Curtis Stone may be a celebrity chef – but he understands that not everyone feels naturally at home in the kitchen, especially when it comes to cooking the big family Christmas feast.

So, for a Christmas Day that’s as smooth and stress-free as possible, the Coles Ambassador has coined a strategy that can be used by anyone who finds themselves responsible for the festive meal.

And he told Daily Mail it’s an essential approach for any rookie Christmas host faced with the daunting task of cooking for the first time.

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Curtis’ Christmas Game Plan

‘What you need to do first is write down all the things you want to serve,’ Curtis explained. ‘Then make a list of all the jobs you have to do to prepare and make those dishes. In a professional kitchen we call it mise en place.’

‘You basically approach it like a chef would – and you end up with this laundry list of things to do. And you’ll be like, “Holy cow, this is a crazy amount of stuff”.’

At this point, you might be tempted to throw in the towel or scramble for a Christmas Day restaurant reservation.

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Instead, Curtis says the next vital step is to meticulously analyse your list. ‘Look at your list and put little asterisks next to all the things that can only be done on the day,’ he advised.

By sorting the tasks, the lead-up should then involve tackling all the preparation jobs that can be done before Christmas Day, leaving just the minimum of last-minute jobs for the big day itself.

While many hosts feel pressure to make Christmas perfect with a delicious and bountiful spread, Curtis suggests it’s better to focus on being a good host – which usually doesn’t mean spending the day tucked away in the kitchen.

‘The best hosts have the most fun,’ he said.

‘If you go to someone’s house and they’re stressing, it makes you uneasy. But if they’re larger than life, you feel like you can be too. So you can’t put too much stress on the day.’

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But his biggest advice for Christmas hosts? Don’t be afraid to ask for help.

‘I’m always a big advocate for asking people to dig in,’ Curtis said.

Whether it’s getting guests to bring a plate or inviting them to join you in the kitchen, Curtis says spreading the load makes for a enjoyable experience because, suddenly, ‘you’re in this together’.

A True Blue 2025 Christmas Menu

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Being strategic with your menu plan is another way to make Christmas run smoother and remain stress-free, explains Curtis’ Coles colleague, Development Chef Michael Weldon.

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‘I always say: start cold – especially here in Australia where the weather is hot at Christmas,’ Michael told Daily Mail.

‘Go for prawns, cold cuts like ham and a salad, maybe even featuring fantastic stone fruit that’s in season at this time of year.’

‘What you don’t want is to clog up your oven and cooking area with two hot courses.’

The oven, Michael says, can be your best friend if you use it for ‘set it and forget it’ cooking like roasts and baked veg.

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He points to Coles Finest Boneless Chicken Prosciutto Wrapped Fromager D’affinois, $28, and a Dukkah Spiced Cauliflower Kit, $15, as perfect examples.

Both are showstoppers but require minimal skill outside of popping them in the oven and setting a timer.

What’s Off The Menu This Year

Food trends may come and go, but both chefs agree that traditional flavours are always the go-to for Christmas meals.

But Curtis believes one traditional menu item has fallen by the wayside in Australia: the whole cooked turkey – and with good reason.

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‘We’ll always have turkeys available, and some people will always want that traditional meal at Christmas time,’ Curtis said.

‘But unless you’re cooking for a huge number of people, it doesn’t make a tonne of sense, apart from tradition.’

‘With turkey – because it’s so big – I always have trouble cooking it. By the time the legs are done, the crown is quite dried out,’ Curtis observes.

‘And then what do you do with all that leftover turkey? It takes up the entire oven so there’s no space for anything else. For me, there’s a lot of reasons not to do a turkey.’

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Curtis’ thoughts echo the research done by Michael and his product development team, who identified a shift towards a variety of smaller meal components on a festive table, rather than one big showpiece.

‘Many people are now looking to have a few different options, not just one main item – especially with people having different dietary preferences,’ Curtis said.

Curtis’ Family Christmas Traditions

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The location of the Christmas get-together changes year to year for Curtis and his American actress wife Lindsay Prince, and their two sons Emerson and Hudson.

The festivities are usually in Australia at Curtis’ mum or brother’s place, but sometimes everyone joins them at their US home.

But the constants are on the table. ‘Mum always does roast pork with crackling and we have a ham every year,’ Curtis says.

‘And we always cook way too much. But I kind of love the leftovers. It’s easy for me to think of a hundred different ways to use them.’

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This year, Curtis is also embracing another long-running family food tradition.

‘I’ve never made a real Christmas cake, but my mum does one every year – they take a long time to make.

‘This year she told me, “All right, we’re going to make the Christmas cake together”. Not that my wife will touch it – Americans aren’t really into those kind of flavours.’

Ultimately, Curtis says what truly makes the celebration special is simply the chance to be together.

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‘Christmas is that moment when the whole world sort of stops. You slow right down. It’s just you and your family, and that’s really special.’

‘We do all the most important things in our life around good food – we get married with a big feast, we celebrate our birthdays with big feasts – and Christmas is obviously one of those.’