Cork chef Rory returns with tips for Yuletide fare

Perhaps you’re preparing to cook your first Christmas dinner for the family - or maybe you’re an old hand at it. Either way, a few tips and tricks never go amiss!

Cork chef Rory O’Connell is back with another double helping of his annual series How to Cook Well at Christmas in the coming days.

They are a big hit with viewers, with a combined audience of 553,000 viewers watching in 2023.

In the first of the two specials, on RTÉ1 on Sunday, December 22, at 7.30pm, Rory prepares a salad of roast butternut squash with chickpeas and salmoriglio, and follows this with savoury turkey and ham, bread and butter pudding, and a chocolate and pear flan.

In the second special, on Monday, December 23 at 7pm, he prepares a choux pastry and choux rings with smoked trout and almonds, a three cheese mille feuille with cranberries and a very seasonal Christmas ice-cream with whiskey-soaked prunes, served in an ice bowl.

Rory has been teaching people how to cook for years - the Ballymaloe Cookery School he co-founded with his sister Darina marked its 40th anniversary last year.

“The ritual around eating and meals is about so much more than just the food itself,” he says. “And I suppose that’s never more true, really, than at Christmas.

“It’s the time of year when you pull out some of those dishes that you only use once a year, and most of the preparations can be done before your guests arrive, allowing you, the cook, to enjoy the event as much as everyone else.”

There is more festive food advice in Off Duty Chef Bringing It Home For Christmas on RTÉ1 on Monday, December 23 at 6.30pm, as podcaster, author and chef Mark Moriarty aims to take the stress out of cooking on the big day.

He has curated a three-course menu, packed with tips to get ahead, and featuring a show-stopping vegetarian centrepiece to compliment the traditional festive ham - ensuring no-one is left out.

For starters, Mark dishes up a classic French Onion Soup, with golden caramelised onions and a gooey delicious comté cheese topped toast. The beauty of this recipe is that it can be prepared days in advance to save time.

For the mains, he presents a sticky soy-glazed ham with simple yet elegant sides, including a glazed and studded swede, perfect for vegetarian diners.

To round off the meal, Mark’s indulgent bread and butter pudding, studded with dark chocolate and pistachios, is a real crowd-pleaser.