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Whether you're cooking for 3 people or 30, putting together the perfect Christmas feast is one of the most stressful parts of the holidays. Luckily, every year, chefs come together to share their tips for a stress-free Christmas. We've rounded up the best tips and tricks to make your Christmas as painless as possible.

Tip #1: Prep

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First, one of the best things you can do to save time is prep components of your meal beforehand. We hope that you've already taken your turkey/ham/protein of your choice out of the freezer (if not, submerge it in cold water and change the water every half hour; your turkey will thaw at a rate of about an hour per pound). Once that's out of the way, you start on some other preparations.

As your turkey (we're going to use turkey as a stand-in for any and all meat dishes, please forgive us if you're a diehard Christmas ham fan) is liable to eat up most of your cooking time—pun fully intended—you'd be best off doing most of the labor beforehand so that the big day is mostly passive cooking via oven.

Brining your bird overnight will result in juicy and well-seasoned meat sure to satisfy both light and dark meat contingents. And what's a turkey without its' stuffing? You can make and freeze the stuffing in advance so that once it's thawed all you have to do is stuff the bird and let the oven do its thing.

Your turkey will not only take up the most space in the oven, but it will need the most time to cook and cool down. If you start a couple of hours before your guests will arrive, you won't waste time and space juggling candidates for the oven. Plus, your whole home will smell delicious.

Another thing you can prep in advance is your vegetables. Parboiling potatoes the night before and storing them in water will have them nice and soft for the next day. Similarly, chopping and peeling carrots takes a huge chunk of time that can be cut in half if you prep and store your veggies overnight.

Tip #2: Many Hands Make Light Work

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With most of the prep out of the way, you'll have more room in the oven and more time to breathe in between dishes. If you time your prep just right, things will be well underway by the time your guests arrive. While guests can be pesky, there are a few ways you can use them to your advantage.

First, get them out of your way. This may be easier said than done if you have relatives prone to backseat cooking. If they're so particular about green bean casserole, they can bring their own, saving you the time and energy.

A grazing board of charcuterie and/or veggies will keep your guests fed and occupied while the cooking winds down. Setting out a few drinks will also take people's minds off what you're doing in the kitchen. Ideally, you want to set your grazing station in a different room, so that guests aren't hovering around the kitchen.

If you have little guests who are liable to get antsy or underfoot, keep them out of your hair by giving them jobs. Someone will need to set the table, make place cards, get people's drink order for dinner, and DJ the festivities. Just make sure you don't employ too many helpers who may cause undue stress.

One last thing to remember: there is nothing wrong with premade food. People go crazy for canned cranberry sauce; boxed stuffing comes together in minutes; you don't need to make a cake from scratch. If shortcuts taste as good and ease the burden, there's nothing wrong with taking them.