year millions of people sit down together on the 25th December ready to indulge in a festive feast. And every year, millions more people in kitchens up and down the country, get stressed trying to prepare said Christmas dinner.
Well, no more! 2024 will be the year of prep, organisation and out-of-this-world food. We’ve spoken to some of the world’s most renowned chefs, bakers and foodie influencers, to get their expert tips on creating a Christmas dinner to remember.
As Michelin Star chef Tom Kerridge says: ‘Above all else, really don’t stress about cooking. Enjoy it. If you enjoy it, the food will taste loved and that’s the most important thing.
Although we agree with Tom Kerridge, a little prep won’t go amiss. We’re going to cover eight key aspects of the infamous Christmas dinner including roast potato tips, alternative dessert ideas and how to make the most out of your leftovers.
Let the Christmas cooking begin!
How to cook Christmas dinner like a pro
8 steps to create the perfect festive feast!
Step 1. The meat
Let’s start with the star of the show, the meat. Meat is a crucial element of the Christmas dinner and often the part people find the most stressful.
Firstly, choose your meat selection based on timings and preferences. Who says you need to have a turkey for Christmas if you hate it? If you feel more comfortable cooking beef, opt for that. Chicken is always affordable at this time of year too. You can spice up your meat choices with seasonings and sauces so don’t be afraid to ditch the turkey in favour of your top choice.
Don’t take our word for it either. Colin Nicholson, chef and owner of Mingary Castle, which holds three AA rosettes, has decided to do something similar.
‘I've decided to opt for venison this Christmas Day, served with all the traditional trimmings. It’s a great alternative to turkey during the festivities as it's in season, has a great flavour, and is healthier for you than other red meats. It's also really easy to prepare and cook at home.
‘Two great venison options are saddle or haunch. With a saddle, you'd just cook like a regular steak in a hot pan – frying then leaving to rest before serving. The haunch offers a brilliant roasting joint, perfect for the family at Christmas.’
Venison not for you? Try beef Wellington, pork shoulder, marmalade glazed duck or a vegetarian tarte tatin.
Choosing turkey
If you are opting for turkey, Rob Mitchell, Executive Chef at Drake & Morgan advises:
‘I recommend a dry brine for turkey, which you do a day in advance – it leaves a juicy turkey with the crispest skin! To dry brine your turkey, pat all over with paper towels and generously rub a mixture of good quality sea salt, black pepper and a little light brown sugar all over and inside the turkey and leave for at least 12 hours in the fridge.’
Alternatively, Dean Harper, creator of Harper Fine Dining, suggests creating a zesty brine.
‘Start by preparing the turkey: season it thoroughly, inside and out. A dry brine using salt, pepper, and citrus zest rubbed onto the skin boosts flavour and keeps it juicy. Roast it slowly with garlic and fresh thyme for a tender, aromatic finish.’
Once you have your turkey brined and ready, it’s down to cooking times. Gordon Ramsay shares his Christmas top tips on TikTok. It’s all about prepping your turkey on Christmas Eve and getting it in the oven first thing on Christmas Day.
‘Honestly, first thing half past 5, 6 o'clock in the morning, put the turkey in the oven on low. Nip back to bed for a few hours.’
By getting your meat in the oven early and prepping your other veg and sides the night before you can spend the morning with the people you love.
When it comes to turkey timings, a general rule of thumb is to allow 20 minutes per kilogram of turkey. Take the weight of your bird, times it by 20 and you’ll have your total cooking minutes.
For a more detailed breakdown, Jamie Oliver’s website provides the following list of turkey weight/cooking times.
- 4-5kg – cook 2¼ to 2½ hours
- 5-6kg – cook 2½ to 3 hours
- 6-7kg – cook 3 hours to 3½ hours
- 7-8kg – cook 3½ to 4 hours
- 8-9kg – cook 4 to 4¼ hours
- 9-10kg – cook 4¼ to 4½ hours
We also asked Adam Bateman, Executive Chef at Straits Kitchen, Pan Pacific London, how he achieves the perfect Christmas turkey.
‘Buy a meat probe – it takes all the guesswork and worry out of cooking your turkey or salmon, especially on Christmas Day. It’s game-changing.’
Step 2. Taking roast potatoes to the next level
It’s not Christmas dinner without roast potatoes! A staple on every plate, these crispy, carby sides are essential.
To help you create show-stopping roast potatoes, we asked Marcin Szelag, Group Executive Chef of The Rocksalt Group, to share his delicious roast potato recipe.
Marcin Szelag’s ultimate roast potato recipe
Ingredients
- 1 kg of Maris Piper potatoes
- 500g oz of duck fat
- Thyme
- Rosemary
- Salt and black cracked pepper
Method
- Wash, peel and remove any black spots from the potatoes.
- Cut the potatoes into even sizes, ensuring there are straight edges and right angles. This is easier to achieve with large potatoes.
- Place the potatoes in a large pan and cover with cold water.
- Season the water well. It should taste like the sea.
- Bring the potatoes to a slow boil.
- Cook until they are nearly cooked and then drain the water for about 25 minutes.
- Once drained, place the potatoes back in the pan, put the lid on and then shake firmly, so that they start to break up on the outside, not all the way through.
- Place a heavy-based roasting tray over two hob rings, add the duck fat and melt.
- Put the potatoes in the tray and turn over with a fish slice. You are looking to achieve a golden crisp colour on the potatoes. The colour does not need to be even all over.
- Once the potatoes have a good amount of colour and before they start to burn, place them in a hot oven at 220ºC/gas mark 8 and roast until golden all over.
- When ready to serve, sprinkle with thyme and rosemary.
We couldn't talk about roast potatoes without including TikTok’s very own self-acclaimed potato queen. Michelin-trained chef turned social media star Poppy O’Toole has dedicated her TikTok to creating the perfect potatoes.
Her #24christmaspotatoes challenge was loved by her 4.4 million followers and is worth exploring for alternative roast potato ideas. From Camembert aligot to honey bacon feta crispy cubes, she’s the go-to account for levelling up your potato game.
Step 3. Cooking the perfect vegetables
Getting your greens in is essential at Christmas, but they’re often the most overlooked aspect of the dinner. For a quick overview, here are 10 potential Christmas vegetables and their average cooking times.
BBC Good Food has a brilliant infographic to help you determine vegetable portion sizes too. You can cook as much or as little as you like but infographics like these are useful when costing or averaging out cooking times.
Portion sizes can help you plan cooking times and budget your Christmas dinner effectively.
If you’re feeling overwhelmed with options choose two good vegetables (aside from your roast potatoes). Focus on your chosen two and use added spices and flavours to bring them to life.
CEO and Executive Chef of The Cinnamon Collection Vivek Singh’s secret weapon is tamarind.
;’Tamarind. Whatever sides you go for, a simple jar of tamarind pulp will bring them to life. Add it to your vegetables or potatoes in the last five minutes when they’re almost roasted, and it will make everything taste so much fresher, livelier, and lighter as it cuts through all the fat - thank me later!’’
We also spoke to Steve Scoullar, Executive Sous Chef at Cameron House, who suggests: ‘Instead of steaming your sprouts this Christmas, try roasting them with olive oil, chunky smoked streaky lardons and chestnuts.’
Brussels sprouts with spicy honey and smoked almonds bring a rich contrast, while swede and carrot mash with nutmeg offers a comforting, traditional touch.
Chef Dean Harper
Alternatively, season your vegetables with much more traditional flavours like honey, rosemary and thyme.
Seven festive veggies to make on the big day
These times may vary depending on your oven so be sure to do your research!
- Sprouts: boiling 7-9 minutes, roasting 10-15 minutes
- Broccoli: boiling 2-8, roasting 18-25 minutes (depending on floret size)
- Carrots: boiling around 5 minutes, roasting 15-40 minutes (depending on thickness)
- Parsnips: boiling 10-15 minutes, roasting 20-40 minutes (depending on thickness)
- Red cabbage: boiling 3-5 minutes, roasting 30 minutes
- Red onion: boiling 10 minutes, roasting 30 minutes
- Swede: boiling 12-15 minutes then cubing or mashing, roasting 33-55 minutes
Roasting your vegetables is also a brilliant time-saving option. Providing you have enough oven space, root vegetables can share a baking tray and seasonings. Potatoes, parsnips, and carrots can share a tray as they have roughly similar cooking times (just keep an eye out for the last 10 minutes!).
Similarly, your sprouts and broccoli can share a roasting tin while your onions sit with your meat, absorbing all its delicious juices.
Step 4. Discovering the Christmas dinner side dishes
There’s endless Christmas dinner side dish options but to help you narrow down and plan, we’re going to focus on just three.
Pigs in blankets
Pigs in blankets are a tasty Christmas Day addition which can be snacked on all day. Nathan Anthony, AKA @boredoflunch on TikTok, shows you how to take yours to the next level using brie and cranberry.
This recipe is brilliant because it’s easy, can be prepped ahead of time and all the ingredients are available in shops. It’s also great because it can be cooked in the air fryer, saving you precious oven space and time.
Stuffing balls
Another item which can be prepared is stuffing. There’s plenty of ways to make your stuffing extra special. The wonderful Mary Berry suggests combining sausage meat, onion, bread crumbs and lemon zest for a hearty stuffing.
Monica from Ambitious Kitchen also has a delicious stuffing recipe which includes sourdough bread, mushrooms and bacon.
Make both these recipes on Christmas Eve (prep or cook and reheat) and cover in the fridge till the big day.
Yorkshire puddings
A British classic, Yorkshire puddings are beloved by the nation and make mouth-watering side dishes. Born and bred Yorkshireman and TV chef James Martin shared his top tips for getting the perfect puds on This Morning.
‘Eight eggs, eight ounces of flour and a pint of milk. You need to make it the day before, or at least four or five hours, chill it in the fridge. Mix everything by hand, don’t do it by machine or it toughens up the flour.’
Yorkshire puddings can also be baked and then frozen, ready to be reheated on the day. Bake and freeze yours a week before Christmas for the ultimate prep hack.
Here’s also some fun ways you can make your Yorkshire puddings more Christmassy.
- Add sage and rosemary into your batter mix
- Use red onions in your batter tins (BBC Good Food recipe here)
- Fill your Yorkshires with sauces like cranberry, apple or bread sauce
- Make mini Yorkshires and use them as canapes, finished with slices of beef and horseradish
Step 5. Making the ultimate gravy
Adored by the world, making a good gravy is one step you don’t want to miss. We asked three chefs for their tips when it comes to making top-tier gravy. Eran Tibi, Executive Chef at Kapara and Bala Baya recommends:
‘Adding date syrup or date purée to gravy creates a beautiful, balanced flavour. Another way to up your gravy game is to add shawarma spice so it becomes a mix of sweet, spicy and salty flavours.’
Benjamin Ferra Y Castell, head chef at the Michelin-starred Pavyllon London, says: If you’re making gravy with red wine, don’t forget to add a square or two of dark chocolate – this will give extra body to your sauce.’
For a complete made-from-scratch recipe, head to award-winning Tom Kerridge’s website which includes a gravy recipe made from honey, soy sauce and melted butter.
Catherine Falls Commercial
Step 6. Extra sauce options
There’s two sauces the Christmas table needs and they’re both classics. Cranberry sauce and bread sauce are delicious and help balance your holiday plate perfectly.
Cranberry sauce
Cranberry sauce can be premade and stored in your fridge, ready for the 25th. It’s a wonderful addition and a must-make, especially when it comes to assembling impressive leftover concoctions.
There’s some fantastic alternatives out there too. Epic Yard Farm shows you how to make a pomegranate glaze, a sweet alternative that contrasts beautifully with rich meats.
Chef influencer Marcie Bidou, @flavourofthemoments suggests adding orange to your cranberry sauce for a zesty touch. While dietician Miranda Hammer recommends cranberry apple ginger chutney.
Bread sauce
Loved by the British, bread sauce is a Christmas dinner delicacy made using milk which is thickened with bread crumbs. Festive spices can be added to the mixture to create a warming sauce. Think nutmeg, thyme, garlic and bay leaves.
Nigella offers a great vegan-friendly bread sauce recipe using soy or rice milk. Perfect for lactose-intolerant guests too!
Step 7. Time for dessert
Your meat is in the oven, vegetables prepped and sauces made. Now it’s time for something sweet. When it comes to pudding, choose family favourites.
Traditional desserts like Christmas cake, yule logs, Christmas puddings, and sticky toffee puddings are all decadent options.
If you’re going the traditional route, legendary chef Rick Stein shares some great tips on his website. He suggests buying a Christmas pudding to cook in the microwave.
‘By doing this you’ll save over an hour, as cooking your pudding this way should only take 5-10 minutes. Giving you back some vital time to host or concentrate on juggling the other five things you’ll no doubt be cooking.’
Rick Stein
You can find Rick’s special Christmas pudding recipe here.
For those of you after something a little different, why not go international? From the Italian dessert panettone to stollen from Germany, there are plenty of gorgeous desserts from around the globe. They are sure to add a little international magic to your Christmas table.
When asked what their alternative Christmas dessert pick would be, Chef Dean Harper says: ‘A chestnut and black forest trifle served in glasses adds a twist on the usual pudding.’
Dean Parker (co-owner and head chef at Michelin Bib Gourmand-awarded Celentano's) says: ‘Our affogato is our signature dessert, both at Christmas and all year round. Although it may not be your typical luxurious Christmas dessert, we combine chocolate and malt to really up the indulgence, using a fruity chocolate so the dish doesn't taste too intensely rich.
‘I find texture to be super important when creating an indulgent dessert for Christmas and tend to add something crunchy such as a rye crumb or toasted buckwheat.
‘When it comes to making a dessert extraordinary, you really do just have to focus on flavour. Some people focus too much on how something looks or the technique when it comes to pastry, and end up overcomplicating the dish.’
Step 8. Transforming your leftovers
The bellies are full, the table has been cleared but the food joy isn’t over yet. Creating delicious leftovers with your Christmas dinner is integral to fighting food waste and reaping the benefits of your cooking all over again.
Clive Dixon, Michelin star holder and head development chef at Cleaver & Wake, says: ‘You may find yourself left with meat trimmings for a few days after the 25th. What you do next will depend on the meat.
'Here at Cleaver & Wake, one of our festive stars of the show this year is venison haunch – which is a delicious cut which is steak-like, and we use the ‘seam butchery’ technique to give the most tender results.
'We braise the rest of the venison with a red wine jus, to create a beautiful ragu. When served with fresh pasta, smoked bacon crumb, chestnuts and olive oil, there is simply nothing better.
‘For turkey, I’d coat any spare shreds of meat with herbs and breadcrumbs and fry them to make ‘scrumpets’. Paired with an acidic sauce like a caper or anchovy mayonnaise would make a light and tasty dish for enjoying many days after Christmas day.’
For something a little more continental, Chef Niklas Ekstedt, Ekstedt at The Yard offers a Christmas pyttipanna.
‘Make something special with the leftovers – a Christmas pyttipanna. Chop turkey, potatoes and any leftover vegetables and fry everything together in a large pan with some butter, he says. ‘Add in a few festive spices like cinnamon and cloves, before serving with lingonberry jam for a delicious Swedish touch!’
We hope you enjoy incorporating these professional chef tips into your festive dinner. Wishing you all a very food-filled Christmas!
Find your perfect roasting tray
Want to find the best roasting tray for Christmas tray? Check out our pick of the best tried-and-tested non-stick roasting trays and take the stress out of the big day.
