Forum Topic

Favourite Christmas menu?

What's your favourite menu for Christmas lunch? Is it turkey, or perhaps beef or do you favour lamb or pork? And the trimmings? What about puds?

Gerry Tan ● 4905d12 Comments

Oh yes - the Barolo.Trouble is that it is still too young when they put it on the shelves in the shops.One has to keep it under the stairs for a few years to have it at its best.

Tony Colliver ● 4904d

I like a drop of port and brandy of a Christmas evening.Consumed with a little Stilton and a few crackers if I still have any room for food.I mulled some cider last year which we had after a long walk .Warmed us right up.

Keith Iddon ● 4904d

The stollen you get in the UK is FAR too heavy.I used to love it when my sister-in-law came over from Holland each year armed with the stollen and schokoladenhagl (chocolate hail).Sadly, she is back in the UK full-time now.Beef needs a robust red and my choice, when i can afford it, is a bottle (or more) of Barolo.

Nigel Brooks ● 4904d

What wonderful suggestions for an ideal Christmas lunch and what warm recollections - I like 'em all, thanks. Forgot to ask...what drinks do you favour?This year, we're gonna go for some Aberdeen Angus rib of beef, with some Yorkshire puddings and the usual vegs, accompanied with some simple Beaujolais followed perhaps by by stollen cake or maybe trifle. Can't wait.

Gerry Tan ● 4904d

When I was growing up and mum was in charge of catering, Christmas dinner was a real tour de force, we had practically every meat.  She never went to bed on Christmas Eve but stayed up all night cooking.  Obviously there was Turkey, Pork, Aitch Bone of Beef, a whole ham on the bone and pressed tongue.  Her stuffing was legendary and actually we probably all wanted the stuffing more than anything else parsley & thyme bread stuffing which was pure magic.  I hate Christmas pudding but mum had to make several because my dad loved it fried in butter (evidently this is delicious).  She did all this without even a kitchen.  We were homeless living in what was called a halfway house in Chiswick and we were a family of 5 living in 1 room but I have never had better Christmases than I had then.  It was a huge house with many families in the same situation and all day people were in and out looking to be fed or just for a Christmas drink.Then it was my turn to feed the bears and I followed her lead but without the tongue (not because I don't like it but I don't have the skill to cook it) and christmas pudding.Nowadays I am happy to say that my son in law is a chef who does it all (almost as well as my mother did)and the day starts very early with a huge buffet breakfast with Champagne and continues throughout the entire day with an assortment of offerings leading to the main meal which everyone is probably too full to eat.  I cook the ham but Gerhard does everything else and a real banquet is too!

Bernadette Paul ● 4905d

Anything as long as there are no sprouts!I'm making a Moroccan couscous stuffing this year.Includes chicken livers,toasted flaked almonds,sultanas  a few capers and a little honey.

Keith Iddon ● 4905d

ps - I forget the horseradish sauce - essential for the beef.This comes from Waitrose these days,but before he passed away some years ago now it was homemade by my father-in-law, a master greengrocer, who used to dig the fresh roots from Boston Manor Park and prepare his own the (very) hard way.(I always used to wonder what would happen if the parkies caught him at it, but, as he was a master of the art of the gab I suspect he would have been able to talk his way out of it!  Besides, the stuff does grow as a weed...)Needless to say, the shop bought product is no match.

Tony Colliver ● 4905d

I absolutely love the trad xmas dinner.This all takes place courtesy of my sister-in-law who hosts the extended family plus old friends who would otherwise be alone.The menu:beer (starter!)turkey with all the trimmings -  pigs in blankets (cocktail sausages wrapped in bacon)  sage & onion stuffing (almost the best bit!)  mushy peas (home made by soaking dried peas overnight - essential fare!)  carrots  sprouts (of course!)  cauliflower cheese  roast potatoes  boiled potatoes  bread sauce  cranberry sauce  turkey gravy, and, on occasions (see below), beef gravyIt has long (60+ years) been a tradition of this particular extended family gathering to also offer home cooked boiled gammon as well - very popular with the older members.Once or twice in recent years beef has also been served as an alternative choice for those that prefer it instead of (or even as well as!) the turkey.We even cater for the occasional vegetarian (and have recently starting giving a nod to some kosher faire now that one of my nephews has married into a delightful Jewish family)followed by a choice of:    xmas pud w. custard (sometimes sherry custard) or cream (sometimes Cointreau cream) or brandy butter    homemade trifle (yum!)    coffee & xmas cake to followThis can all be rather a strain on the one family oven (actually a pair of large ovens, but it is still a strain) so we usually cook the turkey, the gammon, the mushy peas, and the roasties in West Ealing and then load them, the kids, and the family dog into the car and hot foot it the mile and a half or so down to Brentford to engage with the rest of the feast-goers.After that lot there is generally very little enthusiasm for the usually planned for but rarely taken up late evening turkey sandwiches after the party games, so they will have to wait until boxing day whereupon they will be consumed voraciously as the clan reconvenes for a second stab at things.I no longer try and have a little bit of everything as I find that one rapidly runs out of plate (!), so I focus on the turkey, sprouts, mushy peas, roasties, and stuffing with trifle for afters.

Tony Colliver ● 4905d

Sashimi from Ataria in West Acton for me, Followed by xmas pud with custard and double cream, stopped doing traditional Christmas many years ago.

Tony Maxey ● 4905d

Smoked salmon cornettes (stuffed with prawns)Turkey covered in oak smoked bacon to keep it moist, with parsnips, potatoes, carrots, sprouts, peas, chestnut stuffing, lemon and thyme stuffing, little sausages, and bacon rolls (from the bacon that covered the turkey).Crhstmas pudding (currently pre-steaming as they were made this morning)with brandy butter and cream.All done to a tight budget (I'm a shop around specialist)and shared with my family and two or three people from church who would otherwise be on their own not out of choice.We save the red cabbage to go with the gammon and cold turkey from Boxing Day onwards.

Nigel Brooks ● 4905d

Your Christmas menu sounds delish! Love duck and love goose too - our kids hate sprouts 'n red cabbage. As they aren't gonna be with us this Christmas, we'll go with sprouts and cabbage! Bon apetit!

Gerry Tan ● 4905d

We're having duck this year, with roast potatoes, sprouts and red cabbage. We had pork last year, rolled and stuffed, I suspect with the same veg.Never anything but Christmas pud, usually with pouring cream so it's not all too heavy. We're not Strasbourg geese.

Susan Kelly ● 4905d