The Brighton & Hove Student Guide to the Perfect Roast Dinner

27th November 2025

Cooking a roast when you’re a student can feel like trying to conduct an orchestra in a broken oven. Stressing about timings? Wondering how many chickens is enough? Forgetting the stuffing every single time? Don’t panic… we’ve got you.

How Much Meat Do You Actually Need?

If you’re feeding:

• 4–6 people: one chicken is usually fine.

• 7–10 people: two smaller chickens are better than one massive one. They cook faster and stay juicy.

Veggie or vegan? Grab meat-free sausages and throw them on the veg tray later. They roast nicely in the same amount of time.

Start With the Cauliflower Cheese

Do it first. It genuinely takes longer than you think.

• Make the sauce

• Pour over boiled cauliflower

• Leave it ready to bake later

It needs around 45 minutes- same as the carrots and stuffing, so whack them in together.

Carrots That Don’t Taste Like Sadness

Don’t just boil them and hope for the best. Honey-roasted garlic carrots are embarrassingly easy and instantly elevate the meal:

• Chunky carrots

• Oil, honey, salt, garlic

• Roast for 45 mins

And this is the perfect place to stick your meat-free sausages, if you’re using them.

Don’t believe my roast potato credentials? Take a look at these

Roast Potatoes: The Reality Check

Roast potatoes always take about an hour longer than you think.

Here’s the reliable method:

1. Boil potatoes until a knife slides through easily.

2. While they’re boiling, put a tray of oil in the oven to heat up.

3. Drain them, shake them around a bit.

4. Toss in cornflour (this hack is gold), salt, and rosemary.

5. Drop them into the hot oil and put your meat in at the same time.

6. Leave them alone for a full hour. Don’t keep opening the oven.

Oven Jenga: Don’t Panic

After your potatoes and meat have been roasting for about an hour, put in:

• Carrots + sausages (if using)

• Stuffing?

• Cauliflower cheese

This is the point where most people start flapping. Stay calm. I’ve cooked a roast for ten in the world’s narrowest kitchen, and everyone lived. The key is to remember:

Your meat needs to rest.
Take it out with about 20 minutes to go on everything else. This suddenly frees up space in the oven.

The tiny kitchen in question. No this wasn’t 2003, I just fell victim to the digi cam epidemic

Yorkshire Puddings: Final Boss

Now that the meat is out and resting, it’s your moment. Yorkshire puddings need:

• A hot oven

• Some space to rise

Get them in while the meat is resting. Perfect timing.

That’s It. You’ve Done It.

Roast dinner conquered. Good luck…

Can’t be bothered and fancy the pub instead? Read here for best pub roasts in Brighton and Hove