Our Best Christmas Dinner Ideas (2024)

Christopher Testani for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Simon Andrews.

  1. Christmas

We have plenty of show-stopping holiday main dishes including rib roast, ham, pernil, roast duck as well as vegetarian options. Discover more ideas for the holiday in our Christmas recipes super collection.

Lasagna Regina Schrambling 4 hours
Easy
Prime Rib Roast Sam Sifton 1 hour 15 minutes, after 3 hours' room temperature sitting
Pepperpot Millie Peartree About 4 1/2 hours
Jansson’s Temptation (Creamy Potato Casserole) Eric Kim, Jens Linder, Johanna Westman 50 minutes
Christmas Glazed Ham Yotam Ottolenghi About 3 hours, plus resting time
Vegan Jackfruit Pernil Christina Morales, Lyana Blount 7 3/4 hours
Easy
Cola-Braised Beef With Chile-Lime Onions Ali Slagle 4 1/2 hours
Easy
Whole Roasted Squash With Tomato-Ginger Chickpeas Ali Slagle About 3 hours
Seared Bone-In Rib-Eye Steaks Genevieve Ko 3 hours 10 minutes
Easy
Paprika-Roasted Chickens and Potatoes Ali Slagle About 4 hours, plus overnight brine
Pernil Von Diaz, Maricel Presilla 3 to 4 hours, plus marinating
Ombré Gratin Alexa Weibel 3 hours
Prime Rib Lidey Heuck About 7 hours, plus overnight dry brining
Khoresh Morgh Nardooni (Pomegranate Chicken Stew) Naz Deravian 1 1/2 hours
Root Beer Ham Eric Kim 3 1/2 hours
Roasted Halibut With Mussel Butter Sauce Kay Chun 35 minutes
Five-Spice Butternut Squash in Cheesy Custard Yotam Ottolenghi About 1 1/2 hours
Roast Chicken With Maple Butter and Rosemary Colu Henry 1 hour
Vegetarian Lasagna Bolognese Alexa Weibel 1 hour
​​Crisp Roast Duck Melissa Clark 2 1/2 hours, plus at least 4 hours’ resting
Vegetarian Mushroom Wellington Alexa Weibel 3 hours
Mrouzia Lamb Shanks Nargisse Benkabbou 3 hours
Portobello ‘Steak’ au Poivre Ali Slagle 25 minutes
Easy
Maple-Baked Salmon Genevieve Ko 25 minutes
Beef Wellington Melissa Clark 1 1/2 hours, plus chilling
Seafood Gumbo Kayla Stewart, JJ Johnson 1 hour 35 minutes
Easy
Glazed Ham Sam Sifton 1 hour
Butter Chicken Sam Sifton, Amandeep Sharma 1 hour 15 minutes
Wine-Braised Chicken With Mushrooms and Leeks Melissa Clark 1 hour
Spinach-Artichoke Lasagna Eric Kim 2 hours
Braised Lamb With Squash and Brandied Fruit Yewande Komolafe About 2 1/2 hours
Samosa Pie Rachel Wharton, Nadiya Hussain 2 1/2 hours, plus cooling
Feast of the Seven Fishes Pie Melissa Clark 50 minutes, plus at least 1 hour chilling
Simple Roast Turkey Melissa Clark 3 1/2 hours, plus brining
Crown Roast of Pork Sam Sifton About 4 hours
Peking Duck With Honey and Five-Spice Glaze Kay Chun 2 hours, plus drying
Mushroom Bourguignon Melissa Clark 1 hour
Venison and Trotter Pie Tejal Rao, Angie Mar 1 hour, plus 8 hours' braising and baking
Instant Pot Pork Stew With Red Wine and Olives Melissa Clark 1 1/2 hours
One-Pot Vegetable Biryani Zainab Shah 1 hour
Kimchi Jjigae With Ribs Eric Kim, Jean Kim 45 minutes
Vegan Lasagna Gena Hamshaw 1 1/4 hours
Slow-Roasted Turkey With Apple Gravy Genevieve Ko, Padma Lakshmi About 6 hours, plus 2 days’ brining
Tourtière Sam Sifton 6 hours (can be made serially)
Dutch Oven Chicken and Vinaigrette Dorie Greenspan About 2 hours
Pan-Roasted Duck With Wild Mushrooms David Tanis 1 1/2 hours
Crown Roast of Pork with Fennel and Lemon Melissa Clark 20 minutes, plus at least 4 1/2 hours’ marinating and roasting
Garlic Chicken With Guasacaca Sauce Yewande Komolafe 45 minutes
Lamb Shanks With Apricots and Chickpeas David Tanis About 3 1/2 hours
Whole Roasted Cauliflower With Pistachio Pesto Susan Spungen 1 hour
Roast Duck Dorothy Allison 2 hours 30 minutes
Easy
Classic Prime Rib for a Small Crowd Mark Bittman 1 hour 30 minutes
Upperline’s Duck and Andouille Gumbo Brett Anderson, Upperline About 2 1/2 hours
Easy
Skillet Pork Chops and Apples With Miso Caramel Ali Slagle 30 minutes
Ina Garten’s Make-Ahead Coquilles St.-Jacques Sam Sifton, Ina Garten 1 hour
Mushroom Potpie Alexa Weibel 1 1/2 hours
Mussakhan (Roast Chicken With Sumac and Red Onions) Mayukh Sen, Yasmin Khan 1 hour, plus 1 to 3 hours’ marinating
Vegetarian Shepherd’s Pie Samantha Seneviratne 1 3/4 hours
Butternut Squash and Fondue Pie With Pickled Red Chiles Yotam Ottolenghi 1 1/2 hours, plus cooling
Caramelized Onion Galette Sue Li 1 1/2 hours, plus chilling and cooling
French Onion Macaroni and Cheese Ali Slagle 1 hour

More Editors’ Collections

269 Our Best Weeknight Dinner Recipes 269 recipes
74 Bright and Beautiful Summer Pastas 74 recipes
178 Grilling and BBQ Side Dishes 178 recipes
21 Practically Magical 3-Ingredient Recipes 21 recipes

See More Editors’ Collections

Our Best Christmas Dinner Ideas (2024)

FAQs

What are the top 10 Christmas foods? ›

From savory roasts to sweet treats, here are ten of the most popular Christmas dishes that are a must-have during the holiday season.
  1. Roasted turkey. No Christmas dinner is complete without roast turkey. ...
  2. Ham. ...
  3. Roast beef. ...
  4. Stuffing. ...
  5. Poultry. ...
  6. Sweet potato casserole. ...
  7. Cranberry sauce. ...
  8. Plum pudding.
Dec 11, 2023

What is a traditional Christmas dinner menu? ›

Traditional Christmas dinner features turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and vegetables. Other types of poultry, roast beef, or ham, are also used. Pumpkin or apple pie, raisin pudding, Christmas pudding, or fruitcake are staples for dessert.

What food do Americans eat the most on Christmas? ›

Every family in every part of the world serves their own traditional Christmas foods, but in the U.S., some are enjoyed nationwide:
  • Turkey.
  • Prime Rib.
  • Baked Ham.
  • Mashed Potatoes & Gravy.
  • Stuffing.
  • Green Bean Casserole.
  • Candied Sweet Potatoes.
  • Roasted Vegetables.
Dec 19, 2022

What is the most sold food at Christmas? ›

The Most Popular Christmas Foods
  • Roasted potatoes (91%)
  • Scalloped potatoes (83%)
  • Roast beef (77%)
  • Red velvet cake (76%)
  • Ham (76%)
  • Christmas nuts (76%)
Aug 1, 2023

What do Italians eat for Christmas dinner? ›

Pasta is a must for an Italian Christmas Dinner. Lasagna, Stuffed Manicotti and other cheesy baked pasta dishes are a hit with all ages—this is classic Christmas fare in Southern Italy.

What veg do you have with a Christmas dinner? ›

Discover the perfect amounts of potatoes, carrots, parsnips, sprouts, peas and red cabbage to serve with your roast turkey. Need help planning your Christmas dinner?

What is usually cooked for Christmas dinner? ›

Serve a traditional Christmas dinner menu filled with classic dishes, including smoked salmon starters, roast turkey with all the trimmings and Christmas pudding. We're all for breaking with convention and trying something new on special occasions, but sometimes only classic dishes will do on Christmas Day.

What was the original Christmas dinner? ›

Feasts were held to celebrate the pagan midwinter solstice, and archaeological digs have discovered that the most popular meats served up were pork and beef. Pork would be cooked over spits, while beef would be chopped up and used in hearty winter stews.

What to serve for Christmas dinner besides ham? ›

Unique holiday dinner ideas
  • Beef Wellington: The Showstopper.
  • Christmas Roast Duck: The Twist on a Classic.
  • Vegetarian Enchiladas: The Surprise Favorite.
  • Roast Lamb: The Savory Star.
  • Stuffed Acorn Squash: The Festive & Flavorful.
  • Prime Rib Roast: The Hearty Hero.
Dec 12, 2022

What can I do instead of Christmas dinner? ›

Top 5 alternative meaty mains
  1. Quick roast Christmas chicken & sticky veg.
  2. Honey-glazed ham.
  3. Easy roast pork shoulder.
  4. Marmalade glazed roast duck.
  5. Easy roast leg of lamb.
  6. Whole roasted cauliflower.
  7. Parsnip, mushroom & barley wreath.
  8. Truffled parsnip & brioche pudding.

What is the most popular item on a Christmas dinner plate? ›

Roast potatoes and gravy are the most ubiquitous items on the Christmas dinner, with only around half opting for turkey.

What is the most popular Christmas Eve dinner? ›

Turkey is classic, of course, as is ham, but you could also serve a roast chicken, roast beef, or pork tenderloin. Fill out your meal with some Christmas-y side dishes, and you'll be all set for the perfect holiday dinner.

What is the most eaten vegetable at Christmas? ›

Within this article we will outline the 5 most popular Christmas vegetables, and how to keep them fresh for the big day!
  • 1) Carrots.
  • 2) Broccoli.
  • 3) Potatoes.
  • 4) Cauliflower.
  • 5) Brussel sprouts.

Top Articles
Latest Posts
Article information

Author: Corie Satterfield

Last Updated:

Views: 5312

Rating: 4.1 / 5 (42 voted)

Reviews: 81% of readers found this page helpful

Author information

Name: Corie Satterfield

Birthday: 1992-08-19

Address: 850 Benjamin Bridge, Dickinsonchester, CO 68572-0542

Phone: +26813599986666

Job: Sales Manager

Hobby: Table tennis, Soapmaking, Flower arranging, amateur radio, Rock climbing, scrapbook, Horseback riding

Introduction: My name is Corie Satterfield, I am a fancy, perfect, spotless, quaint, fantastic, funny, lucky person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.