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Hi all and Merry Christmas.

Ok so I stupidly volunteered to cook Christmas dinner for 11 people (9 adults and 2 children) this year!

So was looking for tips/hacks on timings for getting everything cooked on time.

Initial ideas are;

Roast the Turkey for the time it takes to cook, then take it out and let it rest for up to 2 hours. Towards the end of cooking the turkey, stick in the stuffing and cook so it comes out at the same time as the turkey.

In the 2 hours resting time, roast the Carrots and Parsnips for 11 people (these are going to be par boiled bight before). Once they are out, stick in the roast potatoes (again par boiled). Towards the end of the potatoes roasting, start boiling the brussel sprouts. At this time I will warm up pre-made gravy and add turkey juices.

At the end of the potatoes cooking, stick the stuffing and other roast veg back in the oven to heat back up. Take the turkey out and carve, then serve everything warm.

Does this sound like the best way to do things? What is the maximum time you would let your Turkey rest?

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    Is the Turkey big enough for 11 people? Two hours does seem a long time to rest a bird, I normally leave it resting for 30 mins while I cook the boiled veg. Have you sorted out the portion sizes for the non-turkey food?
    – user51717
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 9:38
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    Yeah the Turkey is a large one that feeds 13-15 people, so figure that will be plenty. I have yet to work out the exact timings or quantity which is why i am thinking i will need to do Potatoes/Other roast veg separately. Roughly 30-40mins each. So the Turkey might only be resting for 1 hour.
    – Tim B James
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 9:45
  • It seems like you're limited on oven space and that's what's driving your timing questions. Do you have a microwave that you can use for reheating?
    – John Feltz
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 12:58
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    Yeah i have a microwave. Could re-heat some things but dont want to loose crispyness of roasted potatoes.
    – Tim B James
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 13:30
  • 2
    Get your order for 6-12 entrees in to the Chinese restaurant in good time; then relax and wait for delivery. ;^>
    – Ecnerwal
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 16:00

1 Answer 1

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We did the best turkey ever on Thanksgiving. Butterflying was the key http://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2012/11/butterfiled-roast-turkey-with-gravy-recipe.html.

It cuts down massively on oven time, tastes great, was fun to prepare with my son.

The oven is fairly hot, which is better for doing potatoes etc at the same time. You can do oven potatoes in the skin: no foil, just poke the potatoes with a fork a few time and rub olive oil on the skin, 45 minutes or so at 425. It also makes the turkey very easy to carve, so that's faster and a lot less messy when dinner time comes.

If you do potatoes and turkey in the oven, you have still the whole stop top for the rest, so perhaps you should choose dishes that not need an oven.

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  • I second this suggestion. The butterflied turkey cooks quickly enough that you can cook it over your pan of stuffing and kill two birds with one stone.
    – Chris Bergin
    Commented Dec 20, 2016 at 16:32

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