Simple and Delicious Christmas Cooking Tips and Recipes
Plan Ahead
Your Christmas Countdown
A stress-free Christmas starts with good planning.
Weeks Before
- Make Christmas pudding — it improves with age
- Order your turkey — from your local butcher
- Stock cupboard essentials — spices, dried fruit, nuts
- Make & freeze mince pie pastry — You can roll and cut the pastry to shape
- Write your menu — and shopping list and your prep list
Christmas Eve
- Make cranberry sauce — keeps well in the fridge
- Cook red cabbage — prepare and braise ready to reheat
- Make stuffing — refrigerate ready to cook
- Prepare the turkey — See my recipe for the perfect roast Turkey
- Prep vegetables — peel, chop, and blanch vegetables and potatoes
Christmas Day
- 9:30amPre-heat your oven
- 10amRoast the Turkey (see recipe, timings depend on the size of your Turkey)
- 11:30amTurkey out to rest, covered with foil
- 12pmMake the gravy, cook veg and potatoes
- 12:30Set the table and serve your starter
- 1pmCarve the Turkey and serve!
“The secret to a relaxed Christmas Day? Do as much as possible in advance. Your cranberry sauce, stuffing, and even gravy base can all be made days ahead. On the day, you should be enjoying time with family, not stuck in the kitchen!”
— Raymond Blanc
Christmas Recipes
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Kitchen Secrets
Raymond's Top Tips
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The Perfect Turkey
Remove from fridge 2 hours before cooking. Season inside and out. Baste every 30 minutes.
Crispy Potatoes
Par-boil for 10 mins, drain and shake to rough up edges. Use hot fat and don't overcrowd.
Silky Gravy
Make stock from giblets the day before. Deglaze the roasting tin with wine, then add stock.
Brussels Sprouts
Halve them, sear cut-side down in hot butter until charred. Season with salt and a squeeze of lemon.
Resting Meat
Always rest your roast for at least 30 minutes. Cover loosely - the temperature will continue to rise.
Timing is Everything
Work backwards from serving time. Write a timeline and stick it on the fridge!
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Boxing Day Leftovers
My mother taught me "you shall waste not" — and Christmas leftovers offer wonderful possibilities. Transform your turkey into a warming curry, hearty soup, crispy croquettes, or the classic Boxing Day sandwich. Leftover bread becomes a comforting bread and butter pudding. Here is one of my favourite ways to use those precious leftovers.
Leftover Turkey Curry
A quick and easy way to use up your leftover turkey. Turkey is low in saturated fat, high in protein, and packed with B vitamins — so don't waste it!
See the recipe
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