BY EOIN MURPHY
It’s the only way. You won’t want to be dashing around the supermarket aisles
CHRISTMAS should be the most wonderful time of the year. But for many home cooks the anxiety and strain that comes with assembling the Christmas dinner is more stressful than being Mariah Carey’s personal assistant. From the champagne breakfast right up to the bellybusting Christmas pud, negotiating the sprouts, spuds and siblings can leave a very bad taste in the mouth. And that’s before you even think about tackling the dishes. Thankfully Ireland’s No.1 home cook Donal Skehan has travelled the 6000 miles back from his LA bolt hole to provide an easy-to-follow guide to a stress free Christmas.
Having just wrapped up on his successful RTÉ TV Series ‘Meals in Minutes’ and with his current book accompanying the series on the bestseller book list, Donal found time out from his busy schedule to bring us here his top tips for surviving Christmas cooking and the big day.
THE BIG CHRISTMAS SHOP
FOR me you have to treat the big Christmas shop like you would any weekly shop. That is key, and by that I mean be organised.
I am so anal about the list-making that I actually write down my shopping list in the order of the aisle that they are kept in the supermarket.
That will save you so much time and stop you running around the supermarket like a blue -arsed fly.
It gives you focus and you start with the veg, then go dairy and then onto the butcher’s counter.
It is very functional and you have to have a game plan because if you don’t you will end up buying a load of stuff you don’t need.
I wouldn’t leave the house without a list.
When you are in the shop then make sure you stick to the list.
The other thing to remember is that the shops probably won’t be open for a few days so instead of just planning the Christmas dinner, you should have a few days ready to go.
You don’t want to be stuck on St Stephen’s Day looking for a shop that’s open.
Plus people will be dropping in all the time so it is nice to have little things to pull out like good Irish cheeses and crackers and good biscuits and just giving you an easy out when company calls.
CHRISTMAS BREAKFAST
WE have a different breakfast every year to be honest and it depends on the mood.
Generally, we do a full Irish with a bit of a twist.
I like to do something sweet as well just to make it special.
One of my favourite recipes is a brioche eggy toast.
Basically you soak the bread in creamy custard. You mix it and fry it and then you stuff it with lovely jam.
And you get this rich next level French toast and it is decadent and special and it is a really nice way to start the day.
It is also super easy to do on the morning.
I think the main thing with Christmas Day is not to overcomplicate the day. Keep it simple and try to enjoy it. French toast is easy to do and is nowhere near as complicated as pancakes.
So just having good Irish bacon and fresh eggs and some butcher’s sausages makes your life easier.
My mam is an amazing delegator and everyone in the house has a job and sharing the load makes the day go seamlessly.
Whether you are setting the table or chopping veg or cooking the breakfast; delegation is key.
Make sure the person cooking the breakfast isn’t doing the dinner and gets that bit of a break and can relax for the morning.
STARTERS
WE always do a starter and in a way it is an opportunity to do something a little bit light because the dinner is so heavy-going.
My go-to dish is smoked salmon. Because of the Swedish connection we try and do gravlax which is cured salmon.
You can do it with beetroot and that gives it a ruby red colour.
Basically it is salt, sugar and dill and you are packing it away in the fridge for three or four days curing it.
Then on Christmas Day you just slice it up and serve it with a horseradish cream and some rye crisp breads that you can buy in any shop.
It is so simple and fresh and easy to prepare in advance.
CHRISTMAS DINNER
YOU can almost cook everything the night before to be honest.
The only thing you want to be worrying about on Christmas Day is the turkey and the roast potatoes.
I do a lovely Christmas ham and I do that the night before and it will happily sit for you the next day.
The carrots and potatoes can be par boiled and ready to go for the next day.
They will happily sit in the fridge
overnight and then you just pop them into a tray with some goose fat and into the oven and that will cut down on your preparation time.
Sprouts can be done in advance. Desserts are the same.
The key thing is to choose one that you can make in advance.
Tiramisu is a great one because the longer you leave it the better it gets.
I have a great recipe for a Black Forest trifle which is gorgeous and easy to put together and chills and sets overnight.
You could actually do that two days before.
So again, like the shopping, writing out your menu and planning it all in advance is important.
Starting at breakfast and including canapés, starters, mains, sides and desserts, once you have it all down on paper and you follow it to the letter you will be in good shape.
And there is less room for error.
THE TURKEY
THERE are so many ways to cook a turkey. The best way is what works for you and provides the least amount of stress.
I am a big fan of getting the bones and rolled turkey breast.
It is so handy and great for a smaller family like ours.
A lot of people at this time of year want to keep with the turkey and ham tradition but don’t want the hassle of cooking a full turkey.
Because it is a lot of food and effort especially if you are a small family plus it cooks that bit quicker.
It gives out a bit of freedom as well with the seasoning.
I like to get creative with the stuffing and be a bit more experimental with the rub.
I do a lovely Morocco spiced stuffing with loads of herbs and rub a spice mix on the crown like ras el hanout (a spice mix).
It is something slightly different and you can cook it in a crock pot as well.
If you are doing a big turkey then do it as traditional as possible and put loads of herbs and sweated down onions in the stuffing and put bacon across the turkey to keep it moist and gives it a nice salty flavour.
The other thing to remember is that bitter is your friend around Christmas.
Loads of butter on the turkey and keep basting it and that is the tip to having a succulent bird.
But my top tip would be to try out the boned and rolled turkey. It saves time and effort and makes for a hassle free dinner.
LEFTOVERS
THIS was one of the last dishes on the show which went out this week and is probably one of my favourites because it is just so simple. It is a turkey and ham pot pie. You swat down your carrot and onion and celery and then add in a load of butter and some flour and that creates a nice roux which is the base of the pie.
You add in some milk and a bit of white wine and then some mustard and herbs. Thyme is particularly good here.
Then you shred up the leftover turkey and ham and mix that in with the filling.
Even the leftover beg will work really well here and that is the filling for the pie made.
And rather than playing around with pastry I do these Irish cheddar dumplings where you basically rub butter into flour, gratin gin some cold Irish cheese and you make round dumplings with these.
And you sit them on top of the filing, brush them with egg wash and then pop it in the oven for 20 minutes.
You end up with this tasty, moreish pie that really takes no time or effort at all and is a real crown pleaser on St Stephen’s Day.
NEW YEAR’S DAY:
FOR me New Year’s has always been more of a celebration and is based around the drinks rather than the food.
I tend to try and not have to do too much cooking that day. If anything we have something a lot lighter.
My tip is to have some nice seafood that you can cook quickly and enjoy but to be honest it is all about the champagne on New Year’s for me. I don’t want to be cooking on New Year’s. ÷Donal Skeehan’s bestselling cookbook ‘Meals in Minutes’ is out now.