From beautifully laid out Christmas dinner banquets, to the perfectly decorated tree, smiles, enthusiasm and a day of fun and festivities, Christmas day is often imagined as an idyllic family get together, but does it always go to plan? New research from greetings card marketplace thortful has found that 79% of Brits claim their Christmas day goes wrong1.
Celebrating the perfect imperfections of the big day, thortful asked Brits what normally goes wrong for them, and how they feel about it, and food disasters ranked as the top problem Brits are experiencing on Christmas day, despite a 387% increase in the number of people searching for ‘how to cook a turkey’ in the lead up to Christmas.2
What goes wrong in the kitchen on Christmas Day?
Nearly a quarter (24%) of Brits claim that their food is either overcooked or undercooked, with 19% stating the food is not on time or late.
However, food related problems aren’t just a result of cooking, 11% of Brits experience difficulties with their appliances breaking.
See the full list below:
| What goes wrong for Brits at Christmas? | Percentage |
| Overcooked or undercooked food | 24% |
| Food is late / not on time | 19% |
| Forget to defrost food items | 16% |
| Eat / drink too much so fall asleep before games | 12% |
| Oven / alternative appliance stops working | 11% |
How to ‘save’ a Christmas dinner
Iain Roden, Head Chef at Coruisk House on the Isle of Skye offered the following tips to ensuring that the turkey is cooked just right.
“Try teasing the breast skin away from the meat and sliding a generous scraping of butter under the skin. Make sure it is cooked but not over cooked by getting an ovenproof meat thermometer and sticking it in one of the cooler parts such as the inner thigh – bear in mind that it will continue to cook for a while as it rests, so taking it out of the oven when it shows around 67-68 degrees C means that it will probably get up to 75 degrees or more which will be safe to eat, but the breast shouldn’t be overcooked or dried out.”
The team at thortful also warns that not all hope is lost if the oven breaks.
“If your oven breaks on Christmas Day, you’ll need to get creative with alternatives. The mircowave can be a lifesaver for reheating, or even cooking, smaller portions of food. You can also use the stovetop to prepare many sides or even roast a smaller bird in a large pot or Dutch oven. If you have a slow cooker, it can help with cooking things like mashed potatoes or stews. If all else fails, some restaurants and takeaways typically stay open, offering food that can be picked up.”
What else goes wrong on Christmas Day?
However, it isn’t just a kitchen crisis putting the day into chaos, more than one in ten (11%) forget presents, 9% also get in trouble for not keeping to the perfect Christmas aesthetic, wrapping presents badly. 2% of Brits even re-sell unwanted gifts on Vinted or Depop the very same day!
Although the Christmas hiccups are frequent among Brits, with some even losing a job (4%), others having to go to A&E (3%) and 15% being too hungover to enjoy the day, one in ten (10%) claim they improvise and make the day better, whilst one in five (20%) laugh off any issues and treat the whole situation with humour.
To help guide the mishaps on Christmas Day, and for support on gifting, card messages, games and more, visit thortful’s blog here: https://www.thortful.com/blog/
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