How Much Meat Per Person for Christmas Dinner Singapore
Share
Every December we get the same question in the shop, usually about four days too late to do much about it. So here is the whole answer in one place.
The short version
| What you are serving | Per person |
|---|---|
| Boneless roast (striploin, sirloin, topside) | 200–250g |
| Bone-in roast (prime rib, rib roast) | 350–400g |
| Steak as the main | 250–300g |
| Whole turkey | 500g |
| Leg of lamb, bone-in | 350–400g |
| Rack of lamb | 3–4 cutlets |
Those are working numbers for adults eating a proper Christmas meal with sides. Scale down by about a third for children under ten.
Why bone-in weights look so much higher
A prime rib is roughly one third bone by weight. When you buy 4kg of bone-in rib, you are cooking with about 2.7kg of meat. That is not a rip-off — the bone is doing real work, insulating the meat and keeping it moist through a long roast — but it does mean the number on the label is not the number on the plate.
The rule: for anything bone-in, add 40% to your boneless calculation.
Worked examples
Table of four
- Boneless roast: 1kg
- Bone-in prime rib: 1.5kg, roughly a two-bone rib
- Steak: four pieces at 250–300g
Table of six
- Boneless roast: 1.5kg
- Bone-in prime rib: 2.2kg, three bones
- Steak: six at 250–300g, or three large cuts shared
Table of eight
- Boneless roast: 2kg
- Bone-in prime rib: 3kg, four bones
- Steak: consider two thick 800g cuts carved at the table rather than eight individual steaks
Table of twelve
Two smaller roasts beat one enormous one. A 3kg joint cooks evenly; a 6kg one gives you a burnt outside and a raw middle, and it will not fit most Singapore ovens.
The leftovers question
If your household treats Boxing Day sandwiches as part of the tradition, add 20–25% to whatever the table above gives you. Cold roast beef keeps three to four days in the fridge and is arguably better on day two.
If you are not planning leftovers, do not over-order. A roast that has been reheated twice is nobody’s idea of a good time.
What if there is a lot of other food?
Most Singapore Christmas tables carry more than a roast — there is usually ham, seafood, a noodle dish someone’s aunt insists on. If meat is one of four or five substantial dishes rather than the centrepiece, drop to 150–180g per person and spend the difference on quality rather than quantity.
Ordering: how far ahead
Delivery slots in the week before Christmas are limited by fleet capacity rather than stock. We deliver on our own refrigerated trucks rather than a third-party courier, which is what keeps the cold chain intact — and it is also why the number of slots is finite.
Practically: book as soon as you know your date. Ordering in November costs the same as ordering in December. What you are securing is the slot, not a discount.
Where to start
- Christmas collection — the full festive range
- Steaks — if you are going the no-oven route
- Beef slow-cook cuts — for anything braised
- Seafood — for mixed tables
Not sure whether a roast will fit your kitchen at all? We wrote a separate piece on Christmas without a big oven.