Christmas dinner can fit a cholesterol-lowering diet. Lean turkey, roast vegetables and fruit are all fine. The saturated fat comes from goose and duck fat, butter, cream, pastry, pork products and cheese, which is why a long festive week matters more than a single meal.
The short version
Pick turkey breast or lean beef for the main, use olive oil or rapeseed oil for roasting, and keep the cheese board to a small wedge. The AHA target is about 13 g of saturated fat a day; the NHS limit is 30 g for men and 20 g for women. A single slice of cheese plus a spoon of butter can use most of it.
The main course
| Food | Serving | Saturated fat | Cholesterol | kcal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey breast, no skin, roasted | 3 oz (85 g) | 0.5 g | 68 mg | 125 |
| Roast beef, top round, lean and fat | 3 oz (85 g) | 1.4 g | 65 mg | 136 |
| Ham, roasted, regular | 3 oz (85 g) | 2.7 g | 50 mg | 151 |
| Goose, roasted, meat and skin | 3 oz (85 g) | 5.8 g | 77 mg | 259 |
| Beef rib roast, lean and fat | 3 oz (85 g) | 10 g | 71 mg | 305 |
Turkey breast and roast top round of beef are both very low in saturated fat. Ham is moderate, but it is also high in salt (see the NHS advice on blood pressure). Goose with its skin and a fatty beef rib roast carry the most. If goose is your tradition, enjoy a small portion and take the skin off most of it.
Roast potatoes, vegetables and the trimmings
Roast potatoes cooked in goose fat, duck fat or butter pick up most of their saturated fat from the cooking fat. Goose fat is high in saturated fat; olive oil and rapeseed oil have far less (about 2 g and 1 g per tablespoon). Roast them in a thin layer of oil on a hot tray and they still crisp up well.
- Brussels sprouts, carrots and parsnips: naturally very low in saturated fat. Roast with oil and chestnuts instead of finishing in butter.
- Pigs in blankets: a chipolata wrapped in bacon is a double hit of pork fat. One slice of cooked bacon has about 1 g of saturated fat on its own. Have one or two, not a tray.
- Bread sauce and gravy: bread sauce is made with milk and butter or cream. Use semi-skimmed milk and a little butter, and thicken gravy with the meat juices after skimming the fat.
- Cranberry sauce, mustard and apple sauce: all close to zero saturated fat.
Dessert, pastry and the cheese board
| Food | Serving | Saturated fat | Cholesterol | kcal |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mince pie | 1 small pie (about 50 g) | 1.3 g | 0 mg | 145 |
| Fruitcake / Christmas cake | 1 slice (43 g) | 0.5 g | 2 mg | 139 |
| Cheddar | 1 oz (28 g) | 5.3 g | 28 mg | 113 |
| Brie | 1 oz (28 g) | 4.9 g | 28 mg | 94 |
| Blue cheese | 1 oz (28 g) | 5.2 g | 21 mg | 99 |
| Butter | 1 tbsp (14 g) | 7.2 g | 30 mg | 100 |
The mince pie figure is based on USDA's mince pie recipe scaled to a small pie, so pastry made with extra butter or lard will be higher. The cheese board adds up fastest: each ounce of a firm or blue cheese is about 5 g of saturated fat, which is why a "few slices" can reach 15 g. Choose one cheese you love, have a thin slice with fruit or oatcakes, and skip the butter on the biscuits.
Christmas pudding is usually fine: it is made with suet in the traditional recipe (check the label) but modern recipes often use vegetable fat. Brandy butter and cream are the extra: a spoonful of single cream is better than double. For more ideas see desserts for high cholesterol.
Party food and canapés
- Choose: smoked salmon on rye, prawns, vegetable crudités with hummus, olives, nuts (unsalted), oatcakes, fruit.
- Limit: sausage rolls, cheese straws, vol-au-vents, brie en croute, scotch eggs, chocolate truffles and anything made with puff pastry (the pastry is the problem).
Don't arrive hungry. Eat something with fibre first, such as a bowl of porridge or a handful of nuts, so you're not tempted by the first thing offered. See eating out and at parties with high cholesterol.
A simple plan for the whole week
- Treat the day as one meal. Your LDL reflects the weeks before a blood test, not a single dinner.
- Eat normally between the big days. Oats at breakfast, soups and beans for lunch, fish when you can.
- Plan the leftovers. Turkey sandwiches or soup are lean, and turkey stock makes a good base for bean and lentil soup.
- Keep moving. A walk after the meal helps with blood sugar and triglycerides.
- Test later. If you have a cholesterol test due, aim for a few weeks after the holidays so a week of rich food and alcohol doesn't skew the result. More on timing.
This is general information, not medical advice. If you take cholesterol medication or have a heart condition, check changes to your diet with your doctor, dietitian or pharmacist.
Sources
- American Heart Association: Saturated fat (aim for under 6% of calories, about 13 g on 2,000 calories).
- NHS: Fat, the facts (saturates: up to 30 g a day for men, 20 g for women).
- NHS: Salt: the facts.
- USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy), values per serving calculated from the per-100 g record: FDC 171496, 171755, 167872, 172412, 168689, 175019, 174939, 173414, 172177, 172175, 173410. fdc.nal.usda.gov
Frequently asked questions
Is Christmas dinner bad for cholesterol?
A traditional Christmas dinner can be moderate or high in saturated fat depending on what you choose. Turkey breast, roast vegetables and fruit are low; goose fat, butter, cream, pastry, sausage meat and cheese add the most. One meal does not change your blood cholesterol much, but a week of rich food can add up.
Is goose fat bad for cholesterol?
Goose fat is high in saturated fat, though it also contains some unsaturated fat. For regular use, olive oil or rapeseed oil contain much less saturated fat. For one meal, roasting potatoes in goose fat is unlikely to matter if the rest of your diet is balanced.
Can I eat cheese at Christmas with high cholesterol?
Yes, in small amounts. Most hard and blue cheeses have about 5 g of saturated fat per ounce (28 g), so a thin slice with fruit or oatcakes fits, while repeated slices of several cheeses add up quickly.
Are mince pies bad for cholesterol?
A small mince pie has roughly 1 to 2 g of saturated fat, depending on the pastry. They are fine in moderation. Choosing ones made with vegetable-based pastry and having one or two rather than a plate keeps it low.
What is the best meat for Christmas dinner with high cholesterol?
Skinless turkey breast and lean roast beef (such as top round or topside) are the lowest in saturated fat among the usual choices. Ham is moderate in saturated fat but high in salt, and goose and fatty beef rib roast are the highest.
Keep track through the festive week
Log the big meals and the leftovers in Heart Tracker to see your saturated fat and fibre against your goals. It also charts your lipid results, so you can see how January compares.
- Barcode scanner
- LDL & HDL trends
- Voice meal logging
