Indian-Style Holiday Recipes 2025: Christmas & New Year, sprinkled with ghee, spice, and a little chaos#

So I’m literally typing this with flour on my shirt and a tiny streak of turmeric across my palm. December does that to me. I go full-on festive goblin mode. And this year, 2025, feels extra… spicy? I’ve been leaning hard into Indian-style holiday dishes because, honestly, that’s what my people actually eat at parties. Not just dainty canapés. Real food. Reaching, sharing, licking fingers, laughing too loud. The works.

Why Christmas tastes like cardamom in my house#

My earliest Christmas memory is me and him went to buy plum cake from a tiny bakery near our old place, the kind where tutti-frutti glows neon and the auntie packs it in wax paper like you’re smuggling treasure. Grandma would warm it up with a little rum butter, and I swear the smell of nutmeg and caramelized sugar can actually make you forget you’re tired. Later I got into Goan dodol and Kerala-style black cake—dark, boozy, sticky—and that basically hijacked my holiday brain forever.

What’s fresh in 2025 holiday food, at least in my kitchen#

Everyone’s feed looks different, but I keep seeing a few things blowing up this season: millets sneaking into bakes, craft ghee with funky infusions, and those air-fryer hacks that actually work for party food. Zero-proof drinks are getting smarter too—spice-forward, not just sugar bombs. Regional ingredients are still king: gondhoraj lime in everything, winter ponk popping up in street-style chaat, and a whole lotta jaggery taking the place of refined sugar. It’s not a TED Talk, just what’s landing on my table and in my DMs.

  • Millet bakes are not a punishment. Ragi adds this nutty depth to brownies and plum cake crumbles if you don’t overdo it.
  • Craft ghee is having a moment—think chili, moringa, or smoked. I use it like holiday perfume for roasts.
  • Air fryer tandoori veggies are a legit party trick. Brussels sprouts or baby corn… man, they crisp beautifully.
  • Jaggery over white sugar for desserts, not to be holier-than-thou, just coz the flavor slaps and feels seasonal.

Starters that actually get eaten (and don’t die on the platter)#

I’m starting parties with air-fryer tandoori Brussels sprouts, tossed in hung curd, kashmiri chili, ginger-garlic, and a whisper of mustard oil. Serve with curry-leaf cranberry chutney that’s bright and a lil’ tart—tempered mustard seeds, curry leaves, fresh cranberries, jaggery, splash of vinegar. I also make chaat-masala deviled eggs with a black-salt snap and a cilantro-chili oil drizzle. People hesitate, then they inhale, then they ask for seconds, then I pretend I wasn’t worried at all.

  • Temper spices for chutneys. Hot oil, mustard seeds crackle, curry leaves dance. Don’t be shy—get heat into it.
  • Balance is the whole game. Acid, heat, salt, sweet. If one’s missing, the bite feels wierd.
  • Don’t crowd your air fryer. Two batches are faster than soggy veg that never crisps.
  • Finish with fresh herbs and a squeeze of lime. You think it’s optional. It’s not.

The turkey-or-chicken drama, Indian-style#

If you’re doing turkey, bless your soul. I’m team spatchcock for Christmas to keep it juicy and fast. Slather with garam-masala butter (soft butter, ground coriander, cumin, fennel, black pepper, hint of clove, grated garlic, fresh lime zest), and tuck it under the skin. For chicken, same marinade plus a touch of yogurt and kasuri methi. Roast till the skin’s golden and the kitchen smells like you opened a spice market in the oven. Let it rest. I repeat, let it rest. Meats need a nap.

  • Pat bird super dry, then rub with salt and a little lime. Wait 30 mins.
  • Mix garam-masala butter, push under skin, rub all over. Chill 1 hour if you can.
  • Roast high heat to start, then drop a bit. I do 220C for 20 mins, then around 180-190C till done.
  • Baste with pan juices, finish with a squeeze of fresh lime or a jaggery glaze.
  • Rest at least 15-20 mins. Slice, don’t saw. Serve with spiced cranberry chutney and coriander-lime yogurt.

For my vegetarian crowd, paneer Wellington is the slinky showstopper. Paneer block marinated in mint-chili-coriander pesto with roasted bell pepper paste, wrapped in spinach-mushroom duxelles, then snug in puff pastry. Baked till flaky and golden. First time I did it, the pastry blew open like a pirate sail. Second time? Perfection, and I nearly cried. Just brush with egg wash or milk and keep the seams sealed like your winter plans.

  • Whizz mint, coriander, green chili, lime, and a bit of cashew into a thick pesto.
  • Sear paneer lightly, cool, then spread pesto and roasted pepper paste on it.
  • Cook down mushrooms and spinach with garlic till almost dry. That moisture is a pastry killer.
  • Wrap paneer in duxelles, then in puff pastry. Seal edges, chill 20 mins.
  • Bake 200C till golden. Slice carefully and try not to inhale it whole.

Rice things that fix everything: biryani, yakhni pulao, ponk chaat for fun#

A celebratory table needs rice, I don’t make the rules. Veg biryani with winter carrots, beans, peas, and fried onions layered with saffron milk and ghee is classic and soothing. If you want lighter, do Kashmiri-style yakhni pulao with whole spices and a yogurt broth—fragrant not flashy. And because it’s winter, toss ponk with pomegranate, sev, onions, lime, and a pinch of chaat masala. People who say they’re not hungry will demolish the ponk bowl, I promise.

Holiday drinks—um, yes please. Masala mulled wine with star anise, black cardamom, cinnamon, and a slice of orange feels grown-up but cozy. If you’re skipping alcohol, do a gondhoraj lime spritz with a cumin-salt rim. For dessert drinks, my nolen gur eggnog is a tiny bit unhinged: reduce jaggery to a syrup, whisk into milk and cream with a touch of vanilla and cardamom, fold in your eggnog base, and top with crushed pistachio. Serve cold. Or warm. I’m not your mom.

Desserts that make the aunties smile and the cousins shut up for five minutes#

I’m doing gajar halwa sticky toffee pudding, because why not marry those two. Caramel sauce with jaggery, a little mishti doi swirl for tang, and a halwa layer that’s rich but not cloying. Also a rasmalai tres leches—saffron milk, cardamom, pistachio, and those soft cheese discs nestled in a soaked sponge. For quick bites, coconut-jaggery snowballs rolled in desiccated coconut and a pinch of sea salt. If anything feels sweet-sickly, add salt or a squeeze of lime. It’s not cheating, it’s chemistry.

Bloom your spices in fat. The flavor doesn’t just arrive, it blossoms. If your oil never kissed the spice, your food will taste shy.

Restaurant inspo, because I’m nosy and hungry. The plated stuff I’ve loved lately tends to be smart about texture—crispy bits, creamy bits, crunchy bits, all in one fork. Indian Accent’s way of making classics feel new without losing the soul has rubbed off on me, and The Bombay Canteen’s seasonal love letter to Indian produce keeps me honest about shopping fresh. Not a list of openings, just the craft that’s stuck in my head when I cook for people I like.

  • Most common holiday mistake? Oversalting a brine and undersalting the roast. Taste the drippings. Fix with lime and a splash of warm water if needed.
  • Don’t skip resting time. Meats, biryani, even chutneys taste better after a small pause.
  • If dessert feels heavy, grind black pepper over it. A really tiny bit. It wakes up cream.
  • Garlic is a friend but not the boss. Let cardamom, mace, and clove do their Christmas thing.

New Year brunch is my fav because it’s chaos dressed as comfort. I do dosa waffles—thickened batter, a little oil, and crisp them till they snap—served with gunpowder butter and tomato thokku. Shakshuka goes desi with chole, green chili, and a sprinkle of kasuri methi. Akuri on toast topped with crispy curry leaves is how I apologize for making everyone stay up past midnight. Coffee? With jaggery syrup and a pinch of cardamom. I guess I’m predictable.

The holiday pantry cheat-sheet I scribbled on a receipt#

Stock up early. Jaggery in blocks and syrup. Two kinds of chili—byadgi for color, kashmiri for gentle heat. Good ghee, the kind that smells nutty even cold. Whole spices: black cardamom, green cardamom, cinnamon sticks, cloves, star anise, mace, fennel. Basmati that actually smells like basmati. Frozen cranberries if you can’t find fresh. Fresh herbs for finish. And citrus—lime, oranges. You will always need more lime. Buy twice what you think. You’ll still run out.

I remember the first time I cooked Christmas for eight, I thought I had to be fancy and perfect. Big mistake. People want warm food and stories, not perfection. Burn one batch of sprouts, save the next, laugh. Stir the toffee twice because it tried to seize, then let it just be. And if you need a sign to try an Indian-style holiday spread this year—this is it. Tell me how it goes, tag me, and if you want more messy-but-delicious ideas, poke around on AllBlogs.in. You’ll find something you wanna cook.