Preparing Christmas lunch or dinner is no menial task! We all want to avoid the stress and rush of trying to deliver an entire Christmas feast with all the trimmings while our guests are milling around relaxing and entertaining themselves. The secret is to plan ahead to ensure that you give yourself enough time get the food on the table as well as catch up with family and enjoy a festive beverage or two. Whether you’re having an intimate dinner for 5, or a buffet lunch for 35, these tips are sure to help your Christmas Day run smoothly.
8 Things to do before guests arrive:
- Gravy
Make your gravy a couple days prior to Christmas day. Freeze the gravy in a suitable container and defrost when required.
- Stuffing
Pre-make the stuffing a few days before Christmas and either place in an oven tray and freeze so it is all ready to cook once defrosted, or you could cook and then freeze if you know you will be short on oven space on Christmas Day.
- Marinades & Sauces
Whether you’re creating a delicious dip for your prawns or a zesty salad dressing these are perfect to be made 1-2 days before Christmas. Simply place in airtight containers and store in the fridge for optimum freshness.
- Vegetables
Begin preparing the vegetables for your roast the day before. Peel, chop and store away in the fridge. Then all you need to do on the big day is take them out and pop them in the oven.
- Prawns
If you are serving prawns, peel and clean them the day before Christmas. Place the ready-to-go prawns in a bowl, securely wrap with plastic and store in the fridge.
- Turkey
These days, most turkeys can be bought pretty much ready to cook. But if you’re planning to go above and beyond it’s a good idea to start prepping your bird on Christmas Eve. Deboning, rinsing and patting dry or marinating as well as preparing any fillings like stuffing or onions and herbs can all be done the night before and stored in the fridge.
- Dessert
Hail the Christmas desserts! The best part about desserts – apart from how delicious they are – is that they can be made days, weeks, sometimes even months in advance and stored away for Christmas. Christmas pudding can be made months in advance, biscuits can be made weeks prior and mousse can be made a couple days before Christmas and easily served straight out of the fridge.
- Table
Lay out your linen, crockery, cutlery and festive decorations like garlands, bonbons and personalised place cards on Christmas Eve. This also helps to map out where all your food will be placed and ensuring there’s enough room for everything.
This takes care of a lot of the time-consuming jobs required to get a beautiful Christmas feast on the table. Preparing as much as you can in advance means that you’ll have more time to relax and enjoy the special day with family and friends.