Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has shared what he describes as a "really clever" kitchen hack that could revolutionise how Brits prepare their Christmas dinners this festive season. The cooking tip emerged during a recent appearance on Zoe Ball's popular BBC Radio 2 show, offering a practical solution to one of the most stressful aspects of holiday meal preparation.
The Festive Cooking Game-Changer
During the radio segment aired on November 29, 2025, Ball posed an interesting question to the Naked Chef star after noticing how "loads of people" were preparing their Christmas vegetables in advance. She specifically mentioned observing people peeling potatoes, parboiling them, "ruffing them up" and then freezing them before the big day - a method she said was also being used for parsnips and carrots.
Oliver confirmed this approach could indeed save valuable time on Christmas Day, explaining the science behind why it works so effectively. "A raw potato will not freeze in any kind of quality, but a cooked one does," the chef revealed, highlighting the crucial difference between freezing raw versus partially cooked vegetables.
Oliver's Step-by-Step Method
The celebrity chef elaborated on his time-saving technique, emphasising one particularly important step many home cooks might overlook. "Make sure you toss them in a chosen fat first," Oliver advised, explaining that this additional layer helps protect the vegetables during freezing.
He continued with his comprehensive approach: "If you're going to be really clever, what you would do is do exactly what you said. Have the fat around it as well, which will protect it. Cover it and put it in the tray. Buy those very affordable, like, enamel trays."
The chef's method involves preparing the vegetables in the actual cooking trays they'll be used in on Christmas Day, creating what he describes as a "one move" solution. "So, put it in the thing you're gonna cook it in, so it's one move, and then on Christmas Day, or should I say Christmas Eve, you get it out, and that's a job done," Oliver explained.
Embracing the Christmas Dinner Challenge
Reflecting on the broader Christmas cooking experience, Oliver described the festive meal as a "beautiful thing" while acknowledging the practical challenges involved. He noted that preparing the traditional dinner typically involves "quite a lot" of pans and careful coordination of multiple elements coming together at the right time.
This isn't the first time Oliver has shared vegetable-focused cooking advice during the festive season. Last year, he revealed a 10-minute method for enhancing vegetables with "very little effort" through his recipe for super steamed greens in a clementine and chilli butter.
On his website, Oliver wrote about that technique: "Infused butters are a no-brainer when it comes to adding big flavour to your veg, with very little effort. I've chosen a combo of clementine, fresh chilli and thyme here, but feel free to mix things up depending on what you have."
The chef's practical advice comes as he continues to balance his professional commitments with family life. In a separate recent interview with Davina McCall on her Begin Again podcast, Oliver spoke touchingly about his wife of 25 years, Juliette Norton, describing her as "incredibly kind" and "very funny."
The couple, who wed in 2000, have five children together: Poppy, Daisy Boo Pamela, Petal Blossom Rainbow, Buddy Bear Maurice, and River Rocket Blue Dallas. Oliver confessed that he loves his wife "to bits" and spoke openly about her neurodiversities, which he said make their family life "really interesting and really challenging."
For British families facing the annual Christmas dinner preparation challenge, Oliver's vegetable freezing hack offers a practical solution that could transform their festive cooking experience, making more time for what truly matters during the holiday season.
