Alternatives for post-Christmas entertaining dinner

Alternatives for post-Christmas entertaining dinner

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havoc

Original Poster:

31,243 posts

245 months

Tuesday 5th December 2023
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Have the in-laws coming round on the 27th, and they'll have had turkey roast twice, so want to think of something else to cook for them. Something modestly impressive (as step-MIL is a good cook and I'm not letting the side down), but not something stupidly complicated, nor something that'll take all morning and more to prep. (I've decent kitchen skills, but don't want to risk fking-it-up first time around if it's something I've not cooked before)

Ideas so far:-
- Beef wellington - always wanted to try it, but discounted as I've not practiced it and half the diners like their beef medium or better.
- Boeuf bougignon (sp?) - like this idea but wondering if 'special' enough. Can serve with a celeriac puree and rosemary-&-garlic sautee'd new potatoes to jazz it up a bit.
- Pan-fried duck breasts with a red-wine & berry jus. Done it before, probably same potatoes & celeriac as above. But the step-MIL doesn't like sweet food, and the sauce tends to be sweet (+runny...I can't seem to reduce it enough)
- Steak & something. Bit mainstream, but I've now worked out how to reverse-sear properly. Might not have enough hob-space to do everyone at once though.
- Lamb tagine. Very leftfield for Xmas, but I've got a good recipe. Would need to find a good 'side' and/or starter for it though.
- Pan-fried fish (sea bream / brill if I can get it / etc) with a modified sauce albert - but given the day the fish will have to be frozen and defrosted.
- Mixed tapas. Like doing stuff like this, but a lot of work and difficult to get timing right.
- Thai green curry + pad thai + coconut rice. Can prep the curry that morning and re-heat, leaving me the time to concentrate on getting the pad thai right.


Any other thoughts / ideas?

Edit: Simple starter ideas also very welcome. Don't normally do starters (but they do at Christmas), so I've not got a go-to-list of trusted recipes I can rely on.

Edited by havoc on Tuesday 5th December 23:09

ferret50

1,777 posts

19 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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I'd go with Beef Wellie, myself.

Starter?
Melon soaked in that port you bought but hate?

beer

sherman

14,039 posts

225 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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I would stay away from roast or slow cooked meat. 2 days of heavy christmas dinner will have taken its toll.

Fish will go down well.

Something simple like Salmon fillet with hollandaise sauce, green beans and new potatoes

or Cod loin wrapped in pancetta baked in the oven served with the same as the salmon.

simon_harris

1,917 posts

44 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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Getting a wellington right is more difficult than it might appear, and doing it for the first time with a knowledgeable critic is a risky strategy.

Cooking anything "on demand" like duck breast or (hot) tapas can be stressful and again difficult to get right at the time. I would go with something low effort and maintenance - your lamb tagine idea is perfect because it is not time sensitive and can be left alone for most of the cooking time.


robsa

2,350 posts

194 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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Personally I enjoy a nice ham, egg and chips a couple of days after Christmas. You could do fancy chips and a couple of duck eggs with it, glaze the ham...

Tickle

5,350 posts

214 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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A big pie; beef, rioja and chorizo or chicken, mushroom and tarragon are recent favourites.

Buttery mash and greens to go with

Mobile Chicane

21,396 posts

222 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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Jewelled couscous is a winner with a tagine.

Rather than do a starter - North African cuisine isn't so rich in those - I'd do an indulgent dessert. Orange scented creme brulee with amaretti.

havoc

Original Poster:

31,243 posts

245 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
quotequote all
simon_harris said:
Getting a wellington right is more difficult than it might appear, and doing it for the first time with a knowledgeable critic is a risky strategy.

Cooking anything "on demand" like duck breast or (hot) tapas can be stressful and again difficult to get right at the time. I would go with something low effort and maintenance - your lamb tagine idea is perfect because it is not time sensitive and can be left alone for most of the cooking time.
Agreed on a wellington, hence why I'm not risking it.

Duck I've done a few times and (jus aside) I'm quite confident about. Tapas I cook in smaller quantities/varieties but you're right, it tends to be "dished up when it's ready"

Tickle said:
A big pie; beef, rioja and chorizo or chicken, mushroom and tarragon are recent favourites.

Buttery mash and greens to go with
Hmmm...nice idea. Pastry's not my forte, but worst-case I could cheat and use pre-rolled puff pastry to go on-top.

Jo-say8k

138 posts

26 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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How about moussaka? A slow cook lamb or beef hotpot/ stew?

We always have left over turkey curry!

BoRED S2upid

20,424 posts

250 months

Wednesday 6th December 2023
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Beef stew. Call it what you will to make it sound posh. Can cook for days in advance. Make your own bread if your really want to impress.

NorthDave

2,427 posts

242 months

Thursday 7th December 2023
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How about individual fish wellingtons? You can either do a bed of liver pate with cod on top or smoke salmon pate with salmon on top. Wrap either in pastry and when the pastry is cooked so is the fish. There are variations with smoked haddock too.

I've not made it for a while but it always goes down well.

bigdom

2,132 posts

155 months

Thursday 7th December 2023
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As much as I love a Roast, by the 27th I want something different to wake up the tastebuds

Fire up the BBQ - you could always chuck a rib of Beef on it, gratin dauphinois, which can be prepped the day before. I'd be onto dirty burgers by choice. Something like a 12hr Chilli with Short Ribs, Curry.

Starters. Something light, but good to wake up the palate -. buckwheat pancakes/blinis, sour cream, smoked salmon, gherkins etc. Could always chuck some caviar on them.

geeks

9,919 posts

149 months

Thursday 7th December 2023
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robsa said:
Personally I enjoy a nice ham, egg and chips a couple of days after Christmas. You could do fancy chips and a couple of duck eggs with it, glaze the ham...
This is an excellent suggestion and one I will be stealing for myself in a couple of weeks

fat80b

2,538 posts

231 months

Thursday 7th December 2023
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bigdom said:
As much as I love a Roast, by the 27th I want something different to wake up the tastebuds

Fire up the BBQ.
We used to do a three course Beef for Boxing Day meal but in recent years have switched to an indoor BBQ instead.

Get some of these from t'Internet https://www.amazon.co.uk/Electric-Teppanyaki-Non-S...

And prepare some raw steak, lamb, prawns, Tuna, veggies, etc plus various dipping sauces and sides.

Everyone gets to sit round and "cook your own".

Whenever we have done this for people, it has always gone down incredibly well.

havoc

Original Poster:

31,243 posts

245 months

Thursday 7th December 2023
quotequote all
bigdom said:
Starters. Something light, but good to wake up the palate -. buckwheat pancakes/blinis, sour cream, smoked salmon, gherkins etc. Could always chuck some caviar on them.
BBQ is a leftfield idea but I quite like it (plus I've a great recipe for Korean Tonkatsu ketchup - think asian-style BBQ sauce)


Starters - oh yeah, blinis, crackers and other finger food is perfect...can put them out while I'm cooking and people can just pick and nibble.


Teppanyaki grill...we've a 5y.o. in the house so I'll refrain from any hot things in the middle of the table for a few years! hehe