Have yourself a delicious little Christmas: Tips for making a family feast from three top chefs

WORRIED that Christmas dinner might turn into a turkey?

Stressing out about stuffing?

A trifle concerned about dessert?

Making the big dinner on the big day can be a hard shift but it doesn’t have to be, according to the professionals.

Here, BILL GIBB asks three top chefs their secrets for making things easy on the 25th.

Chef Jak O’Donnell has a crucial secret for cooking the perfect dinner on Christmas Day.

She doesn’t do it on Christmas Day but 48 hours before.

Jak, a favourite on TV’s Great British Menu, from The Sisters restaurants in Glasgow, said: “The biggest mistake people make is thinking they need to do everything on Christmas Day.

“Every single bit of preparation can actually be done prior to that and this year I’ll do it all on the Saturday.

“I want to be wrapping any last-minute presents on Christmas Eve and certainly not stressing on the big day.”

Jak’s starter prawns will all have been defrosted, salmon readied and tomatoes, cucumber and shallots diced and chilled on trays, all just ready to serve.

At the same time she’ll make the accompanying bloody Mary dressing of vodka, tomato juice, crème fraiche, mayonnaise, tabasco and Worcestershire sauce and leave it in a jug.

A sorbet is the intermediate course with an alternative of ham and lentil soup for her 10 dinner guests, that made on the Sunday evening.

And the stress is taken out of the main course, too.

“The roast potatoes can be par-boiled, roughed up in a colander a couple of days ahead of time and then put in a container in the fridge.

“Then you only need to roast them for 30 minutes rather than an hour of total cooking time. They’ll taste just as good as you doing it all on the day.

“All the roast vegetables can be peeled, chopped and in a container four days in advance and then par-cooked two days ahead.

“I’m doing a roast goose with a venison Wellington but if it’s turkey then make sure you factor in resting time.

“People take it straight out of the oven and on to the table when it should actually rest it for an hour beside the stove.

“When it’s doing that, don’t cover it in tinfoil. I’ve tested it and it only dropped by four degrees in an hour. The crisp skin you’ve got from the oven will be spoiled in the tinfoil as the bird will sweat.

“If you have an Uncle George who insists on having it really hot then put your oven to 280 degrees and just 40 seconds of a blast on the surface will do it.”

Jak’s main dessert of clootie dumpling was done weeks’ back and will be served with either spiced orange ice cream, custard or a Drambuie butterscotch sauce – or with all three.

Nick Nairn reckons small can be beautiful when it comes to the Christmas feast.

“I’m going down the turkey route this year but you shouldn’t go daft with the size,” said Nick, who runs cookery schools in Port of Menteith and Aberdeen.

“The golden rule is that one kilo will comfortably feed two people, with leftovers.

“So if there are six of you a three kilo turkey will do. Most people order a massive one that takes ages to cook and half of it goes in the bin.

“And remember it’ll continue to cook for a good 45 minutes when it comes out of the oven. I also do a ham a couple of days in advance and it gives me nice stock to add to the turkey stock.”

Nick reckons nothing lends flavour to his veg of choice, parsnips, carrots and chunks of celeriac, like being roasted in duck fat. Pigs in blankets and stuffing, cooked separately, are also on the Nairn dinner table.

Brussels sprouts may be a traditional accompaniment to millions of Christmas dinners, but many find them unpalatable. That needn’t be the case according to Nick.

“Shred them up the day before and then stir fry them with some lardons of bacon in a couple of tablespoons of water at the end. It takes about five minutes and means you don’t get those soggy, overcooked sprouts people hate.”

It’s all served with a gravy made from some of the turkey fat while the bird is resting, along with white wine for acidity and some gravy granules.

If there are meat leftovers the following day, Nick has the perfect spicy solution already in hand with his homemade curry paste.

“You want chilli, shallots, garlic, ginger, coriander, garam masala and some cumin and mustard. Puree it down in advance and then freeze it in ice cube trays.

“On Boxing Day when you want to use up turkey, then fry that paste in oil before adding your veggies, some stock and coconut milk.

“Add in your turkey, ham or whatever and you have a simple, really tasty curry with no effort.”

Nick reckons you can’t go wrong with some smoked salmon, brown bread and a salad of water cress and apples for an appetising starter.

And it’s all rounded off in the most traditional fashion with a Christmas pudding served with custard.

Brian Maule may have the day off from his prestigious restaurant but he’ll still be the man at the stove cooking the family Christmas dinner.

And it’s a ‘little every day’ approach that will make the big day an easy one.

“Prawn cocktail is a classical starter and that’s what we’ll having,” said Brian, who runs Brian Maule at Chardon d’Or in Glasgow.

“The prawns will be ready in a tub and I’ll have done the tomatoes, spring onions, shallot rings and tomatoes for the salad. I’ll do up a Marie Rose sauce – mayonnaise, tomato ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and tabasco – ahead of time, too, and it’s just a case of assembling it all.

“Parsnip soup is always a good seasonal one as is leek and potato or celeriac and again do that the day before.”

A beef Wellington is on the main course menu for Brian, as it has been for the past couple of years. And a big favourite at this time of year, honey-glazed ham, can be given extra flavour with star anise, rosemary and thyme before roasting.

And he has some tips for those cooking duck as an alternative bird to turkey.

“If you were doing a breast of duck then roast it off skin-side down to get it crispy. You only want to cook it for five to six minutes before taking it out to rest.

“If you’re having dinner at 4pm you could probably do that 2 o’clock.”

Green beans, spinach, carrots, parsnips and wild mushrooms would be Brian’s veg of choice.

Brian will generally have a range of desserts, like Christmas pudding, trifle and pavlova. And a crème Brule, cooked the day before, popped in the fridge then and with the sugar to burn added at the last second, is one lighter alternative. “I’m not really a dessert person, I’m more into cheese,” he adds. “I’d always recommend a selection of French and Scottish cheeses. So, one hard like a cheddar and a soft like a camembert or a brie.

“Then a goat’s cheese, a blue like Roquefort and finally a strong, really creamy one like a Vacherin. It’s from the mountains, so it’s often heated for ski food but it’s delicious cold and just served up on a baguette.”