How to cook the perfect Christmas dinner – the definitive step-by-step guide
Juggling all the components that go into having the Christmas dinner all laid out on the dinner table can seem like having to deliver six billion presents all over the world in one evening. And with just four hobs (or seven reindeers in Santa's case) too.
Everything has to be piping hot and on the dinner table at the same time, on time (quite like the presents under the tree). And while this may seem like mission impossible, you can do it. Really. You just need a little help.
That's why, with the kind help of Leiths Cookery School, we have put together this definitive interactive guide to cooking the perfect Christmas dinner on this most stressful of days.
Great British Bake Off judge Prue Leith founded the school in 1975, and their teachers have been helping home cooks master the seemingly dark arts of cookery ever since.
With this guide you can follow their expert timings and instructions, making a breeze of the (roughly) five hour cooking process. Just hit start on the graphic and follow the step-by-step guide.
Checklist | What you need to make our perfect Christmas dinner
The guide works on the basis that you are working with a conventional home oven and four hobs. It's a done-in-one-go instruction manual; there's no need to do anything the day or the week before (although you do need to make sure your turkey is fully defrosted by the time you wake up on Christmas morning).
And if you fall behind at any point, don't worry too much: Leiths say they'd always allow for an hour's contingency when cooking a meal as large as this. Simply click the link at the bottom of the graphic to reveal the step-by-step process in full.
Good luck and have a Merry Christmas!
Christmas roast interactive timer
How to make the perfect gravy | Source: Leiths cookery School
