We’ve worked out the perfect running plan for your Christmas Day. It’s a foolproof timetable of exactly what to do and when, designed to remove any stress from your Christmas cooking.
We’ve worked backwards from having everyone sitting at the table, smiles on faces and ready to tuck in at 2pm, but you can easily push it earlier or later if you want. Just work backwards from the time you’d like to eat.
These are Jamie’s ultimate festive recipes. Buy your copy of Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook for masses of super-useful tips and clever recipe ideas for a truly memorable Christmas Day!
Visit our Christmas Hub for more festive recipe inspiration
GET-AHEAD: CHRISTMAS EVE JOBS
You can do all the prep for your stuffing the day before (find the recipe on p.166, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook). Reserve 250g of the mixture to stuff your turkey. Cover the raw recipe with tin foil and pop in the fridge, ready for tomorrow.
Follow all of the PREPPING steps in the recipe (p.54, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook) to get your bird ready. Once covered with tin foil, pop in the fridge overnight.
Get these prepped and lined up in a tray (find the recipe on p.164, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook), then cover with tin foil and pop in the fridge, ready to cook tomorrow.
You can easily get ahead with these spuds – follow the recipe (p.108, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook) until you have parboiled and fluffed-up spuds covered in your chosen fat, then simply cover with tin foil and leave somewhere cool overnight, ready for tomorrow.
Cranberry sauce
This is a quick job that’s easy to get done in advance (find the recipe on p.158, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook). You can reheat it tomorrow if you want a warm sauce, or enjoy it cold.
Now is a good time to get creative and set your Christmas table, ready to go. Delegate this job to the kids or ask another family member to help you out, if you can. Or, get yourself a glass of bubbles and enjoy it!
CHRISTMAS DAY – LUNCH AT 2PM
7.20am
Jamie’s Christmas turkey – Bring your turkey out of the fridge and let it come up to room temperature, before beginning the recipe for COOKING your bird (p.56, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook)
9.00am
Begin Christmas turkey recipe, by preheating the oven to specified temperature
9.20am
Put your bird in the oven
11.15am
Remove the foil covering from your bird
12.00pm
Take the turkey out of the oven and test whether it’s cooked, according to the recipe tips. Leave to rest for up to 2 hours, according to recipe instructions
Christmas gravy – Complete Jamie’s Christmas turkey instructions, by turning the vegetable trivet into your Christmas gravy, according to the turkey recipe (p.56, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook)
12.15pm
Best roast potatoes – Continue this recipe where you left off yesterday (p.108, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook) and put the potatoes in the oven
12.35pm
Christmas gravy – At this point, you should finish the gravy recipe and have it ready to reheat when you serve
12.45pm
Cranberry sauce – If you’ve not made this in advance, it’s a good job to get done now while you’ve got some free time
1.00pm
Best roast potatoes – Take your spuds out of the oven and complete the recipe instructions, before returning them to the oven
1.10pm
Meat stuffing – Get this in the oven
Glazed carrots – Crack on with this recipe (p.132, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook)
1.20pm
Pigs in blankets – Get these in the oven
Brussels sprouts – Choose your preferred Brussels sprout prep (from p.134, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook) and begin this recipe now
1.40pm
Christmas gravy – Heat up your gravy. Warm up your serving jug separately by filling with boiling water
Cranberry sauce – Now’s the time to reheat your sauce if you’d like it hot
1.50pm
CHECK EVERYTHING! If your carrots, sprouts, stuffing and pigs in blankets are ready – great. If not, you’ve got a few minutes to finish things off. Start taking what you need to the table, ready to serve
Jamie’s Christmas turkey – Carve your bird according to instructions (p.58, Jamie Oliver’s Christmas Cookbook)
2.00pm
Tuck in!
Happy Christmas!
