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Tommy Banks' top tips for Christmas dinner

Tommy Banks' top tips for Christmas dinner

Good Food team

Tommy Banks, head chef at the Michelin-starred restaurant The Black Swan, shares his essential Christmas dinner tips for an extra special meal.

How do you make the perfect mince pie? What's the definitive way to serve controversial Brussels sprouts? What's the secret to making perfect roasties? We've got the answers from Yorkshire-based chef Tommy Banks. For even more festive inspiration and recipe advice, check out our Christmas kitchen hub.

1. What’s your top tip for cooking Christmas dinner?

Keep it traditional. It's the only time of year you can eat lashings of bread sauce, a very boozy Christmas pudding, pigs in blankets and crumbly mince pies.

Check out our traditional Christmas centrepiece and Christmas dinner collections.

2. Do you have any tips for getting ahead on the Christmas dinner?

Prepare all the veg the day before so you can concentrate on cooking the meat on Christmas Day.

Our easy freezable Christmas recipes and 10 Christmas classics can all be made in advance.

3. What’s the most important ingredient in a Christmas pudding?

Booze. Lots and lots of booze. The last thing you want is a dry Christmas pudding – and it can really dry out – so add as much alcohol as you can.

Learn how to light a Christmas pudding at the table and get ideas for your pudding leftovers.

4. How do you make the perfect mince pie?

Adding orange and lemon zest to your pastry creates a lovely, aromatic base for the pie.

Try our orange pastry recipe or go for our easiest ever mince pie recipe.

5. Do you have a secret to the perfect roast potato?

Use lamb fat, rather than traditional beef or goose fat. This isn’t necessarily as crispy, however it creates an amazing thick, chewy layer around the fluffy inside of the potato.