As Christmas Day rapidly advances, many home cooks will soon begin frantically prepping in the kitchen for the highlight of the holidays – the festive feast.

Christmas dinner can be a daunting challenge for even the most seasoned of chefs, as juggling multiple pans and carefully timing different components can quickly become a recipe for disaster.

Great British Chefs stress that the key to a perfect Christmas dinner lies in the planning. Their team of experts have shared a life-saving breakdown of the best ways to prepare you meal to perfection, whether you are cooking for your spouse or the full extended family.

Christmas dinner checklist

Write a to-do list to make sure that you don’t forget any crucial tasks (Image: Getty/Tanja Ivanova)

  1. Make sure your fridge is stocked with enough food to feed everyone across the holidays until the shops re-open after Boxing Day. Remember that hanger fuels family arguments!
  2. Take stock of your pots, pans and plates to ensure that you have enough to cook and serve your meal in the required quantities.
  3. Remove your turkey from the freezer to allow it to thaw out for you prepare it.
  4. Allocate areas in your cupboards and fridge to store leftover food after the meal is finished.
  5. Make sure that you have stocked up on enough alcohol and teetotal alternatives for the festivities.

Preparation list for Christmas Eve

  1. Kick things off by preparing your stuffing, then cover and refrigerate.
  2. Peel and par-boil your potatoes then pop them in the fridge.
  3. Parboil the Brussel sprouts so that they simply require a quick flash in the frying pan before serving.
  4. Draw up a list of kitchen tasks and corresponding timings that you need to cover on Christmas morning, so that you don’t overlook an important item until the last minute.
Partially preparing your potatoes, sprouts, and stuffing in advance can save you precious time on Christmas day.
Partially preparing your potatoes, sprouts, and stuffing in advance can save you precious time on Christmas day.

Christmas Day dinner timings

  • 8am – Remove your turkey and stuffing from the fridge to allow them to warm up to room temperature.
  • 9:30am – Preheat your oven and rub down the turkey with butter or oil. Add in your seasonings, then fill the bird with stuffing.
  • 10am – Place the turkey in the oven and set a reminder to baste the meat regularly over the course of the day.
  • 11am – Set the table and cover off any final food preparations like peeling or chopping extra vegetables.
  • 12pm – Set your Christmas pudding on the stove to steam slowly, as it will require around three hours to cook through.
  • 1pm – Remove the turkey from the oven. Check that the juices are running clear before leaving it to rest. Next, drain and deglaze the juices to make your gravy. Return the turkey roasting tin to the oven to warm up the remaining animal fat.
Remove your bird from the oven and use its juices to make a gravy (Image: Getty)

  • 1:15pm – Remove the roasting tin and carefully place the potatoes into the hot fat. Give them a stir to coat then return the tray to the oven. Do the same with any other vegetables you plan to roast.
  • 1:30pm – Put the pigs in blankets in the oven, then and keep them warm if they cook under 30 minutes. Boil some water for your other vegetables.
  • 1:40pm – Begin boiling the other vegetables, while keeping an eye on the oven. Check on your gravy ensure it is ready for serving, then keep it warm.
  • 1:50pm – Fry off the Brussel sprouts you prepared on Christmas Eve, along with some bacon and chestnuts. Warm up the plates and bowls for the table, and crack open a bottle of wine to celebrate completing your culinary marathon.
  • 2pm – Call the family in to help carry food through to the dinner table, and enjoy the fruits of your labour.
  • 3pm – Remove the Christmas pudding from the heat and serve it up for dessert, topped with lots of brandy butter.
  • 3:30pm – Serve up some cheese and biscuits for the guests who aren’t completely full, then retire to the living room for a well-deserved rest.

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