Top NI chef Noel McMeel shares his perfect, safe Christmas dinner

Noel McMeel, who has cooked for royalty, politicians, and celebrities, said the key to a great Christmas dinner is a thermometer.

He said: “My main piece of advice this year is that cooking time on packaging is a general guide only. To ensure a turkey is fully cooked, I recommend using a meat thermometer. If you don’t have a meat thermometer, use a clean fork or skewer to pierce the thickest part of the breast and thigh. You’ll know it’s cooked when: it’s piping hot throughout, its juices run clear, there is no pink meat left and any stuffing is also piping hot throughout.”

As part of its annual Christmas food safety campaign, safefood is encouraging chefs at home to use a meat thermometer to make sure their turkey is safely cooked through to 75 degrees Celsius so everyone can have a safe and tasty Christmas.

Trish Twohig, director of Food Safety with safefood said: "Meat thermometers are affordable, easy to use and can be used on other eats during the year like chicken, pork, burgers, and sausages to ensure they are cooked all the way through. If you aren’t sure about how long a turkey takes to cook, you can check out all the details on safefood.net/Christmas It’s stuffed with lots of practical help like our interactive turkey cooking time calculator for all turkey types, a Christmas dinner planner to help with meal planning and lots of delicious recipes to make the most of any leftovers.’’

safefood’s Top Tips for Cooking the Perfect Christmas Dinner

Give your fridge a good clean with warm soapy water and re-arrange the shelves to make space for your turkey – you should store it on the bottom shelf.

Here’s a guide to the size of turkey you'll need depending on the size of your party.

4-6 people: a 3-4 kg turkey

6-8 people: a 4-5 kg turkey

8-10 people: a 5-6 kg turkey

If your turkey is frozen, give yourself enough time to defrost it prior to cooking and defrost it on a dish or tray on the bottom shelf of the fridge. Allow 24 hours for every 4-5 pounds/1.8-2.2kg of frozen turkey. You’ll know it’s completely thawed when the body is soft, the legs can be moved and there are no ice crystals in the cavity.

Do not wash your turkey as this can spread harmful bacteria to your sink and kitchen surfaces - proper cooking will kill any bacteria. Handle your turkey as little as possible and remember to wash your hands and any surfaces/utensils with hot, soapy water before you handle any other food.

For cooking times to suit your turkey, safefood have a handy turkey cooking time calculator on their website at www.safefood.net/Christmas. To check your turkey is safely cooked, take it out of the oven and pop a meat thermometer in the thickest part of the meat between the breast and the leg; when it reads 75 degrees Celsius, it’s safely cooked. If you don’t own a meat thermometer, pierce the thickest part with a clean skewer or fork and check that it is piping hot, with no pink meat left and the juices run clear.