Top tips for stress-free cooking this Christmas

Planning ahead

Write a menu and divvy up the dishes so everyone knows what to bring. There’s nothing worse than everyone bringing the same salad or trying to conjure up a festive platter from everyone’s “bits and pieces”.

Make your shopping list and split it into non-perishables and perishables. Shop for non-perishables before Christmas eve. Most fruit and vegetables can be bought a few days earlier.

Choose the right appliance

A food processor is your Christmas secret weapon. It can power through the prep – (chopping, grating, slicing and mixing). A processor is also good at emulsifying mayonnaise, blitzing breadcrumbs and making pastry dough.

Make sure you have the right knives for your prep. A chef’s knife is a multi-purpose tool, but it can’t do everything. You may also need a paring knife (handy for peeling and trimming fruit and vegetables) and a carving knife (for slicing the Christmas ham). The serrated edge of a bread knife helps cut through a loaf of bread.

Knives should be sharpened before you get started.

If pavlova is on the menu, a benchtop mixer is perfect for beating the egg whites. Little helpers can make themselves useful by whipping the cream with a hand-held mixer.

Don’t give the gift of foodborne illness

Christmas meat must be cooked thoroughly. Most turkeys need at least 2 hours 40 minutes cooking time. Bigger birds need longer. When fully cooked, the turkey should be 75℃ or above. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, juices should be clear with no signs of pink.

A vacuum-packed cooked ham can be eaten without further cooking. But, if you like to glaze your ham and serve it hot, cook it at 160℃ for 20 minutes per kilogram. The temperature should reach at least 60℃.

Don’t forget to wash hands before preparing or handling food, and after handling raw meat, poultry or vegetables with soil on them. If you’ve been sick in the lead-up to Christmas, get somebody else to prepare and cook the meal for you.

For all our Christmas food safety advice visit Christmas food safety