Did you wait too long to plan a Christmas/Holiday dinner? You don’t have to resort to takeout or delivery, these recipes can all be done in a few hours and taste just as good as turkey.
Our Best Last Minute Christmas Dinner Ideas
Like the best steak of your life: melt-in-your-mouth buttery, extremely juicy, and deliciously beefy and satisfying.
The absolute best version of Chinese food for Christmas made even better because it’s at home, no pants needed.
The first time we had paella was in London at Christmas, it was so fun. What’s more festive than gathering around a giant paella?
And the same goes for Swedish meatballs, doesn’t it always seem like the nordic countries know how to do Christmas right?
Whatever you do for your mains and sides, cinnamon rolls are the ultimate dessert for your Christmas dinner.
Because if gravy is the best part of christmas dinner for you, then why not 6 different ones? You can make all these at the same time and have a full smorgasbord.
A turkey that cooks itself perfectly feels a little bit like the future, but a utopian future instead of the weird dystopian one we live in now.
What makes these Christmas potatoes? Nothing, but they’re definitely perfect, just like your Christmas will be.
The question is, do you start with these amazingly soft and crisp chocolate chip cookies, or end with them? Why not both?
Honey baked ham like you’ve never had it with the flavors of Chinese bbq char siu honey glaze.
Pressure cooking is the way to go: juicy, perfect turkey every time, in only 20 minutes.
If you’re bored of turkey, this is a crazy flavor bomb that will make you forget all about plain turkey.
Or go really crazy with a smoky, hyper-flavorful and happily cheerful DIY Christmas Korean BBQ.
But if you’re dead-set on a full turkey, do yourself a favor and spatchcock it for the best whole turkey ever. You can even buy it in parts and put it together like a puzzle.
Hainanese chicken and rice is like the ultimate Chinese version of the classic turkey and mashed potatoes Christmas dinner.
The prettiest appetizer, but so over the top you could do it as the main too. A little bit of luxury in a year that definitely needs it.
These air fryer wedge fries taste like an adult version of the frozen wedge fries you might have had as a kid, and what’s better than nostalgic food done right?
Like garlic bread and dinner rolls had a baby who turned out to be Yao Ming. So good and so easy, you’ll never go back to plain dinner rolls.
Fun fact: If you hated brussels sprouts as a kid, it was a different (worse) varietal. Today’s brussels sprouts are so good, especially when cooked right, like in the air fryer.
And while you have the air fryer out, try these juicy perfect-every-time chicken breasts too.
The most perfect looking mac and cheese ever is also the tastiest. You’ll never look at Velveeta the same way again.
Whenever we get a chance to, we try to visit German christmas markets, and the best part of them are soft pretzels. We can’t have markets this year, but we can still have pretzels!
Go a little crazy for your Christmas dinner main with this super easy Chinese BBQ pork, served up with bao, rice, or on its own.
Imagine a huge pile of juicy flavorful lemon pepper chicken thighs in the blink of an eye. Way easier and more cost effective than turkey.
And if you don’t have an air fryer, these baked garlic honey mustard chicken thighs are just the thing.
But if money is no object, nothing says celebration like a giant tomahawk steak whether traditionally with just salt and pepper, or Vietnamese salad roll like we did here.
If you’ve never had barbacoa as a festive meal, you’re missing out: soft and tender beef coated in a savory red chile sauce, perfect with tacos or Mexican rice.
The best festive dinners are slow, lingering, communal dinners, like these Japanese octopus balls which are so fun to make and eat.
Fun fact: many people have their Christmas dinners on Christmas morning, and if you are one of those people, a Full English is the best “Christmas Dinner” ever.
And even more people have fried chicken for their Christmas dinners. Take it to the next level with these Chinese cured egg yolk fried chicken nuggets.
Regular pasta salad can be great, but this sour cream and onion pasta salad based on everyone’s favorite chip flavor is phenomenal.
You know this one: the delicious salty peppery shrimp you get from great Cantonese restaurants, now at home, for Christmas.
While you’re on the shrimp train, these shrimp and risosto arancini are super festive and crazy delicious.
For people who hate leafy greens, this hearty salad is all buttery avocados, cool cucumbers, and lots of umami, soy, and black vinegar.
Crispy roasted prawns loaded up with salt, garlic, and chiles. A flavor bomb of a side dish.
Perfect mashed potatoes, every time, as fast as possible. You’ll never go back to making mashed potatoes any other way after reading this.
Slightly spicy, slightly sweet Korean inspired chicken with creamy crispy roast potatoes
A tiny touch of fine dining at home when you want to bring the extra fancy: perfect eggs, perfect potatoes.
A creamy and light Christmas-y take on shepherd’s pie with turkey and white sauce and everything nice.
Definitively, the best bread is potato bread, especially during the holidays. You can use these buns to make tiny Shake Shack burgers even.
The best parts of a fully loaded baked potato and classic potato salad, together at last. Rich and bacon-y and creamy and fluffy, all at the same time.
The crispy edges and fluffy insides of the roasted potatoes pair perfectly with the creamy burrata.
There’s nothing better than taking a tray of these tiny slider buns fresh out of the oven to start your dinner.
But if you have to have the classics, these no-fail extra fluffy dinner rolls are just what you need.
Pasta salad like you’ve never had: chicken pot pie pasta salad, done up in the instant pot in under 20 minutes.
Why stop at a simple pasta salad though, when you can go all out with this creamy lobster pasta. It seems expensive and decadent, but all you need is one lobster to make this pasta.
These mint snowman marshmallows are the perfect accompaniment to your Christmas morning hot chocolate.
And so are these tiny gingerbread houses, although you’ll need to order a special mold for them unless you’re really good with a knife.
Honeynut squashes are the cuter, tastier, easier to make version of butternut squash. Just roast these and enjoy their sweet squashiness, no worrying about peels or tough fibers.
Stuffing done right with challah bread, sauteed mushrooms, and lots of thyme and rosemary. This stuffing will make your house smell like Christmas all by itself.
The Velveeta mac up top might be the classic, but this green chile one is our best mac and cheese: a love letter to the Southwest.
And this one is our love letter to kimchi and Korean stone bowls. You’ll need to order a stone bowl for this one, but it’s 100% worth it for those crispy bits of pasta and cheese.
People line up for hours for these in the cold and rain, but you can have it right in front of a cozy fire at home instead.
Shatteringly crispy breaded pork with rice and cabbage and sesame dressing might not sound like a traditional Christmas dinner, but it could the best one you’ve ever tried.
Cereal pancake balls were a thing earlier this strange year. Ring in a more hopeful 2021 with these classic Danish pancake balls that are way easier and tastier to make.
This Basque Cheesecake looks like this year feels, but tastes like heaven underneath that slightly bitter burnt crust. The perfect way to say goodbye to 2020