Corned Beef, with a Leek, Chive and Onion Stuffing

The stuffing mix was retrieved from a kitchen cupboard (a Sainsbury's 'Taste the Difference' offering, which also contained wheat as a key ingredient). Easy to make - add 160mls of water, and allow to stand in a bowl for fifteen minutes. Stir together. Add some olive oil. Then bake the stuffing in a roasting tray for twenty minutes at 200 deg C (middle shelf).

Served with boiled potatoes (prepared earlier) and a mixture of baked beans and chopped corned beef, cooked in a steamer for about twenty minutes at a low to medium heat. Plus a salad of red pepper slices, and some diced raw spinach.

Dressed in a dusting of white pepper and coriander leaf. Delicious!

Christmas Dinner with Chicken and Chestnut & Onion Stuffing.

 The  components were: roast Maris Piper potatoes, carrots, brussels sprouts, sliced chicken breast, a sausage meat and chestnut and onion stuffing, oven roasted sausages dressed in bacon (pigs in blankets), and a chicken and onion gravy.

The main trick is to get all of the components hot at the same time, and delivered to the plate within a couple of minutes. Everything was prepared the previous day. A microwave oven was used to reheat the sprouts and carrot (in one glass tray), the chicken and onion gravy. The chicken slices were wrapped in some aluminium foil, and reheated for ten minutes in a fan-assisted oven. The roast potatoes were reheated in the microwave. The chestnut and onion stuffing was also reheated in the microwave,  along with the chipolata sausages wrapped in bacon (the 'pigs in blankets').

What follows is the initial cooking process on Christmas Eve, which took half the day. I started with the vegetables, the gravy, and the potatoes. That took three pots. Allowed to cool, and placed in the fridge. The  gravy was made with chicken stock and some onion gravy granules.

The chicken breasts (four altogether) were cooked in in the oven, in a lidded casserole dish on a bed of diced onions. cooked for around 45 minutes at 200 deg C. Allowed to cool and placed in the fridge.  The next morning the chicken breasts were sliced with an electric knife. The chicken was very tender when served.

The pigs in blankets were cooked from scratch at 180 deg C, for a notional 25 minutes. I wrapped them in some aluminium foil so they would not burn.  Cooked for twenty five minutes, and then for another five to ten minutes unwrapped, in order to brown.

The next item was the chestnut and onion stuffing. Cooked in the oven as a block, and uncovered, for thirty-five minutes.at 180 deg C,  The sausages can be cooked along with the stuffing, if you watch the timer carefully.

 I've blogged about roasting potatoes before, so search on roast potato for the details. In this case I used  goose fat, which is a popular choice at Christmas, but isn't strictly necessary to get excellent roast potatoes. In a nutshell, parboil the potatoes, drain, shake around a lidded pan, and then roast at about 200 degrees C for thirty-five to forty minutes after drizzling them in goose fat. Watch carefully!

All components of the meal were thoroughly heated and cooked and still hot before serving. All components were on the plate quickly, starting with the sausages and the stuffing, followed by the chicken, the roast potatoes, the vegetables and the chicken and onion sauce. Serve with Cranberry Sauce jelly!

Pork Joint with Sage and Onion Stuffing

I found a cheap joint of pork with sage and onion stuffing in the supermarket (Sainsbury's) post Christmas. Cooked in the oven for two hours at around 190 deg C.

The joint was cut into slices with an electric knife. Not an essential tool, but it is so much easier.

The gravy was made with Bisto onion gravy granules, dried sage leaves, pork stock, and vegetable stock. The onion granules thicken the gravy.

The Brussels sprouts were cooked for nine minutes in boiling water under glass. Delicious!

Chicken and Sausage Meat Stuffing, with Roast Potatoes

Roast potatoes, chicken breast, a sausage meat stuffing, carrots, brussels sprouts, sausages wrapped in bacon (pigs in blankets), cranberry sauce, and a delicious gravy made with chicken stock, sage, thyme, rosemary, onion, spring onion, and red currant sauce. 

This meal was largely created in two sessions on the preceding day. The gravy and the potatoes were prepared first. The onions were added to a mixture of cornflour and water. Heated until it began to thicken. Cooked for half an hour, stirring regularly (don't take your eyes off it). The potatoes were parboiled for fifteen minutes, then decanted into a glass bowl and allowed to cool. Four dessert spoonfuls of goose fat (sunflower oil will do just as well) were drizzled across the potatoes. With a plate sealing the glass bowl, the potatoes were shaken around vigorously, until fluffy. Then placed in the oven on the middle shelf at around 160 deg C, and cooked until a golden colour. Turn two or three times.The stuffing was commercially bought, but is essentially made with (usually pork) sausage meat and stale breadcrumbs, plus generous amounts of sage. Rolled oats or oatmeal can be substituted, and sometimes it is given extra physical integrity by adding an egg during the mixing of the ingredients. 

Unless very thick, the stuffing should roast in twenty minutes at 180 deg. C. Watch this one closely too!

The chicken was in the form of a crown (both breasts), and was cooked for 70 minutes at 180 deg C, and turned two times during the process, with the juices spooned over the top. Covered with aluminium foil for 65 of those minutes. The chicken was allowed to rest before carving, and reheated in the microwave on the day. You could reheat in a steamer instead.

  

Finally the brussels sprouts were cooked for nine minutes in boiling water, and the carrots for twenty.