Jamie's Cook-Ahead Christmas - Season 1

In this episode, Jamie shows us sumptuously festive dishes, sides and sauces that we can make in the weeks before Christmas, using the freezer as our best friend. He whips up a super versatile gravy that starts life totally vegan and gluten free so that it's ready for whoever is coming for dinner; packed full of flavour, it can be enjoyed as is or combined with turkey juices on the big day. Continuing with maximum flexibility, Jamie shares a get-ahead stuffing that can be meat or vegetarian, frozen ahead of time so that it's ready to be unwrapped for the festivities. He shows us some clever flavoured butters that can be made in advance to give your veggies a quick boost without the fuss; a fresh parsley, watercress and hot horseradish butter to melt over your steamed greens; and a mouth-tingling Prosecco, orange and cumin butter to give your carrots a delicious twist on the day. Creating a bit of wow factor to rival the turkey, Jamie shares an incredible potato and fennel al forno that can either be made and frozen as a ready-to-go side dish or wrapped in a short walnut pastry for an incredible veggie centrepiece that everyone will be fighting over! And, lastly, he creates a bit of Christmas magic with a super-simple homemade ice cream that can easily be turned into a stunning Arctic Roll that will get even Santa coming back for more! 

This time, Jamie takes us through the final run-up to Christmas day, sharing exactly what to prepare on Christmas Eve and the fuss-free way to bring it all together. With a beautiful new technique to prepare the turkey that gets us ahead of the game, Jamie removes the legs and slow-cooks them in advance for a gorgeously succulent dish of pulled meat that can be reheated on Christmas Day in just half an hour. With the legs done separately, we're left with a brilliantly manageable turkey crown that can be dressed to impress the night before Christmas, ready to go into the oven in the morning. For the perfect get-ahead starter, Jamie makes an incredibly silky smooth chicken liver pate that can be wrapped up in the days ahead. He gives us the ultimate masterclass in the best Christmas roast potatoes ever, and rustles up a get-ahead batter that's in the fridge ready to grow into an epic giant Yorkshire pudding - banked and ready before Christmas starts, so that all that's left to do on Christmas Day is bringing it all together!