Its make your mind up time! You have to decide which piece of flesh you are going to roast on the 25th. Many years ago I left the purchase of the festive bird until the 24th. I visited 6 supermarkets and 2 butchers before I was able to find a Duck for the Beautiful Wife and I to enjoy on the day. I then made the mistake of doing exactly the same the following year. This, of course became a standing joke - "...can't wait to see you heading off on your Christmas eve forage again..." Since then I have always ordered a bird (or on one occasion a couple of ribs of beef).
So the message is get out there and order, right away.
Time for a bit of a rant here - This meal happens once a year. This meal may be the only time you all get together. This meal is the meal you look forward to for ages. Then why, oh why would you purchase a cheap, intensively reared bird which has been filled with chemicals and then frozen with added water. Order free range bird and if you're not sure about a bird then you must ask. Yes, yes you will have to pay a lot for it but you will get a real feast not a protein fix. Save money by not buying one bottle of silly liqueur that you'll never drink anyway!
The wonderful Nigel Slater did a programme earlier this week about the cheaper cuts of meat. This is where its at people - belly pork, neck fillet of lamb, chicken thighs, shin of beef, duck legs and so on. My only hope is that these will remain cheap and not go the way of the Lamb shank. I mentioned, to the Beautiful Wife, that the Lamb shank used to be cheap and, as soon as people found out that it was the best flavoured part of the lamb, it became the star on every gastro pub's menu. The price rocketed and now its a treat rather than a staple. She instantly replied "that must be the lamb shank redemption then!"
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