Why Nigella Lawson Is Ditching The Turkey This Christmas

The TV chef is doing things a little differently this year.

Nigella Lawson

by Daisy Jordan |
Updated on

Nigella Lawson is one person who knows how to make the perfect Christmas turkey, but this year she's ditching the festive tradition for the 'first time ever'.

In an appearance on the BBC’s Newscast podcast alongside Emily Maitlis and Nick Grimshaw, the TV chef explained, 'I only just made the decision a couple of days ago, for the first time ever, I am not going to do a turkey - and I always do.'

Instead Nigella, who is reportedly single after her previous marriage to Charles Saatchi, will cook her 'new recipe' of roast pork this year.

She went on, 'For various reasons, it’s not going to be a normal family Christmas and I will feel less sad about doing something that is just a lovely lunch, that takes in a few Christmas traditions from elsewhere that interest me, but [does] not make me feel what's missing.'

One traditional recipe Nigella will be cooking on the big day however is a Christmas pudding... or five.

'I have to do that,' she said. 'I’ve made lots of little ones rather than the normal huge monster.

'Before I felt 'No, everything is strange, Christmas has got to be the same,' and I suddenly thought, 'No, I need it to be a bit different.''

She explained, 'One of the things I think we've all realised is how we miss having people round our table, and therefore all that worrying over [perfection], you realise that is actually secondary to the feeling of eating with other people.'

Nigella lives in London, so like many in tier four areas, she's unable to enjoy a normal family Christmas with her family.

She has two children, Cosima Thomasina, 26, and Bruno Paul, 24, with her late husband John Diamond, but she lives alone.

Nigella added that fortunately, she's enjoyed isolating by herself and has found 'joy in cooking 'something proper, something to look forward to, each evening'.

It sounds pretty good to us.

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