Christmas leftover recipes, tried and tasted by Michelin-star chefs
In many ways Christmas Day lunch is the easy bit — we all know what we are meant to be doing and can create an impressive spread without the need for much originality or creativity. The leftovers, however, are a different matter. Transforming a half-eaten turkey (https://www.thetimes.com/uk/article/best-christmas-turkey-recipe-how-to-roast-2022-dinner-stuffing-trimmings-3xmpsttmw) into a dish so tasty it can lure people off the sofa and back to the dining table requires skills and flair. So it’s fortunate that we have some of the best chefs in the UK to give us some guidance.
Alain Roux’s turkey vol-au-vent with suprême sauce
Serves 4-6
As chef-patron of the three-Michelin-star Waterside Inn in Bray, Berkshire, Alain Roux is more than qualified to advise what to do with Christmas leftovers. This recipe is a family favourite. “I look forward to this almost as much as Christmas lunch itself,” Roux says. “I love its versatility and simplicity. It’s perfect for using up Christmas turkey, goose, ham or even capon, a popular centrepiece in France.” The vol-au-vent pastry cases can be made a couple of days before and then baked on the day. The assembling of the dish, however, must be done at the last minute.
Ingredients
Vol-au-vent
• 1kg puff pastry (quick puff or all-butter, shop-bought)
• Flour for dusting
• 1 egg yolk mixed with 2 tsp milk and a pinch of salt, to glaze
Filling
• 150g button mushrooms
• 300ml chicken (or vegetable) stock, for poaching the button mushrooms
• 200g leftover cooked stuffing (bitesize chunks or slices)
• 100g leftover cooked chestnuts
• 300g leftover cooked turkey (diced, pieces or slices)
• 2 tbsp flat-leaf parsley
Sauce
• 15g butter
• 15g plain flour
• 250ml leftover cooking stock from the poached button mushrooms
• 150ml leftover champagne
• 150ml double cream
• 20g butter, chilled and diced
• Salt, ground pepper and nutmeg
Alain Roux
Method
- Preheat the oven to 210C and line a baking sheet with baking parchment.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll out the pastry to measure 80cm x 30cm, and 3-4mm thick.
- Stamp out 3 rounds of pastry, 24cm diameter and transfer one round to the lined sheet. Brush lightly with egg glaze.
- Using a 16cm cake ring, cut through the second pastry round. Lift the outer ring and place it on top of the first glazed pastry round. Lightly glaze it and cover with the third pastry round. Chill for 20min.
- Using a small knife, score with vertical strokes along the side of the vol-au-vent, all the way around to a depth of 1mm. Brush the entire surface of the vol-au-vent with egg glaze.
- With the tip of a small knife, mark a 4cm border on the top by scoring quarter-circle lines. Score a lattice pattern on the pastry inside the border, which will become the lid.
- Bake in the oven for 15min, then lower the oven to 170C and cook for a further 20-25 min, until golden underneath.
- Remove from the oven and use the tip of a small knife to cut out the central lid. Carefully lift off, then scoop out and discard the undercooked, soft pastry inside the case.
- Transfer the vol-au-vent case to a wire rack and set aside. Reduce the oven temperature to 150C.
- Put the clean mushrooms, the 300ml stock, a few drops of lemon juice with a little salt and pepper into a saucepan. Bring to the boil, then cover with a lid and lower the heat. Simmer for 5-6min. Drain the mushrooms and set aside. Retain the cooking stock for the sauce.
- For the sauce, first make a white roux. Melt the butter in a saucepan. Off the heat, add the flour and combine with a whisk. Return to a medium heat and cook for 3min, stirring continuously.
- Pour the 250ml (preferably cold) leftover cooking stock into the roux, stirring all the time, then simmer over medium heat for 4-5min, stirring occasionally with a whisk.
- Pour in the champagne and the cream. Simmer for another 10 min, stirring occasionally, until it is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- Over a low heat, whisk in the butter and season to taste. Keep warm until ready to serve. Cover with a lid if needed.
- To serve, place the stuffing, chestnuts, turkey and mushrooms in the oven for 7-8 min, until just hot.
- Warm the vol-au-vent case in the oven for 5 min, then transfer to a warm serving dish.
- Spoon the stuffing and chestnuts into the case. Follow with the turkey and the mushrooms. Drizzle some suprême sauce all over and sprinkle the parsley.
- Lay on the pastry lid, to sit at an angle on top and serve at once. Serve the remaining sauce on the side.
Raymond Blanc’s turkey curry
Serves 4-6
Raymond Blanc is famous for bringing peerless French cuisine to the UK. But Britain’s food culture has had an influence on him in turn. “I now enjoy a curry as much as my British friends,” says Blanc, who has earned two Michelin stars as the chef-patron at Le Manoir aux Quat’Saisons in Oxfordshire. “It must be delicately spiced and not too overpowering. I like mine served with steamed rice and perhaps some wilted garlic spinach on the side. But keep it simple after the big lunch the day before.”
raymondblanc.com (https://www.raymondblanc.com/recipes/leftover-turkey-curry/)
Ingredients
For the turkey curry
• 1 large onion, finely diced
• 50g butter, unsalted
• 4 cloves garlic, finely grated
• 1 thumb of ginger, finely grated
• 2 red chillies, finely chopped
• 6 cardamon pods
• 3 cloves
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp cumin seeds
• 10 black peppercorns
• 2 tins chopped tomatoes
• 4 pinches sea salt
• 500g leftover turkey meat, diced into 2cm pieces
For the cucumber raita (optional)
• 150ml natural yoghurt
• ¼ cucumber, de-seeded and diced
Method
- In a medium saucepan covered with a lid, on a medium heat, sweat the onions in the butter for 5 min until they are soft and cooked through.
- Remove the lid and continue to cook until the onions start to caramelise. Continue to brown the onions for 5 min, stirring from time to time to achieve an even, golden colour.
- Add the garlic, ginger, chilli and stir for 30 seconds to cook.
- In a separate small frying pan, on a high heat, gently toast the spices for 1 min, before taking off the heat and grinding to a fine powder. Add this to the onions and spices, and cook for 30 seconds.
- Stir in 2 tins of chopped tomatoes, bring to a simmer, season and taste. Turn the heat to medium and leave it to reduce by a third.
- Add the cooked turkey meat, cover with a lid and leave on a low heat for a minimum of 15 min.
- When you’re ready to serve, taste one final time and adjust the seasoning if necessary. If you find it is a little too hot, you can always serve a little raita on the side to cool the intensity of the curry.
- To make the raita, simply mix the yoghurt and cucumber together. Adding a little chopped mint would also be nice.
- Serve the curry with a generous helping of wholegrain rice and garnish with a sprig of coriander and sliced spring onions if you wish.
Alain Ducasse’s capon or turkey pie
Alain Ducasse
MATTEO CARASSALE
In Alain Ducasse’s three-Michelin-starred restaurant in the Dorchester, his team try to make sure they use every last bit of produce to avoid any waste. They use the roots of endives to make stock. They use the discarded leaves from vegetables to make condiments. “My aim is to no longer have bins in the kitchen,” Ducasse says. Which makes it no surprise that he has turned cooking with leftovers into an art form. “During the festive period, there is an elegance in transforming leftovers into something exceptional.”
Ingredients
• 1kg capon or turkey meat left over (picked from the carcasses — leg, breast, wings)
• 100g roasted parsnips (left over)
• 100g carrots (left over)
• 100g mushrooms (fresh or left over)
• 1 bunch fresh herbs (parsley, chives, chervil works fine or what you have in the fridge)
• 1 onion diced
• 1 stick of celery, diced
• 1 small leek, washed and sliced
• 100g roasted chestnuts
• 100g butter
• 100g flour
• 1l boiling milk
• ½ tbsp Dijon mustard
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 sheet of puff pastry
Method
- Sweat the onion, celery, leek and celeriac in butter and salt with no colour. Once the onion is sweat down, add mushrooms and continue to sweat all the water out. Once the water from the mushrooms is reduced, add the flour, mix and then start to add the milk slowly. Once the milk is incorporated and the mix is smooth, cook out the flour for 15 min.
- Once the flour is cooked out, season the mix with more salt and pepper, and Dijon mustard. Add the carrots, parsnips and roughly chop the chestnuts. You can now add the turkey or capon picked from the bone and cut roughly. Mix, add the chopped herbs and check finally for seasoning before putting on to an oven tray to cool down.
- Place the pastry on top, then egg wash twice (once just before cooking) and cook at 180C for 25 min or until the pastry is cooked and golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, let it rest for 10 min before serving. Serve with a spoon of cranberry sauce on the side and a glass of bubbles.
Hélène Darroze’s stuffed potimarron (onion squash or pumpkin)
Hélène Darroze
Michelin stars run in Hélène Darroze’s family — she is a fourth-generation chef who has earned six stars of her own. And she was also the inspiration for the character Colette Tatou from the animated film Ratatouille. But despite the family tradition, Darroze initially chose a suit over chef whites, studying business at university and then working in administration in an office. But the office belonged to the chef Alain Ducasse who, as soon as he learnt of her family’s cooking background, swiftly moved her into the kitchen. Darroze, who is based at the Connaught in London, believes that the festive season is for comfort food “that you can share with the family and that everybody will love”. She likes this recipe as it is “a bit naughty”. “People are nearly always full of food at this time of year and do not want to eat any more,” she says. “But because this is so delicious, there is always extra room to enjoy it!”
Ingredients
• 1 onion squash (adjust the size depending on the quantity of stuffing and meat)
• Stuffing’s turkey trimmings
• Turkey meat trimmings
• Turkey cooking juice
• 300g pumpkin
• 300g chestnuts
• 500g black trompette mushrooms (or other wild mushrooms)
• 300g sourdough breadcrumbs
• 10cl single cream
• 60g grated parmesan reggiano
• 2 bunches of parsley
• 6 leaves of sage
• 100g of duck fat (if not available – olive oil)
• Salt
• Black pepper
Method
- Open the top of the onion squash or pumpkin by cutting around the stem with a knife to form a lid that can be removed. Remove the fibres and seeds from inside using a spoon.
- Cut the flesh into small cubes and sauté them in a pan with a bit of duck fat until they are well browned and just tender. Also sauté the mushrooms in duck fat, then roughly chop them.
- Cook the chestnuts in boiling water, then remove the two skins. Crumble them roughly.
- In a small bowl, soak the breadcrumbs in cream. Once fully soaked, let them drain.
- Roughly chop the parsley and sage leaves.
- In a large mixing bowl, place the vegetable cubes, mushrooms and chestnuts. Season with a bit of salt and pepper, and mix. Add any leftover stuffing or meat, the soaked and crumbled bread, chopped herbs and parmesan. Mix everything together and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.
- Stuff the pumpkin/onion squash with this mixture, close it with the top and place it in a dish. Drizzle with duck fat and bake in the oven at 160C for about 1 hour.
- Once cooked, place it on a serving platter. Deglaze the baking dish with the remaining turkey juices. Scrape up all the caramelized bits and pour the resulting sauce over the top.
- Serve immediately.
Andrew Wong’s simple soup
Andrew Wong
Of course, on our list of Christmas leftover recipes we need a soup, especially if a two-Michelin-starred chef like Andrew Wong says so. Wong spent much of his childhood in his family’s Chinese restaurant, the same restaurant that he would years later turn into a Michelin-starred success named A Wong. “I would make a soup using the leftover turkey meat and bones,” he says. “It’s a comforting dish that everyone in the family can enjoy. We close the restaurant over Christmas to give our team a break and, for me, it’s a time to spend with my family.”
Ingredients
• Turkey bone
• Leftover meat
• Light chicken broth
• Ginger
• Spring onion
• Star anise
• Cassia bark
• Bay leaves
Method
Simply put the turkey bone and meat into a light chicken broth. Add the ginger, spring onion, star anise, cassia bark and bay leaves. Then just “cook it very gently, not for too long”.
Merlin Labron-Johnson’s Christmas broth
The chef Merlin Labron-Johnson, who now owns Osip restaurant in Somerset, was awarded his first Michelin star at 24, only nine months after opening his first restaurant. His cooking career began, almost by accident, when washing pots and peeling potatoes at school so he could get free school meals, a deal he had struck with the chef. This turned into cooking for the whole school and then later assisting at the cookery college next door. For his Christmas day leftovers, he likes to create a “hearty meal”. This recipe would suit a big family (or a hungry small one). It also doesn’t have to be just turkey — whatever bird you have roasted will work just fine.
Ingredients
• Leftover turkey carcass or joints, with a bit of meat still intact
• 1 bulb of garlic, cut in half
• 2 leeks, green parts separated
• Small bunch of thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 carrots
• 2 turnips
• 2 potatoes
• Sel gris or Maldon salt
• Pepper
• Handful of tarragon, chopped
• Dijon and wholegrain mustard
• Cornichons
• Optional: stuffing, bacon, cooked spelt or barley
Method
- Find a pot large enough to accommodate the carcass or pieces of turkey with a bit of extra space. Place the turkey in the pot and add enough cold water to just cover it. Add the garlic, leek greens, thyme and bay leaves. Bring to a boil and skim any scum or froth that rises to the surface. Cook on a lowest possible heat for 25-30 min, then remove the turkey from the liquid and let it rest on a plate. Remove the herbs, leek and garlic and discard.
- While the turkey is cooking, peel the carrots, turnips and potatoes and cut into 3-4in pieces. Chop the onions and the white part of the leek into similar sizes without worrying too much about the shape of your vegetables — they should be rustic.
- Taste your broth and season generously — it’ll need to be salty enough to permeate the vegetables. Add your vegetables and stuffing/grains (if using), then simmer until the vegetables are cooked through but still retain their structural integrity.
- While the vegetables are cooking, pick all the meat off the turkey carcass and put back into the broth with the cooked vegetables. Taste again for seasoning, and add some black pepper and a little more salt if needed.
- To serve, place the pot in the middle of the table accompanied by the
