Try to keep words such as “grisly orgyâ€, frenzy, nightmare, frantic, stressed-out and overwhelmed out of Christmas dinner by preparing as much as possible ahead. The stuffing can be made (but not put in the turkey until it is about to be cooked), potatoes can be parboiled and “roughed up†for a good crust, and in Australia we can bring the kettle barbecue into action to free up space in the oven. Or either the ham or the turkey can be prepared the day before and served cold on Christmas Day.
Make a list of all you need to do and when – make shopping lists for what can be done early, a couple of days out and on Christmas Eve. Don’t forget the “ordinary†things such as extra eggs, milk and butter.
And as you go, cross off what has been done – starting with “make a listâ€.
Four weeks ahead
Buying alcohol and soft drinks now will save stress later.
Order turkeys and hams – making sure they are not too big to fit in the oven, and there is some room for air to circulate.
Plan your table setting and make sure you have all the platters, glassware and such that you need.
Make mincemeat for mince pies to let it mature.
Make cranberry sauce, mustard fruits, relishes, anything that will keep and indeed improve with time, or can be frozen.
One week ahead
Get the carving knife and cooks knife sharpened.
Have a kitchen timer (or two) ready
Buy all the non-perishable ingredients
Make another list of your cooking action plan, including a plan of what has to fit in the oven when.
Clean out your fridge of all the things that you might use one day but haven’t in a while. You’re going to need lots of room and probably an eski on standby.
Two-three days ahead
Defrost the turkey
Prepare stuffings and put them in the fridge
One day ahead
Set your table and polish glasses and cutlery
Make dessert
Prepare the glaze for the ham and score and stud the ham with cloves. You could glaze it too and free up the oven on Christmas Day.
On the day
Take the turkey out of the fridge at least an hour before it is to be cooked
Heat the oven
Follow you plan
Keep your cool, laugh off mistakes and enjoy the day!
Safety first
When you have prepared well ahead, be careful to thoroughly defrost any frozen food, especially the turkey, and properly reheat food from the fridge.
We over-cater at Christmas and there will be lots of left-overs. Don’t leave food out of the fridge for too long – get left-over turkey in within an hour and use it up within the next two days or freeze it promptly, only ever bringing as much out of the fridge as you are going to use. Do not reheat turkey more than once.
Wrap leftover ham in an old pillowcase or tea towel that has been rinsed in water and vinegar at a ratio of 5:1 and rinse the towel every two or three days. Cut from the ham what you think you will need for a meal, and keep the rest in the fridge. It will keep this way for a couple of weeks, so cut up and freeze what you do not think you will eat in that time.
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