Frugal Christmas Dinner Ideas (Very Cheap!)
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Christmas dinner is probably one of the most expensive meals of the year. However, it’s worth remembering it’s essentially a roast dinner with a few extras thrown in for good measure.
Here are a few ways you can dramatically cut the cost of Christmas dinner and still have a delicious and tasty family meal.
These are my Frugal Christmas Dinner Ideas.
Frugal Christmas Dinner Ideas
1. Ditch the Turkey
While turkey is traditional at Christmas, ask yourself whether it’s worth spending the extra on.
A large turkey can take hours to defrost, can go dry when cooking and honestly most children probably wouldn’t know the difference if you served them chicken instead.
If you’re on a tight budget this Christmas then I think a chicken is the way to go.
It’s much cheaper and is easier to cook too.
2. Double Up On The Veggies
In the week leading up to Christmas, most supermarkets slash the price of their Christmas veggies down to pennies.
This year has already seen Tesco drop theirs to 19p and Lidl drop theirs to 15p. I think in previous years they may have been as low as 10p a pack.
If you’re worried about not having enough meat then pile up the veggies for your family to fill up on.
Everyone loves roast potatoes.
Parsnips are underrated and we don’t have them as often as we’d have peas and carrots.
And if you’re sprout fans stock up on those too!
3. Make Soup & Serve As A Starter
If you’re peeling the carrots, potatoes and parsnips then chuck all the peelings into a pot to make a quick and tasty soup.
Simply add a stock cube and salt and pepper and blitz either with a hand blender or with a food processor.
The soup could be served as a starter for Christmas lunch, helping to fill everyone up or as lunch on Boxing Day.
You could put the soup in the freezer to eat in January.
I have a recipe for curried parsnip peel soup which you can find here.
Alternatively, you could make the peel into vegetable crisps which make a great snack.
4. Serve Up A Budget Christmas Pudding
Fancy Christmas puddings can cost a ridiculous amount but the budget ones are just fine too.
When I worked in catering we would buy Tesco value ones at 99p, cut them into four and microwave for 30 seconds before serving.
No one ever complained that it wasn’t boozy or mature enough.
The cheapest I could find this year was Tesco and Asda both stocking a pudding that feeds four for £2.00.
Or, if you’re not keen, choose something else entirely.
My choice would be a frozen chocolate gateau at £1.50 which serves four.
Another option is DIY trifle kit at around £1.70 although you’d need to add in the cost of milk.
5. Frugal Christmas Dinner Ideas: Have Fun Around The Table
If you’re worried about Christmas Day not feeling festive because you’ve not been able to spend as much as you’d like on gifts or food, please try not to worry.
Children especially remember spending time as a family and the fun they had more than anything else.
Here are a few things you can do to make Christmas Dinner time fun and memorable, using bits and pieces you may already have in around the house.
Serve Dinner ‘Family Style’ – This means serving all the food in bowls and letting everyone help themselves.
While it does inevitably create more mess, letting the children help themselves with the food makes them feel more grown-up.
You could also ask an older child or teen if they’d like to cut up the meat.
Sprout Eating Contest – I know we’re not supposed to encourage children to play with their food but if you’ve stocked up on cheap sprouts this is a great way to get the kids eating them and creating some lasting laughs for the whole family.
Christmas Joke Jar – If you don’t have crackers a Christmas joke jar is easy to make.
Fancy Tableware – Make the table feel fancy by using placemats if you have some. They can be wrapped in leftover wrapping paper if you have some for a festive feel.
Let the kids use wine glasses for their squash and have a big family toast. Anything that makes dinner feel extra special.
You can also use wrapping paper as a runner for the middle of the table.
I hope these ideas help you make a cheap and tasty Christmas Dinner this year.
Don’t forget to freeze any leftovers!
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