Do you roast your turkey on Christmas Eve ?

Its basically a roast dinner...not that challenging. I prepare all the veg the evening before..everything peeled and prepped. The Capon is always in a bucket of saline with herbs for 24 hours prior to roasting. Goes in the oven at 10....ready for 1.30 as I cook on high...that's a 12lb bird. I don't spent much time in the kitchen on Christmas morning as I just need to pop stuff in the oven or turn on the saucepans at allotted times. We had 10 people at the table last year...the benefit of getting older is experience. Ive been cooking Christmas dinners for over 40 years, if it wasn't simple by now, I would be doing something wrong!

I used to cook my turkey Christmas Eve when the kids were small.more time now so cook it Christmas morning.

My late MIL did this, and also every weekend; she would cook her roast on a Saturday, refrigerate (or not!) overnight, and then we'd have it on the Sunday. Can't remember whether she reheated it or not. I thought it was really weird, but DH said she'd always done it and was used to it. I always cook my roasts on the day. Loved the smell of my DM's roasts on a Sunday morning, and walking back from chapel after morning service could smell everyone else's roasts cooking!

Turkey should rest for at least and hour. While it’s resting you can cook potatoes, re heat pre cooked cauli cheese, do the pigs in blankets and reheat stuffing which I make from scratch and cook Christmas Eve with the stuffing. Then all they need then is reheating.

We cook our turkey (deboned, stuffed with sausagemeat stuffing and a cooked gammon in the centre) on christmas day. But our veggies are prepared and cooked on christmas eve, then just pinged in the microwave on Christmas Day to make room in the oven for the bird and roast potatoes (which are prepared and parboiled on Christmas Eve.

No, we never have turkey. We'd rather a nice big piece of English beef which I cook on the day. Delicious!

Yuk, no! I never eat reheated meat, the smell makes me retch. I don’t much like gravy either.

I always cook the Turkey Christmas Eve. It leaves the oven free for potatoes & veg Christmas Day. Last year I bought prepared veg from M&S as there is no preparation required and I am doing the same this year. Also cook Gammon Christmas Eve.

My Mum always did this as she said otherwise she missed Christmas Day with us kids as she spent most of her time in the kitchen . She even took it a stage further in the end and we ate Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve and then had cold meat and mash on Christmas Day and Boxing Day!!

I swore I would never do that and I haven't. I roast mine on Christmas Day morning ( although we only ever have a crown) its actually no more bother than a usual Sunday and I don't feel I miss out on anything.

I’m going to this as we tend to have turkey and pork . I like to do lots of trimmings so it will free up oven space .

Mil does this with all roasts - she goes away at xmas now, but did do it with the xmas meats too. Serves with hot gravy; she is obsessive about hot gravy and has two jugs on the go - one on the table and the other heating in the microwave with much jumping up and down to swap them over
Tbh the gravy is the only hot thing, everything else goes cold before we eat

We cook AND EAT our Christmas Lunch on Christmas Eve! This came about because we live (and have done for many years) in a rural area, which is prone to electricity "outages" when demand is very high (such as everyone cooking at the same time). There is no mains gas in our village (nor in the previous one we lived in) and having electricity go off in the middle of cooking a large meal is a mighty inconvenience. On Christmas day, we have what is essentially "party food" i.e. hot and cold snacks/cold meats/ and small amounts of salad/mini pizza's/ vegan sausage rolls/chips etc. as and when we feel hungry! Works very well for us.

My turkey has always turned out excellent, lovely and moist, never had a dodgy tummy just a very relaxing Christmas morning. So will continue doing as I've always done, each to their own. I buy a full turkey a large one too as it's only fair the animals get to share it.

Forgot to ask - what is the point of doing it the day before ?

It never tastes the same reheated. I'd rather do it all fresh. We get a turkey crown as it saves space. I would worry about food poisoning. X

I’ve been reheating turkey and ham on Boxing Day for 40 years and we’ve have never been ill. After that I cut it up whats left and freeze in gravy but that will be served piping hot in pies. Admittedly I only buy turkey crown (nobody likes turkey legs) so maybe that’s why.

No , and I’ve never heard of anyone doing it either until this thread . It’s part of the Christmas Day ritual, cook in the morning and wrap it up well to keep it warm and rested . I don’t eat meat but can’t imagine it is very good cold and warmed through the following day .

I always cook the Turkey on Christmas Day morning, the bird is then ready to carve later on and easier too, if it isnt really hot, then the oven is free for the roasties etc.There is a lovely smell when the visitors arrive, my mouth is watering right now.

My late mum always cooked whole turkey on Xmas eve and cut it up in sliced portions, set in baking tin and covered in foil. Then add some gravy in morning and reheat well. I usually do the same since roasting turkey on the Day gives me too much stress. Prefer turkey crown nowadays and cook on Xmas morning. Gammon goes in slow cooker and is handy to make meal go further.

I won't be cooking but when we did, the turkey was always roasted on Christmas Day, potatoes etc put in the oven, the turkey taken out to 'rest' wrapped in a blanket of foil and the oven was then turned up to very hot to finish off the potatoes, parsnips etc.

piping hot is fine, Rosina, it was the 'warming' or 'pouring hot gravy to warm it up' scenario that worried me.
Has anyone ever spent Christmas Day in A&E?
Believe me, it's the last place you want to be!

Ido it your way Purplepoppies.... I’m always up by 5.30 summer or winter.... makes no difference. Cook turkey from 6 till done ...that leaves oven free for rest of food. Wrap it in two lots of foil and smother in a towel. Cool nicely for carving and NO need for dangerous re-heating. Although I do like the idea of re -heating in steamer...sounds very plausible!

Mine goes in the oven before we go to bed on christmas eve on low. I always have an extra large turkey though.
Smells lovely on christmas morning.

I always do - after one hysterical Christmas when nothing was cooking as it should and the turley was well done although the potatoes were still needing about an hour...oh, never again! A friend who has been in catering for many years suggested this, and we have never had a dry turkey or any problems with it not being safely heated through.
All the strain left the day- a parcel of sliced turkey, juices poured over and then wrapped in foil after cooling is then put into the bottom of the oven when cooking starts, and when the vegetables are done it is piping hot and ready to serve.

I've just watched Jamie - he prepared the turkey but didn't cook it until the day itself. He part cooked the roast potatoes and prepared the stuffing but cooked them both on the day itself. I'll probably be doing that- have to have the smell of turkey cooking on Christmas morning.