We are doing Christmas differently this year, so I have been on the look out for the best deals and offers when it comes to the food shop. So when Tesco released details of their £11 Christmas dinner, I thought I would give it a go as a trial run for Christmas Day.
The offer, that started on Friday, December 19 for Clubcard holders, includes a turkey that they say will feed between six and seven people and bags of carrots, parsnips and Brussel sprouts, stuffing, plus a bag of potatoes, Yorkshire puddings and chicken gravy. The supermarket is reducing the price of small, fresh turkeys by 40% – to £3 a kilo with a Clubcard.
The carrots and parsnips are down to just 15p a bag, and Tesco have slashed sage and onion stuffing to just 40p for Clubcard holders – meaning when you add everything up, dinner for six costs an eye-catching £11.05.
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The supermarket says that the price drop works out 25p a person cheaper than it was in 2023, when the equivalent deal came in at £2.09 per person (a reduction of nearly 12%).
Falling turkey and Brussels sprout prices mean Christmas dinner will actually cost a little less at the supermarket checkout this year. BBC research has found that the price of Brussels sprouts has fallen by 12%, while a 10lb (4.55kg) frozen turkey will cost you £1.21 less than it did last year.
They say that when everything is taken into account, a family Christmas is set to cost £31.66 in 2024, down from last year’s figure of £32.18. It reflects food prices rising at a slower rate in the past year, as UK inflation has eased.
Back to the Tesco meal and the delivery arrived right on time and the amount of vegetables were more than acceptable to feed six people, even when two of those are teenage boys who have a seemingly infinite capacity for potatoes! The sage and onion stuffing made 12 balls, so that’s two each. They just about passed the teenage taste testers, but were a little on the dry side.
There are no pigs in blankets included in the deal, but more than enough of the vegetables with some left over. They were also good quality and the potatoes were so good, I went back to get another pack to use on the actual day.
I followed the cooking instructions on the turkey, but it did come out a little dry and there was definitely not much left over so I will cook this differently when it comes to Christmas Day. We’ll also be having a ham, which will make a big difference.
The Yorkshire puddings looked very small when taken out of the bag, but they tasted much better than they looked and there are 15 in the bag so more than enough for everyone. One of the big successes along with the potatoes was the own-brand chicken gravy. It was like it said on the tin “rich and smooth”. Again, it was something I would definitely go back for to use on the day.
What is on offer
The dinner
All in all, if I had this as my option on Christmas Day, I think we would all be happy and that is always something that is easy to achieve on a budget. There are some trimmings not included, but on the whole there was more than enough for everyone.
The products included in the Christmas Dinner offer are available in the majority of large Tesco stores for customers with a Clubcard from December 19 until Christmas Day. For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter
|
Product |
Regular Price |
Clubcard Price |
|
Tesco White Whole Turkey Small |
£5.00 per kg |
£3.00 per kg |
|
Tesco Carrots 1kg |
£0.69 |
£0.15 |
|
Tesco All Rounder Potatoes 2kg |
£1.35 |
£0.15 |
|
Tesco Brussels Sprouts 500g |
£0.85 |
£0.15 |
|
Tesco Parsnips 500g |
£0.75 |
£0.15 |
|
Hearty Food Co. 15 Yorkshire Puddings 230g |
£0.46 |
£0.40 |
|
Tesco Gravy Granules for Chicken 200g |
£0.73 |
£0.65 |
|
Tesco Sage & Onion Stuffing Mix 170g |
£0.45 |
£0.40 |
Tesco chief commercial officer Ashwin Prasad said regarding the company’s offering this year: “We know that every little really does help at this time of year, and, with the traditional Christmas dinner at the heart of celebrations across the country this December, we were determined to deliver our customers truly great value on the turkey and trimmings, even compared with last year.
“We hope that our fantastic quality and great value food, drink and service with a smile will help to feed the nation’s Christmas spirit, however they choose to spend the holidays.”
Lidl is another supermarket that has cut prices for Christmas trimmings, including potatoes, Yorkshire puddings, carrots and stuffing mix. From Thursday, December 19, prices for their fresh turkey were slashed too, meaning a Christmas feast for six will cost just £1.87 per person.