Some might argue that Christmas Day dinner is the best meal of the year. Families can be very particular about what they add to their plates and there can be a debate over what to have as the main event.
But one mum has been honest about her 'zero effort' Christmas dinner that she fed to her family of nine. The mum, who wishes to remain anonymous, claims she can't cook and had recently moved into a new home, but with it being their turn to host, she didn't want to let everyone down.
She turned to frozen ingredients for the big meal, and opted for microwave pulled pork, frozen Brussels sprouts, frozen roast potatoes, frozen Yorkshire puddings, and topped it off with Bisto gravy - with a Christmas pudding for dessert.
While some mums supported her easy culinary choices and said they would have been thankful to have been cooked for, others hit out at the 'sad', 'joyless', and 'lazy' meal.
Taking to Mumsnet, the woman said that she wanted to see other people's opinions and explained: "We can't cook so when it's our turn we normally pay for going out for Xmas dinner.
"We moved house less than two weeks ago and with all the faff we forgot to book anything for 9 people so that's why everyone had a frozen Xmas dinner this year.
"Everyone knew the menu and pulled pork was decided by everyone.
"No one cared and everyone mentioned how nice this year was as there was no pressure to finish it all as it had zero effort.
"It was our turn to host and we wanted everyone to see our new house.
"It really doesn't matter what's on your plate."
One person on the online forum, who usually hosts for 16 people, wrote that they also opt for frozen items to save time, adding: "My 'cheat' is Iceland Xmas food. I get everything ready apart from the meat ( not usually turkey). So frozen veg, Yorkshire puddings, frozen potatoes. Ready desserts etc.
"So your meal sounds fine to me."
One person criticised the mum for being lazy and responded: "No one was going to tell you the truth to your face if it was bad, were they?
"I'd have eaten it for politeness but think you were lazy as fresh Sprouts and peeling some potatoes for roasting is hardly a difficult job."
Others criticised the woman for not learning to cook, while a few others agreed that the meal sounded 'revolting.'
One added: "Sounds utterly joyless. I get you wanted people to see the new house but really, you aren't in a position to host."
Some other Mumsnet users also made remarks about how frozen food doesn't necessarily keep costs down either.
"I wouldn't like it and the money thing is no excuse as you can buy fresh sprouts for 20p a bag and potatoes for not much more on Tesco ’s before Xmas. However each to their own," one remarked.
Meanwhile, a few other users were in support of the busy mum and said they would have been delighted to have been a guest, not having to cook themselves.
"The rest isn't going to win any culinary awards and the pulled pork is an unusual choice, but it all sounds perfectly edible," one wrote.
"I'd love to have a year off hosting so would be happy to have it made for me tbh."
Another highlighted that there are no set rules for Christmas dinner.
"Well I don't think pulled pork really goes with roast trimmings, but I'm all for people eating what they enjoy rather than cooking a traditional Xmas dinner!"
What do you think? Let us know in the comments.
