30 Christmas Eve food ideas

Don’t wait until the big day to begin your festive feasting. From comforting Christmas Eve dinner ideas to how to plan a special Christmas Eve menu for the family, read our ultimate guide to what to eat the night before Christmas.

Senior Food Editor

Heather Taylor

What food to serve on Christmas Eve

Nailing the best Christmas Eve menu is all about keeping it simple while incorporating festive flavours and extra treats to make it feel special. If you’re cooking Christmas dinner the next day, you also need to consider dishes that don’t need loads of prep – extra washing up is the last thing you need. Whether it’s a spread of picky bits or a comforting one-pot with a luxe Christmas twist (did someone say truffle mac and cheese?), keep reading for delicious Christmas Eve dinner inspiration.

Christmas recipe ideas Christmas food in store

10 easy Christmas Eve dinner ideas

From comforting fish pie and lasagne to golden, flaky sausage rolls or roast ham, discover our best quick and easy Christmas Eve dinner ideas that deliver on festive flavour without the fuss.

1. Pork smash tacos

Spice up your Christmas Eve with this easy take on the viral smash tacos recipe, served with a crunchy sprout slaw. It's just the thing when you want a break from all the rich festive flavours to come.

Pork smash tacos recipe

2. Butter chicken pie

All the flavours of butter chicken curry, wrapped up in golden, flaky pastry. This comforting butter chicken pie is made easy thanks to our fuss-free Butter Chicken Curry Kit.

Butter chicken pie recipe

3. Brazilian-style fish stew

Tuck into this comforting, vibrant one-pot, inspired by Brazilian flavours – ideal if you want something a little lighter before Christmas dinner tomorrow. Plus, it's ready in 25 minutes – so there's more time to kick back with a glass of mulled wine.

Fish stew recipe

4. Pear and Stilton galette

Bake rich, tangy Stilton, sweet and sticky pears, and crunchy walnuts with a drizzle of honey atop a sheet of golden puff pastry for a Christmas Eve-worthy vegetarian sharing dish that looks super impressive, but is a doddle to make.

Pear and Stilton galette recipe

5. Mushroom and lentil ragu

Heady from red wine and fragrant with bay leaves, this hearty mushroom ragu recipe is guaranteed to warm the cockles. Toss through silky pasta and serve with lots of grated cheese for a fuss-free festive dinner that delivers on flavour.

Mushroom ragu recipe

6. Pigs in blankets pizza

Why wait until the big day to tuck into pigs in blankets? Use alongside crispy sage and onion chutney to top our ready-made sourdough pizza dough and watch this crowd-pleasing pizza disappear.

Pigs in blankets pizza recipe

7. Chicken and bacon casserole

With salty pancetta, succulent chicken and the genius addition of a tin of creamy mushroom soup, this hearty casserole is easy to put together, but still tastes special enough for Christmas Eve – especially when served with a pile of fluffy mash.

Chicken casserole recipe

8. Gammon bahn mi

Switch up the traditional glazed ham by serving with a crunchy Asian-style slaw in fluffy buns – this punchy gammon bahn mi recipe is great if you've got a crowd coming.

Gammon bahn mi recipe

9. Potato rosti fish pie

If you're a fan of a fish pie on Christmas Eve, try this elevated version, which uses potato rosti for the topping. It will save you time and deliver maximum golden, fluffy texture.

Fish pie recipe

10. Roasted root veg, burrata and citrus flatbread

This easy veggie flatbread recipe, topped with golden citrus, roasted beetroot and fennel and a vibrant olive salsa, tastes as good as it looks.

Burrata flatbread recipe

Christmas Eve party food ideas

11. A grazing board always goes down a treat – whether you're going Scandi-inspired, opting for a plate of baked camembert with picky bits to dunk, or fancy something Italian, we've got next-level grazing boards covered.
12. Stock up on party food as part of our 4 for 3 deal in store. Think succulent black tiger prawn Paella Bites, mini Turkey Feast Toasties with a gravy dipper, and golden mini Vegetable Tacos.
13. Not sure what you fancy? Take our fun quiz to find the Christmas party bite for you.
14. Complete your spread with some homemade party nibbles – these maple-roasted squash crostini are super easy, as are Tom Kerridge's mini ham and pineapple cheese toasties, or a plate of hot maple pigs in blankets. Browse all our party food recipes and get planning.

Party food ideas

Festive bites

Christmas Eve sharing platters

You can't go wrong with a platter of top-quality charcuterie, cheeses and nibbles for everyone to share.

15. Check out our selection of antipasti platters and Christmas picky bits in store – from fresh seafood to Italian olives and charcuterie, these will wow without the fuss.

16. Make your own charcuterie board from a curated selection of top-quality cured meats and cheeses.

17. Fancy something different? How about a homemade butter board, with flavoured butters and crusty bread for dipping? Find out how to make a butter board in our ultimate guide.

18. Pre-order made-for-sharing platters from our fuss-free Christmas Food to Order service, ready to collect in store for Christmas Eve. This graze by numbers charcuterie and antipasti platter looks totally Instagrammable but is super easy to put together.

19. Serve up a next-level cheeseboard with crunchy crackers and crudités. Pre-order this British Cheeseboard Selection for in store collection, or make your own Christmas cheeseboard with our expertly sourced cheeses in the Foodhall.

20. Or how about some hot cheese? Our oozy bacon and hot honey Camembert is made for dunking with crusty bread. Or try baking it inside a loaf of sourdough with this recipe.

Sharing platters

Desserts too good to wait for

Finish your Christmas Eve feast on a sweet note with a decadent dessert. Whether you want an easy festive dessert recipe or bake, or want to make things easy with a wow-worthy ready-made pud, we've got you covered.

19. Add an extra dessert to your Christmas food order to enjoy on Christmas Eve. Our picks? A Christmassy Colin the Caterpillar, showstopping Panettone Gateau and made-for-sharing Brownie Wreath.

20. Need more dessert inspo? Read our top 10 desserts to try this Christmas.

21. Keep it simple with a plate of mince pies – whether you're going for our Collection all-butter pies made with Wildfarmed flour, award-winning gluten-free mince pies, or vegan versions, we've got a pie for everyone (including Santa).

22. Spend the day making a homemade festive sweet treat with our Christmas baking recipes. How about this mincemeat puff pastry Christmas tree?

23. If you're looking for a fun, festive activity to do with kids, pick up one of our Christmas baking kits in store and make a gingerbread house or a batch of Christmassy cupcakes.

24. Leave out a slice of Christmas cake for Santa – choose yours with our guide to the best Christmas cakes for 2025.