Christmas dinner - what you doing?!

[wanye]

why do sprouts come in such massive bags or them tree branches? i only wanted 4-6, as theres only two of us who will go near them. ill have to see if my friend im visiting this afternoon has any spare ones, otherwise no sprouts for us this xmas!

got all the little bits i need, as well as a block of ice with some massive ass freshwater shrimp, so running them under a tap to try and have them defrosted by tomorrow

[MrsBC]

We're having a turkey crown and roast pork, with sage & onion and sausage meat & onion stuffings, and plenty of pigs in blankets. Very traditional.

[wanye]

big ass freshwater shrimp block defrosted and separated. half a pack of butter for scale (didnt have a banana, sorry!)

now they are going for a quick bath with some garlic and herb olive oil, and a big knob of butter. once done, ill take them out, let them cool, then put in the fridge till tomorrow, where i'll take a few out, and finish them at my mums in a pan with some cajun spices and the oil/butter liquid just to reheat and serve as part of a posh gochujang prawn cocktail along with the dressed crab and some salmon...

*edit*
i forgot i had a tub of old bay seasoning, ive now stuck some of that in the bag. its in the bath at 130f for 90 minutes now so will be fully cooked (to 'rare')

so reheating in the pan tomorrow will just finish it off and give the texture a little more bite (140 is fully cooked (borderline overcooked) so itll be firmer on the outside and cooked but tender in the middle)

if anyone is interested in the different temperature levels and how they affect the texture, kenji wrote a great guide here: seriouseats/the-food...us-vide-shrimp

[princessnicki]

Weve had the best day, grazing platter, cocktails and this is us season 5 binge 😭

[wanye]

so xmas dinner was a success! and all-in was less than an hour of actual effort on the day

first off, the prawn cocktail...

i took the precooked freshwater shrimp and warmed/browned them on a griddle for a couple of mins either side

added to a bowl with some torn up smoked salmon slices, and some of the dressed crab. the sauce is mayonnaise and gochujang, with a bit of lemon juice. infinitely nicer than mayo and tomato ketchup!

main course, the ham got coated in a spicy chipotle honey, and then powdered english mustard sprinkled on top and mixed with a silicone brush to even it all out and baked for 25 mins or so (while the veg was cooking)

the turkey crown went on a rack (so it didnt end up soggy on the bottom) and also left more room for roast veg in the pan.

did some green beans on a baking tray with olive oil, salt&pepper and some crumbled fets

mashed potatoes with wholegrain mustard and spring onion

chestnut and herb sausagemeat stuffing

[Colette-S]

I have my friend and family coming over for a belated Christmas lunch! Currently have a 5.5kg rib of beef in the oven.
Just basted it

Doing it with roast potatoes, Yorkshires, stuffing, pigs in blankets and tons of different veg