Christmas Cooking Timeline
Tips for serving your Christmas lunch at 2pm for 6 people.
Dishes
Roast Turkey
Stuffing
Cider roast turkey
Glazed apples & pears with sticky shallots
Chestnut & cranberry roll
Creamy parsnip & squash bake
Crisp-topped sprouts
Christmas spiced red cabbage
Buttery caraway carrots
Golden roast potatoes
Bread & walnut sauce
Cranberry & Champagne sauce
Getting ahead
All make-ahead dishes should be kept in the fridge or freezer until ready to be cooked.
Up to one month ahead
- Parboil and freeze the golden roast potatoes
- Make the stuffing and freeze
- Prep the spiced cabbage
Up to four days ahead
- Make the cranberry sauce
- Bake the Christmas pudding if you have made this
Christmas Eve
- Roast the stuffing – keep in the foil
- Boil or steam the crisp topped sprouts and prepare the topping
- Steam the buttery carrots
- Defrost anything frozen in the fridge
- Cut the parsnips and roast
Christmas Day
9.30am: Stuff the turkey, weigh and calculate cooking time. Heat oven to 190C/fan 170C/gas 5.
10am: Put the turkey in to roast (timings based on a 4.5kg turkey).
11am & 12pm: Check the roasting tin- add more cider if needed.
12.30pm: Remove the foil from the turkey to let it brown.
1pm: Leave the turkey to rest. Put the potatoes in the oven to roast, if frozen (if not, put in at 1.10pm). Make the gravy.
1.30pm: Turn oven up to 220C/fan 200C/gas 7. Turn the potatoes and add the stuffing to oven to reheat.
1.45pm: Cover the parsnips with foil and put into the oven to reheat. Finish sprouts, carrots, cabbage and cranberry sauce. Take foil off the stuffing.
2pm: Serve and enjoy! Warm the pudding in the oven’s residual head while you eat.