HELP! 10 people for xmas dinner only 1 oven?

belfastgal

THIRZAH wrote:

I've cooked for fourteen (including a vegetarian) with an oven with two shelves so can sympathise.

Do you have a grill-if so could you use that for the sausages etc?.

If you are doing turkey it can "rest" in a warm place while roast potatoes finish off on the oven shelf or serve new potatoes or a mixture of roast and mash .Then you can perhaps fit a dish of stuffing on the same shelf as the potatoes.Don't even try to roast parsnips etc-parsnips are nice pureed and most other veg can be boiled or steamed.

Allow longer than normal for everything. If you have a slow cooker you can heat your Christmas pudding up in that-much easier anyway as you don't have to keep an eye on the water level.Serve it with brandy butter or cream rather than anything that needs cooking like custard.

what type of nibble would i have instead of a starter ? any ideas ?that would free up a bit of time as i always rush the starter thinking of getting the main meal out.........




Don't bother with a starter-serve some interesting nibbles with pre dinner drinks. This will give you more time to get everything ready too and after a drink or two most people won't notice if the roast potatoes aren't as crispy as usual(well they don't in DHs family anyway)

If necessary frozen yorkshires and roast potatoes aren't bad, not too expensive and take a lot less time to cook.

what type of nibble would i have instead of a starter ? any ideas ?that would free up a bit of time as i always rush the starter thinking of getting the main meal out.........

wendym

And cooking the turkey the night before really takes time pressure off the day itself, apart from freeing up oven space.

boglin

Roast Turkey in a kettle barbecue - we always do this in our Weber and you won't believe how succulent the meat is, how much easier it is than oven cooking it and of course how much extra space you will have in your oven!

We huse a 22 inch barbecue. Splitting the charcoal into two banks along the sides makes for more uniform cooking. Even though this structure with lid closed is classified as indirect heat, there is some direct radiation from the charcoal to the sides of the bird. With this size grill there is adequate clearance under the lid for a turkey up to about 14 pounds. We huse a grill with two flip up sides, which facilitates adding more charcoal about once an hour.


Prep time: 15 minutes; 15 minutes to stand

Grilling time: 2 hours 15 minutes to 3 hours for 12-pound turkey

Ingredients

- 1 oven-ready turkey (select size to fit your barbecue)

- 1 tablespoon oil

- Salt and pepper

- Herbs, rub, or seasoning to taste

Remove thawed or fresh turkey from bag. Remove neck and giblets from body cavities, rinse turkey thoroughly and pat dry. Turn wings back to hold neck skin in place. Return legs to tucked position, if untucked. Brush turkey with oil. Season to taste inside and out. (I usually put an orange, a lemon and an onion plus some fresh herbs inside the cavity).

Place turkey, breast side up, in a roast holder set inside a large foil pan. Place in centre of cooking grate. Cook 11 to 13 minutes per pound to an internal temperature of 180°F (82°C) in the thigh and 170°F (77°C) in the
breast, or until turkey is tender and the drumsticks move easily in their sockets. Remove turkey from grill and let stand 15 minutes before carving. A 12-pound turkey makes 12 servings.

Tips

- To use drippings to make gravy, place a little water in the large foil pan under the turkey after placing it on the grill. Remove pan from under turkey about 30 minutes before bird should be done. (Continue cooking turkey in the centre of the cooking grate.)

- To cook stuffing, place in a double thick heavy foil packet on the cooking grill beside the turkey for the last 20-30 minutes of grilling time.

:xmassign:

mouseymousey99

Hi - Do you have a BBQ? We always do the Turkey on the barbie, not as mad as it sounds, wrap it in bacon and use lots of butter etc. You can put it in a roasting bag. That way you free up loads of space in your oven & have to say the best tasting tukey ever!!!:j

MrsTinks

I'm only cooking for 6 (+1 possible) and I am panicking as it is let alone worrying about 10+ people! But in all fairness our house is tiny so the problem isn't so much cooking but fitting people in

Best of luck tho!

THIRZAH

belfastgal wrote:

what type of nibble would i have instead of a starter ? any ideas ?that would free up a bit of time as i always rush the starter thinking of getting the main meal out.........

For the past couple of years I've made blinis- the recipe from Delia's winter collection although I use wholemeal flour instead of buckwheat . She serves them as a starter and uses 1lb smoked salmon but I just put a tiny bit on top with some creme fraiche.You can make them in advance and freeze them-without the topping .

I also buy a packet of cheese straws from Tesco as have usually run out of freezer space by then.Then we have olives ,nuts, samosas-anything that's on offer before Christmas.

We did used to have starters but found that not everyone liked smoked salmon or prawns and things like melons or avocado were not always ripe at that time of year.

Bogof_Babe

I've never even considered having yorkies as part of Christmas dinner, unless you're having beef instead of turkey. They are very bulky too, so if it won't cause a major disappointment I'd give them a miss.

Can any of your guests lend you any insulated serving dishes? Lakeland do these and they are great for pre-cooking and keeping things hot. I even have an insulated gravy boat!

suzanna

HI everyone

Thank you all so much!:j

I will cook the meat the night before and heat up the next day, visit all family members with my oven measurements and nick one of their shelfs, Try out the cooking and freezing the roast potato's before christmas to see how they turn out, the veg i'm pretty sorted with.

I am going to make my OH day when i say that we wont need to buy another cooker to go in the garage, i can only imagine his face when i say i'm going to use the BBQ instead:rotfl:

I have a gas BBQ with a grill type cooking area and a hood and I also have a griddle type table top gas BBQ with a hood. Do you think that i may be able to cook the stuffing, cauliflower cheese and sausages and bacon things in there. I have loads of oven dishes and trays that i can put the food in. I am really liking this idea and it will be a talking point to be sure. :T

Thanks again to you all.


Suzanna