As we approach Christmas, stress levels are rising, particularly in Ireland’s kitchens. While many of us enjoy cooking, we often add a degree of panic to December days by trying to make absolutely everything from scratch. Is it always necessary, or are there easier paths we can take? We asked four top chefs to share their Christmas shortcut secrets; as it turns out, even they turn to the odd shop-bought food product during the festive period.
JP McMahon
While he’s normally the chef-patron at Michelin-starred Aniar in Galway, alongside running his other two restaurants, Cava Bodega and Kombu, at Christmas, JP McMahon takes his festive feasting just as seriously.
“I’m not allowed to go wild, so as much as I’d like to do a bit of venison, our dinner tends to be quite conventional with turkey, ham and all the trimmings,” he says. “I usually go to my ex-wife’s house and we have Christmas together with the kids and her parents and mine come over too, so there’s about 10 of us. The unconventional part is that I go down to Aniar to cook the whole dinner there and then I bring it up to the house for us all to eat. It’s been my little ritual for as long as Aniar has been there.”
So what’s his shortcut?
READ MORE
“I always make tiramisu for dessert, and I always buy the biscuits for it – there’s no way I’m making those. I also think a good chicken or turkey stock to use for your gravy is a great shop-bought essential at Christmas, because really, you won’t have three or four hours to make gravy on the day. I like using Carol’s Stock Market or Sadie’s Kitchen bone broth – they’re both great.”
“I usually fry off some shallots, add in red wine and reduce it down, then add in the stock and the juices from the turkey breast, then reduce into a nice, light gravy because you don’t want anything too heavy. I also think you do not need to be making your own puff pastry and mincemeat – just pop over to the supermarket and grab them because there are so many great products out there.”
Hilary Quinn
Pastry chef Hilary Quinn is based in Ballymaloe House, Co Cork, but she’s also well known for The Mince Pie Project, where she makes the treats and posts them all around the country to festive feasters. As part of a big family, she keeps her Christmas dinner fairly traditional, but she likes to employ a few tricks to ensure smooth sailing.
“My dad was a butcher, so we always stuck to the classics for a very traditional roast dinner at Christmas. My mum was a very good cook and very practical so she would always do as much as she could in advance,” says Quinn. “I’m a big fan of outsourcing things like pastries or desserts. You can go to really good bakeries like Scéal, Fable, Dún Bakery in Dungarvan or The Grumpy Bakers in Midleton, and pick something up. If you wanted to treat yourself to a croissant on Christmas morning, you could even go in now to pick some up so you’re not putting yourself under pressure closer to the day. Pop them in the freezer and they’ll be perfect for a couple of weeks – just warm them up in the oven and they’ll be fresh as the day they were made, plus you won’t be panicking on the 24th trying to get them. I also think having pâté or terrine in the fridge from somewhere like On the Pigs Back in Douglas makes for a great lunch if you have something pop up – you don’t have to stress about putting something together, plus you can buy them very far in advance because they are vacuum-packed.”
Eunice Power
Waterford-based TV chef, caterer and Tesco brand ambassador Eunice Power is kept busy cooking throughout the year, but when it comes to Christmas, making sure there’s enough for the whole family to enjoy is a priority.
“I work pretty much right up to Christmas, and this industry means that the lead-up to, and very often after, Christmas can be really busy with parties, weddings and events,” she says. “So I love to do absolutely nothing really, and I’m already thinking about that lovely leftover turkey sandwich on St Stephen’s Day.”
“I always get a duck pie from The Tannery [in Dungarvan] for the family to eat on Christmas Eve – it’s so tasty. Generally speaking, I’ve cooked Christmas dinner for the past 25 years; my mum and sister will come around to join me and my sons. We always have a free-range Irish turkey, ham, and lots of veggies like mashed and roast potatoes, red cabbage, sprouts, roast carrots. We do dip-in, dip-out sort of starters, then Christmas pudding and trifle for dessert.”
“I always make sure to keep a jar of Kwanghi Chan’s black garlic mala peanut chilli rayu in the fridge because it’s absolutely divine with sprouts. Not everything is as good the day after, but the rayu is a great thing to mix through the sprouts for leftovers.”
Emma Spain
As the owner and chef of Dubh in Newbridge, Co Kildare, Emma Spain is kept busy throughout the holiday season – especially for the restaurant’s legendary Christmas sandwiches – but carving out time to enjoy the festive period with good food is a priority.
“I made a braised turkey using my Big Green Egg one year but my Mam said she didn’t like it, so now we stick to a fairly typical dinner. There’s a lot of red cabbage, turkey, ham, potatoes, and I do sprouts with walnut pesto that are really tasty. I know it might be sacrilege, but I love a Yorkshire pudding at Christmas because you can fill it up with a bit of everything for the perfect bite,” she says. “I always make the Yorkshire puddings, but when it comes to shop-bought food, I always have to have some ready-made puff pastry in the fridge – there’s no way I’m making that! So on St Stephen’s Day, when we’re sick of the big dinner, I mash together all of the leftovers – turkey, ham, cranberry sauce and sprouts – with sausage meat, and then I wrap the mix in puff pastry, brush it with egg wash and cover with sesame seeds. It gets cut up like sausage rolls, then baked and we eat them between shifts at work – we reopen the pub at Dubh on the 26th, so it’s busy.”
“On the 27th, without fail, I sleep in because it’s like the proper start of my holiday. I always have Christmas pudding for breakfast with a big scoop of vanilla and bourbon ice cream from Lidl. It’s one of the best on the market, so I always keep some of it in the freezer and it works really well with the pudding.”
Shop-bought shortcuts that will work for everybody
Potatoes
If you’d rather skip peeling lots of potatoes this year, then maybe premade mashed potato, gratin or even roast potatoes might be the way to go – you’ll find great options in the chilled section of your local supermarket, deli or butcher’s shop.
Pastry
Pastry is a component of so many dishes, but if it causes you strife, then add a premade version to your list. You’ll find shortcrust (in both sweet and savoury varieties), puff pastry, and filo widely available in both chilled and frozen, as well as gluten-free and vegan versions too.
In the same vein, you can now buy all sorts of frozen and chilled pastries in shops, ready to be popped into the oven – instead of calculating proving times for cinnamon buns or sweating over croissants, grab these for an easy breakfast.
Cranberry sauce
If cranberry sauce is an essential at your table, then consider buying it instead of making it – the same goes for various chutneys, relishes and dessert sauces. You can spruce them up with your own twist, such as a shot of whiskey in a jar of caramel sauce or additional herbs in shop-bought bread sauce.
Mulled wine
If you find the jars of necessary spices for mulled wine sit unused in your cupboard until the festive period rolls around again, then opt for a spice blend pack – and if you’d rather skip the mulling altogether, there are some brilliant bottles on shelves that will do the job.
