1. Pay attention to your poultry
Waste not, want not, the saying goes and buying a bigger bird is a canny way of being cost-effective if you're prepared to plate up leftovers for the rest of the Christmas week. If you know your family dinners are a more throwaway affair, however, cut the trips to the compost bin by choosing a smaller turkey.
2. Make your own sweet treats
Making your own sweet treats is another sure-fire way to save cash in the kitchen this Christmas. Buy a plain fruit cake (much cheaper than pre-iced) and decorate it at home. Mince pies can also be whipped up in no time - and at a fraction of the price tag - by raiding your store cupboards for old jars of mincemeat (or half-devoured packets of dried fruit/pots of mixed peel to rustle up the filling from scratch).
3. Shop around
Most stores will be offering discounts in the run up to the big day, and you can find out online which ones gives the most bang for your buck. Be prepared to mix and match, however. While one shop might have mouth-watering mulled wine prices, another may offer better value on bread sauce.
4. Hidden extras
Finally, while food costs usually figure quite high in people's festive budgeting, it's easy to forget the hidden extras, including buying in extra baking trays or table decorations. Our advice? A little imagination can go a long way. Don’t have Yorkshire pudding trays? No problem! Cupcake containers work just as well, or just make a massive one in a normal tray which you can cut up after it's cooked. Alternatively, work out in advance what you can borrow from friends or family; don't waste your pennies on items that you'll rarely use. Similarly, there's no need to go all-out on centre pieces and snowflake-embellished serviettes when tea lights, a sprinkling of glitter and a few sprigs of holly can do the trick just as tastefully.
Bon appetit - we hope you found these tips useful.
