50 Christmas Lunch Ideas That You'll Be Bragging About At Dinner
We all know there's always so much to look forward to when it comes to Christmas dinner, but we think it's high time that Christmas lunch got just as memorable. As far as we're concerned, food truly is the gift worth giving all Christmas day. Whether you're serving sliders and salads to tide you over or a hearty helping of pasta, we've got 50 extra-special Christmas lunch recipes that will have you looking forward to more than the main meal.
Whether you want to savor holiday flavors throughout the day or switch it up before the main meal, we've got plenty of recipes to let Christmas lunch shine too. Searching for light fixes to save room for the main event? Our egg roll bowls, creamy white bean and sausage soup, and sweet potato salad will satisfy your appetite without filling you up too much. If you're looking to go big for lunch, our French onion meatball subs and beef stew recipes will ensure that your lunch is just as important as dinner—it might even upstage it!
The most important thing about Christmas lunch if you're prepping a holiday dinner? It should be easy. Our cozy casseroles—chicken pot pie casserole if you're craving comfort, our chicken enchilada casserole if you're leaning toward something new and exciting—make lunch for a crowd an absolute breeze. Our slow-cooker and Instant Pots are also lunch life-savers: Set it and forget it is the motto when it comes to our Instant Pot jambalaya and Crockpot chicken noodle soup.
If you're hosting Christmas in the morning, check out our favorite Christmas breakfast recipes to get your holiday started off right.
Instant Pot Jambalaya
The Instant Pot is a great way to make jambalaya, a Cajun classic, in just an hour. All the rice, veggies, broth, and chicken go in the Instant Pot together and get cooked under high pressure for the perfect, fluffy jambalaya.
Get the Instant Pot Jambalaya recipe.
Shawarma Stuffed Peppers
Here at Delish, we love stuffed peppers, and we love chicken shawarma. So we thought: What would happen if we combined these two crowd-pleasing classics into one delicious, mostly hands-off recipe? The resulting one-pan recipe is definitely a keeper.
Get the Shawarma Stuffed Peppers recipe.
Pizza Orzo
Pizza comes in all shapes and sizes, with all different kinds of crusts—Chicago-style thin crust, chewy French bread, pillowy deep dish—but have you ever thought about opting for no crust? We aren’t talking low-carb, either. Instead, we’re swapping in one beloved carb for another: orzo.
Get the Pizza Orzo recipe.
Best Chicken Salad
When it comes to chicken salad, we'd argue that our balance of add-ins here is the pinnacle, but once you nail the chicken and the dressing, you can feel free to spread your wings. Whatever you add, chicken salad is just as perfect eaten on its own as it is piled on a croissant or dolloped on a bed of leafy greens at brunch.
Get the Best Chicken Salad recipe.
Baked Feta Soup
Though we can basically never say no to pasta, on a cold day, we often start craving tomato soup, and this easy-to-make, creamy soup is the answer to our prayers. Simply prepare the sauce as you usually would for baked feta pasta (with a bit less feta), add some chicken broth, blend, and get ready for creamy tomato soup without the cream.
Get the Baked Feta Soup recipe.
Egg Roll Bowls
If you're a fan of crispy savory egg rolls, then you might consider this unwrapped version your dream healthy lunch. Without the need to wrap or fry, this veggie-packed meal comes together in well under an hour.
Get the Egg Roll Bowls recipe.
Tuscan Chicken Wrap
We just can’t get enough Tuscan chicken, so we turned it into a wrap that's perfect for running around with at lunch time. It’s got chopped rotisserie chicken, creamy mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, plenty of fresh spinach, and a flavor-spiked mayo you'll flip for.
Get the Tuscan Chicken Wrap recipe.
Copycat Sweetgreen Harvest Bowl
Attention, Sweetgreen lovers! Your regular weekday lunch is about to get an instant upgrade. Loaded with roast chicken, sweet potato, and that signature balsamic vinaigrette, our copycat version of Sweetgreen’s beloved harvest bowl will make your favorite takeout lunch an everyday reality.
Get the Copycat Sweetgreen Harvest Bowl recipe.
Panera Thai Chicken Salad
If you were shocked and dismayed when Panera Bread discontinued their Thai Chicken Salad, today’s your lucky day. Featuring chicken breast, blistered vegetables, and that iconic peanut sauce drizzle, our copycat version of this beloved Panera classic allows you to enjoy it at home any time you like.
Get the Panera Thai Chicken Salad recipe.
Sloppy Joe Orzo
Cooking the orzo right in the tangy meat sauce, meaning less dishes than a traditional pasta dish, creating a cross between pasta and risotto that you can spoon right up into bowls.
Get the Sloppy Joe Orzo recipe.
Butternut Squash Curry
This variation of curry is a one-pot meal fulfilling the carb, vegetable, and dairy-like needs you crave. Butternut squash is toothsome and savory, kale is earthy and green, and coconut milk wraps everything together in a creamy sauce.
Get the Butternut Squash Curry recipe.
French Onion Meatball Sub
This isn’t your traditional saucy meatball sub, but instead has jammy caramelized onions and lots of Gruyère cheese just like our favorite French onion soup.
Get the French Onion Meatball Sub recipe.
Crunch Salad
We created this kale salad as an homage to crunch. Every ingredient has been chosen to amplify texture while also adding bold flavors. We included green apple, roasted peanuts, and cabbage, but go ahead and add any ingredient with crunch that you like!
Get the Crunch Salad recipe.
Beef Stew
Beef stew is a cold weather essential. If you're making it for the big day, this cozy classic also has strong make-ahead potential. Prepare it the day before, then store in the fridge 'til you're ready to serve it up the next day.
Get the Beef Stew recipe.
Italian Sub Squares
Like our sheet-pan Italian subs, these are full of your favorite sandwich fillings, this time layered between sweet, golden sheets of crescent roll dough. These savory squares are the perfect app to feed a hungry crowd, to serve for an on-the-go lunch, or eat as a midday snack.
Get the Italian Sub Squares recipe.
Air Fryer Fish Tacos With Avocado Salsa
Coating flaky cod in taco seasoning, then air frying creates a crispy, crazy flavorful skin that tastes nearly as good as fried fish (without tons of oil or breading). Pair it with some jalapeños, red cabbage, cheese, and a simple avocado salsa for the best taco ever.
Get the Air Fryer Fish Tacos With Avocado Salsa recipe.
Chicken Pot Pie Casserole
If chicken pot pie excites you but pie crust intimidates you, you’ve arrived at the perfect recipe. Classic chicken pot pie filling is baked into a stress-free casserole and, best of all, topped with biscuits with a tantalizing golden brown finish. 😍
Get the Chicken Pot Pie Casserole recipe.
Grandma Pizza
Grandma pizza has a thin, crispy crust topped first with cheese, then dolloped with a garlicky tomato sauce. It's not the usual way of assembling pizza, but the cheese melting right into the crust really makes some magic happen.
Get the Grandma Pizza recipe.
Egg Salad
While we love our egg salad variations, (lookin’ at you, Cobb egg salad), it’s always a good idea to have a tried-and-true recipe up your sleeve. Our standard centers around just 6 core ingredients; use it as a base for creative mix-ins and variations, or enjoy as is for a truly classic recipe.
Get the Egg Salad recipe.
Classic Stuffed Peppers
Of all the food you can stuff, stuffed peppers are at the top of our list. Bell peppers are large enough to hold a lot, strong enough to keep their shape in the oven, and mild enough in flavor to go with just about anything. Here, we’re filling them with beefy, tomato rice, and shredded Monterey Jack cheese, but you can customize them to fit your taste.
Get the Classic Stuffed Peppers recipe.
CPK Italian Chopped Salad
California Pizza Kitchen may be famous for BBQ Chicken Pizza, but the Italian Chopped Salad is the unsung hero on their menu. An exuberant jumble of lettuce, chickpeas, turkey, salami, tomatoes, and cheese, all tossed in a Italian mustard-herb vinaigrette, this is one salad that might actually tempt us to put down the pizza in favor of the greens.
Get the CPK Italian Chopped Salad recipe.
Chicken Caesar Wraps
Ask a random Delish employee what they’re going to order for lunch from a deli, and at least half of them will respond with a chicken Caesar wrap. And there’s very little question as to why! It’s one of the all-time best salads, tossed into a wrap, ready for a quick lunch on the go.
Get the Chicken Caesar Wraps recipe.
Farro & White Bean Salad
We recommend sticking with the bright lemony dressing and finishing this salad with some goat cheese to add creamy tanginess, but otherwise, truly anything goes. Swap in different beans, any of your favorite roasted seasonal veggies, or even different greens.
Get the Farro & White Bean Salad recipe.
Reuben Bowl
Skip the carbs and make this easy one-skillet recipe with cabbage, corned beef, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing. It has everything you love about the classic Reuben sandwich, without the bread.
Get the Reuben Bowl recipe.
French Bread Pizza
Craving homemade pizza, but don’t want to deal with finicky pizza dough? We get it, that stuff can be tricky. Skip it altogether, and grab the nearest loaf of French bread instead. The loaf makes for a delicious pizza “crust” that will get crispy on the outside while staying nice and soft on the inside. It’s truly the best of both worlds.
Get the French Bread Pizza recipe.
Butternut Squash Potstickers
Making your own potstickers doesn't have to complicated! These vegan potstickers are easy to put together and most of your time is spent roasting your squash until really tender, which can be done ahead of time.
Get the Butternut Squash Potstickers recipe.
Vegan French Onion Stew
Finishing the cheese toasts right in the soup pot makes for an impressive presentation. But if you’re meal prepping, it’s best to do that job on a sheet tray instead to avoid losing soggy pieces of bread in your leftovers.
Get the Vegan French Onion Stew recipe.
Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad
Beet lovers rejoice! This is the ideal salad: creamy goat cheese (sub feta if you prefer it), roasted beets, avocado, and arugula. The secret is that instead of buying precooked beets, you simply wrap them in foil and bake them like a baked potato.
Get the Roasted Beet Goat Cheese Salad recipe.
Extra-Crispy Buffalo Chicken Nugget Burrito
With chicken nuggets and a crispy shell, this burrito gives Buffalo chicken wraps a run for their money. If you love Buffalo chicken but need an easy packable lunch fast, using chicken nuggets speeds up the process, soaking up all of the delicious sauce in every bite.
Get the Extra-Crispy Buffalo Chicken Nugget Burrito recipe.
Caprese Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Caprese salad is one of those timeless summer flavor combos that we can’t get enough of. Juicy tomatoes, creamy mozzarella, and sweet, earthy basil also happen to make a great match for a warm and satisfying soup.
Get the Caprese Chicken Gnocchi Soup recipe.
Sweet Potato Salad
We recommend topping this veggie side with a fried egg to turn a holiday side into a more filling main meal. It's a light but festive way to start your holiday celebrations—tbh, we'll take any excuse to serve up this super spud salad.
Get the Sweet Potato Salad recipe.
Freezer Burritos
These beef and bean freezer burritos will make you want to clear some space in the icebox. Ground beef gets simmered in hearty spiced tomato sauce, then layered into a flour tortilla with refried beans, rice, and a blend of Monterey Jack and cheddar cheese.
Get the Freezer Burritos recipe.
Vegetarian Italian Sub
The king of sandwiches is the Italian Hero, a sandwich filled to the brim with all manner of cured meat, cheese, and refreshingly crisp vegetables. They’re also the ultimate party food, perfect to pair with wings, chips, and a cold beer.
Get the Vegetarian Italian Sub recipe.
Instant Pot Potato Soup
This potato soup is what an Instant Pot was made for—no need to boil potatoes for a long time or stand over a stove. Throwing everything in the Instant Pot will give you a delicious soup in about 40 minutes flat. 😍
Get the Instant Pot Potato Soup recipe.
Hawaiian Roll Sliders
Layered with ham, Swiss, and caramelized onions, this slider just might become your new holiday must. Besides being a sure hit with guests, these slider rolls are great party food because they're so easy to put together.
Get the Hawaiian Roll Sliders recipe.
Creamy White Bean & Sausage Soup
A little heat tamed by cream turns this nearly effortless soup into a feel-good go-to. Why add a Parmesan rind, you may ask? Because it makes the soup salty, nutty... and is undeniably good.
Get the Creamy White Bean & Sausage Soup recipe.
One-Pan Ravioli Shakshuka
Traditional shakshuka has runny eggs that have simmered in the warmly spiced tomato sauce, but this version trades out the eggs for ravioli. It's the perfect version to transition the breakfast dish to lunch and honestly, the pasta is a lot easier than stressing over getting that egg perfectly runny.
Get the One-Pan Ravioli Shakshuka recipe.
French Dip Squares
These easy French dip squares are loaded with complex flavors (thanks caramelized onions!), AND there's enough to feed a hungry crowd. The perfect shortcut to a French dip sandwich, we'll be making these over and over again.
Get the French Dip Squares recipe.
Vegan Crunchwraps
We updated a fast food favorite to be totally vegan and completely irresistible. Creamy vegan queso dip and meaty lentils make a satisfying filling while a quick trip in a hot skillet adds crunch to every bite.
Get the Vegan Crunchwraps recipe.
Spinach & Cheese Quiche
This rich, custardy spinach quiche is just the thing to break out for special-occasion brunches. A simple arugula salad and some crispy pan-fried potatoes nicely round out this filling brunch meal.
Get the Spinach & Cheese Quiche recipe.
Ham & Cheese Pinwheels
These ham and cheese pinwheels are made easy using store-bought crescent roll dough. They're chock-full of melty cheese and savory-sweet ham, topped with fresh parsley and toasty poppy seeds for texture and flavor you and your guests will love.
Get the Ham and Cheese Pinwheels recipe.
Copycat Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup
Gnocchi is an underrated pantry staple that’s great as the star of a dish, but also works incredibly well in soups. It’s almost like making chicken 'n' dumplings with half the time and effort! To go the extra mile, we recommend making your own chicken stock to really soup up (get it?) this recipe!
Get the Copycat Olive Garden Chicken Gnocchi Soup recipe.
Ultimate Slow-Cooker Chili
Our classic beef chili is already easy to make, but this slow-cooker recipe is even easier. Throw everything in the slow-cooker in the morning for a hassle-free, hearty late lunch.
Get the Ultimate Slow-Cooker Chili recipe.
Kale Salad With Apples And Toasted Almonds
Need a simple winter salad that comes together fast? Kale yeah you do! Pair apples and kale with dried cherries, toasty almonds, and feta for a salad everyone will love this holiday season.
Get the Kale Salad With Apples and Toasted Almonds recipe.
Chicken Enchilada Casserole
We love a good casserole to serve a crowd, and this one certainly doesn't disappoint. The tortillas hold all the delicious filling together so perfectly, giving bursts of classic flavor in every bite.
Get the Chicken Enchilada Casserole recipe.
Pasta e Fagioli
Craving something hearty, healthy and warm? Pasta e Fagiole (AKA pasta and beans) is the answer. Perfect for a quick holiday lunch when you want something fast and delicious, this soup comes together in no time, and it's super adaptable. (As in, chop up whatever you've got and throw it in the pot!)
Get the Pasta e Fagioli recipe.
Croque Madame
This sandwich stars layers of thinly sliced ham, soft, melty cheese, and an audible crunch as you bite down on the toasted bread. You'll be saying "Oh la la!" all day long.
Get the Croque Madame recipe.
Lasagna Roll-Ups
Classic lasagna, as much as we adore it, can be extremely time-consuming. These roll-ups come together in no time, and couldn't be more delicious. This spinach and ricotta version is quick, vegetarian-friendly, and still every bit as comforting as the traditional.
Get the Lasagna Roll-Ups recipe.
Crockpot Chicken Noodle
Homemade chicken noodle soup is already easy to whip up, but tossing all of your ingredients in a slow cooker makes it even easier. This light soup is a cozy classic for the winter season and is a perfect lunch opener before your Christmas dinner.
Get the Crockpot Chicken Noodle recipe.
Glazed Ham Steak
Spiral hams are delicious, but they yield so much meat. If you're serving a holiday celebration with only a handful of people, ham steaks are the way to go! Instead of roasting and glazing a whole ham, just make everyone their own perfectly cooked, savory-sweet steak.
Get the Glazed Ham Steak recipe.
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