Cooking the big Christmas Day meal doesn’t have to feel like work. Choose good-quality produce and keep things simple, and it can be easy to prepare.
Clever cheats will help take the pressure off without compromising on flavour. Have a smart plan and a few hacks at the ready to avoid fuss and stay focused on the important elements of the meal and of the day — which includes serving up great food that you too can enjoy.
As the most decorated discounter at Blas na hÉireann 2023, taking home 47 awards for its Irish-supplied produce, including 11 gold and 20 silver wins, Lidl makes the big day easy.
Plan your menu
Any great meal starts with great planning. Decide what your menu and main course will be and then the rest of the menu can complement that.
Choose simple canapes to serve with drinks before dinner, a starter to wake up appetites and then a pause, before a main course feast, served with all the trimmings.
This is a day when time is on your side so you can reserve the showstopping dessert for later and follow with a cheeseboard to linger over.
Turkey and all the trimmings
Whatever the size of your gathering and whatever your budget, there is a Lidl turkey option to fit it, whether you want to choose whole, crown or boned and rolled; fresh or roasted and ready to eat. All the fresh turkeys are sourced from a select group of premier Irish suppliers with Bord Bia Quality Assured turkeys priced from €8.99.
Lidl’s Deluxe range includes a fresh turkey crown, €21.99, 1.8kg, perfect for feeding a few, or spoil a gang of up to 10 with a Deluxe fresh Irish free-range Bronze whole turkey, €37.99, 5kg.
Seasonal fruit and vegetables will make it extra special. Roast the turkey with garlic cloves, red onion wedges and halved satsumas and garnish with fresh redcurrants before serving.
If you’re changing things up this year, consider an easy-carve duck with orange, rosemary, apricot and raisin stuffing, €19.99, from Monaghan, a clever three-bird roast with sage and roast garlic stuffing, €14.99, or even an Irish rack of lamb with a herb crust, €27.99 per kg, all from the Lidl Deluxe range and ready to pop in the oven.
Pescatarians are also sorted. The Deluxe cod bake, with either potato and truffle, or a four-cheese option, €4.99 each, is a winter-warming luxury meal.
And for those who love beef, there’s a Blas na hÉireann award-winning, 32-day matured Irish Angus Chateaubriand with a wow factor that comes with red wine and garlic jus, €37.99.
Get the day off to a great start with canapés
Canapes feel fancy but can be simple, especially if you shop the Deluxe range found at Lidl. Pop some Deluxe smoked salmon slices with Irish whiskey, €13.49, on toasted slices of wholegrain rye boule, €2.99, scatter with fresh dill and serve with wedges of organic lemon, €1.89, along with a glass of organic prosecco, €14.49.
For starters, you can keep things light with the classic combination of melon and prosciutto. Or create a centrepiece seafood platter, featuring the Deluxe range’s whole salmon side with lemon and dill, €15.99.
Prep to impress
Once you’ve decided what you’ll be cooking, write a list of what to prepare and when. Allow 20 minutes cooking time for every 500g of turkey, including the stuffing, and don’t forget to factor in 30 minutes for the turkey to rest before serving.
Start with what time you want to serve the main course and work backwards from there. Christmas Eve is when you can cover a lot of the prep, from peeling the spuds and soaking overnight in water to trimming the Brussels sprouts and cooking off side dishes like red cabbage.
You can also cheat a little by investing in some of Lidl’s pre-prepared and ready-to-eat Deluxe side dishes. These include cauliflower cheese with Parmesan and truffle oil, €3.49. No one need ever know that you didn’t make it yourself.
In Ireland the ham shares top billing with the turkey. All Lidl’s hams come from Irish suppliers. A great value option is the Deluxe bone-in half-ham leg, only €19.99. If you’re cooking it from scratch boil it the day before, allowing 20 minutes per 450g, so you only have to glaze and heat it on the day. Lidl’s Deluxe honey and spiced apple ham glaze, €1.49, is the perfect accompaniment.
Bring the magic
With so many elements in one meal, you don’t have to cook each from scratch. Instead bring your own magic to ready-to-serve dishes from the Deluxe range at Lidl. Elevate its Deluxe spiced butternut squash soup, €1.99, with pumpkin seeds you lightly toasted and seasoned with soy sauce while hot.
And with such a range of great fresh vegetables and pantry essentials, you can cook your favourites such as roasties cooked with Irish duck fat, from Lidl’s Deluxe range, €2.29. You can cut cooking corners by investing in some delicious side dishes like red cabbage with Bramley apple and cranberries, €2.99, or Brussels sprouts with bacon, cranberries and seasoned butter, €2.99. All are available in Lidl’s Deluxe range.
Play to your strengths, and mix things up. If making the stuffing and gravy will stress you, then indulge in Lidl’s Deluxe range options. There is stuffing with cranberry and orange zest, €3.29, and poultry gravy, €2.49, that will give you time to wow everyone instead with your home-made cranberry sauce that you prepped in advance with fresh cranberries, orange zest and a splash of vodka.
End on a high
Once you reach dessert you’re on the home stretch. If you’re plum pudding fans, Lidl’s Deluxe range offers two options. Add drama to its Dundalgan whiskey, six-month matured, Christmas pudding, €7.99, and preheat a little Irish whiskey to set it alight for serving. If you’d like the theatre without the fireworks, Lidl’s Deluxe Irish Christmas pudding infused with Armagnac brandy, €13.99, makes an eye-catching focal point with its jewels of red cherries, walnuts and almonds set in an Armagnac syrup. There are also plenty of alternative dessert options, including the Blas na hÉireann gold award-winning Deluxe handcrafted chocolate and vanilla hazelnut bûche, only €14.99. Made in Co Cork using 100 per cent Irish ingredients, it is on sale from Wednesday next, December 20th.
Pause before you serve cheese
Be sure to plate up the cheeseboard before serving dessert, so that your favourite Irish cheeses have time to come to room temperature to taste their best. The Irish selection, from Lidl’s Deluxe range, includes several Blas na hÉireann silver award-winners.
Keep things classic with some farmhouse heroes like Cooleeney Farm’s Gortnamona goat cheese, €1.99, and the Deluxe range’s mature blue Stilton, €5.99, or try something different, like a farmhouse Tipperary Brie with chilli and black pepper, €2.99, Irish cheddar with horseradish, €2.99, both from the Deluxe range or Irish baking Camembert €3.99.
Pair with fresh fruit for contrast of texture: fresh apple slices, tossed in a little water and lemon juice to prevent browning first; and grapes for a classic touch and fresh figs for a little luxury. The Deluxe luxury cracker selection, €3.49, and the multi-award-winning apple and fig chutney, €2.69, will make things extra special.
With your magical festive fare available at Lidl all that remains is for you to sit down and enjoy the feast surrounded by your family and friends.
For more details on Lidl’s Deluxe range visit lidl.ie