Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (2024)

Sage-Crusted Leg of Lamb with Pineapple-Pecan Salsa

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (1)

Credit: Oxmoor House

Bring out your best traditional Christmas dinner menuwhen you host the big holiday meal. From beef tenderloin to traditional ham, check out our favorite menus for Christmas dinner and use this collection to inspire your next holiday meal. These menus cover everything from winery-inspired feasts to amazing regional-specific fare. While it's important to incorporate expected traditional recipes into your menu, it's also good to add in new recipes every year to shake up the menu and inspire your guests. Pick your favorite, make a few new dishes, and ask for feedback while you all enjoy a delicious holiday dinner.

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Ultimate Southern Christmas Dinner

Giblet Gravy

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (2)

Ultimate Southern Christmas Dinner Menu

The holidays are a perfect time to satisfy your down-home, comfort food cravings. This scrumptious collection of dishes highlights Southern classics like Giblet Gravy, Cornbread-Biscuit Dressing, and Swiss-Squash Casserole.

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Sit Down For a Wintery Feast

Pork Roast with Sweet Onion-Pumpkin Seed Relish

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (3)

Credit: Jim Franco; Styling: Lydia Degaris Pursell

Sit Down For a Wintery Feast Menu

This hearty midwinter's meal showcases the bounty of the season and pairs especially well with a crackling fire.

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Easy and Elegant Holiday Menu

Spinach and Mushroom-Stuffed Beef Tenderloin with Truffled Wine Sauce

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (4)

Credit: Johnny Miller; Styling: Sarah Smart

Easy and Elegant Holiday Menu Menu

Impress guests and delight family with an elegant menu that's a breeze to cook.

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Home-Cooked Classic Holiday Menu

Apple Brandy-Glazed Pork Tenderloin

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (5)

Credit: Johnny Miller; Styling: Sarah Smart

Home-Cooked Classic Holiday Menu Menu

Cozy classics cooked to perfection turn a good holiday meal into perfection.

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An Elegant Holiday Dinner Menu

An Elegant Holiday Dinner Menu Menu

The highlight of this year's Christmas menu features a dazzling beef tenderloin and new favorites you'll crave year after year.

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Celebrate Christmas in Style

Celebrate Christmas In Style

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Celebrate Christmas in Style Menu

Give the holidays extra sparkle with dressed-up recipes and beautiful crafts that show off the season's best.

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Quick and Easy Christmas Dinner

Molasses Pork Tenderloin with Red Wine Sauce

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Quick and Easy Christmas Dinner Menu

Enjoy this delicious array of no-fuss holiday dishes that will add sparkle to your table this season.

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An Elegant Feast

Horseradish and Mustard-Crusted Beef Tenderloin

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Credit: Randy Mayor

An Elegant Feast Menu

Show your style with a simple, elegant menu for eight that features beef tenderloin as the entrée and a cranberry-ginger cake for dessert.

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Casual Christmas Eve Supper

Citrus Batida

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Casual Christmas Eve Supper Menu

After all the holiday hustle and bustle is over, relax on Christmas Eve with a laid-back buffet menu featuring roasted pork, a winter fruit salad, and crème brûlée.

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Cozy Christmas Dinner

Pork Loin Roast With Carolina Apple Compote

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Credit: William Dickey; Styling: Buffy Hargett

Cozy Christmas Dinner Menu

Invite your guests to experience a little holiday magic with this delicious pork loin menu. Shhh! It's also completely manageable, so you'll be able to make dinner and enjoy it.

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Christmas Dinner

Cinnamon Stewed Apples

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (12)

Credit: Karry Hosford

Christmas Dinner Menu

Simple, fresh, and delicious sides complement spicy ham for a memorable yuletide meal. Cinnamon Stewed Apples and Brussels Sprouts with Pecans complement Fire and Spice Ham, which features a delicious glaze made from pepper jelly and pineapple preserves.

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Holiday Feast

Roast Beef with Horseradish-Mustard Sauce

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (13)

Credit: Becky Luigart-Stayner; Lydia DeGaris-Pursell

Holiday Feast Menu

Slide the table apart, put in extra leaves, and enjoy this classic celebratory dinner with your extended family.

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Christmas Dinner Menu

Christmas Dinner Menu

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Christmas Dinner Menu Menu

Gather loved ones for a delectable Christmas dinner and make the holiday merry with this elegant spread.

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Dashing Christmas Dinner Menu

Fennel-Crusted Rib Roast

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Credit: Beth Dreiling Hontzas; Styling: Mindi Shapiro Levine

Dashing Christmas Dinner Menu Menu

This Southern-style Christmas dinner features dressed-up deviled ham, greens, buttermilk panna cotta, pickled winter veggies, and more.

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Christmas Dinner: Grand & Gracious

Beef Tenderloin With Henry Bain Sauce

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For a classic dinner, serve a succulent beef tenderloin paired with baby blue salad, creamy soup, yeast rolls, and more. The best part? The tenderloin's sauce is freezer-friendly, so you can enjoy it over other dishes as you ring in the new year.

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The Holiday Dinner Table

Herb-Crusted Roast Beef and Yorkshire Pudding with Red Wine Jus

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Credit: Linda Pugliese; Styling: Kaitlyn Du Ross Walker

This holiday season, gather around the table to celebrate and share a memorable and delicious meal with family and friends. Fill up your plate with some incredible main dishes and sides to pair with such a special occasion.

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Ham Dinner Menu

Ham Dinner Menu

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Credit: Oxmoor House

Ham Dinner Menu Menu

Featuring shrimp tartlets, baked ham with a rustic mustard-peach glaze and sweet potato salad, this Christmas dinner will be one to remember. Finish the night with a Dark Chocolate Layer Cake that Santa himself would approve of.

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Tuscan Dinner Party Menu

Tuscan Dinner Party Menu

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (19)

Credit: Oxmoor House

Tuscan Dinner Party Menu Menu

Starting with a warm bean salad accompanied by Chicken with 40 Cloves of Garlic, this Tuscan menu will transport you to Italy even on the coldest of winter nights. With herb smashed potatoes and broccoli with balsamic butter, this Christmas dinner will quickly become a family tradition.

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Roasted Lamb Dinner Menu

Sage-Crusted Leg of Lamb with Pineapple-Pecan Salsa

Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (20)

Credit: Oxmoor House

Roasted Lamb Dinner Menu Menu

Celebrate the season and flavors of the holiday with this festive roasted lamb Christmas dinner menu. Beginning with oysters, continuing with a roasted sage-crusted leg of lamb and finishing with an almond torte, this Christmas dinner will bring friends and family together.

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Traditional Christmas Dinner Menus & Recipes (2024)

FAQs

What is a classic Christmas dinner menu? ›

Traditional Christmas foods are very similar to Thanksgiving and consists of roast turkey, turkey stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, green beans, dinner rolls, cranberry sauce and pies such as apple or pumpkin. Other non-traditional main dish favorites are ham, roast beef or lasagna.

What does a traditional Christmas dinner consist of? ›

Traditional Christmas dinner features turkey with stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and vegetables. Other types of poultry, roast beef, or ham, are also used. Pumpkin or apple pie, raisin pudding, Christmas pudding, or fruitcake are staples for dessert.

What are the traditional foods and meals for Christmas? ›

Every family in every part of the world serves their own traditional Christmas foods, but in the U.S., some are enjoyed nationwide:
  • Turkey.
  • Prime Rib.
  • Baked Ham.
  • Mashed Potatoes & Gravy.
  • Stuffing.
  • Green Bean Casserole.
  • Candied Sweet Potatoes.
  • Roasted Vegetables.
Dec 21, 2023

What is a typical American Christmas dinner? ›

Turkey, stuffing, gravy, roast vegetables and roast potatoes. Delicious! Turkey, Ham (on the bone), sweet and white potatoes, fresh homemade cranberry sauce, veggies of all sorts and of course, baked dinner rolls with butter. Kinda like Thanksgiving.

What is the most common Christmas dinner? ›

The Most Popular Christmas Dishes

The #1 pick is roast potatoes, with a win percentage of 76%. Mashed potatoes came in second (75%), and turkey was third (73%)—the only protein in the top five. Check out this top-rated recipe for roasted potatoes.

How to make a good Christmas dinner? ›

Serve a traditional Christmas dinner menu filled with classic dishes, including smoked salmon starters, roast turkey with all the trimmings and Christmas pudding.

What vegetables to serve at Christmas dinner? ›

Discover the perfect amounts of potatoes, carrots, parsnips, sprouts, peas and red cabbage to serve with your roast turkey. Need help planning your Christmas dinner?

What time should Christmas dinner be served? ›

It's just supposed to be a middle-of-the-day meal, so the Queen's speech, at 3pm, adapted to it rather than the other way round. In other parts of Europe, people prefer their Christmas meal on Christmas Eve and eat leftovers the next day. In Britain, much of the way we do it comes from the Victorians.

What is the most popular Christmas meat dish? ›

More countries eat pork

Pork is the most popular traditional holiday dish in 23 countries, more than the 17 that focus on turkey, she said.

What is a good dish to take for a Christmas party? ›

Some popular options include:
  • Appetizers: Cheese and crackers, shrimp co*cktail, deviled eggs, bruschetta, meatballs, and spinach dip 1 2 .
  • Main dishes: Roast beef, ham, turkey, lasagna, prime rib, and salmon 1 2 .
  • Side dishes: Mashed potatoes, roasted vegetables, green bean casserole, stuffing, and cranberry sauce 1 2 .
Nov 18, 2015

What do Italians eat at Christmas? ›

In Southern and Central Italy, baked pasta is a must. In Northern Italy, Lasagne Bolognese and filled pasta like manicotti and ravioli are traditional Christmas fare. Next comes the main event, the meat. Roasted veal, baked chicken, sausages or braised beef are common Natale entrées worth celebrating.

What foods do Mexicans eat on Christmas? ›

Mexican Christmas food spans enchiladas, pozole, tamales, and plenty of desserts. These are our favorite recipes for flavorful versions of those dishes from Mexican chefs, along with a few festive drinks. Start a tamale making tradition, warm up with pozole this winter, and enjoy enchiladas everyone will love.

What meat is original Christmas dinner? ›

The traditional choices were beef, venison and wild boar, but the Tudors also ate a range of wild animals and birds that we wouldn't eat today, including badger, blackbird and woodco*ck. Turkeys first came to England during the Tudor period were seen as an exotic delicacy.

Is lasagna a traditional Christmas dinner? ›

Pasta is a must for an Italian Christmas Dinner. Lasagna, Stuffed Manicotti and other cheesy baked pasta dishes are a hit with all ages—this is classic Christmas fare in Southern Italy.

What can I make for Christmas dinner instead of turkey? ›

Unique holiday dinner ideas
  • Beef Wellington: The Showstopper.
  • Christmas Roast Duck: The Twist on a Classic.
  • Vegetarian Enchiladas: The Surprise Favorite.
  • Roast Lamb: The Savory Star.
  • Stuffed Acorn Squash: The Festive & Flavorful.
  • Prime Rib Roast: The Hearty Hero.
Dec 12, 2022

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