The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 7 letter word SPROUTS
I've seen this crossword clue in The Daily Telegraph
S
P
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More clues leading to the result SPROUTS
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Shoots /fare for the Christmas dinner table" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case shoots /fare for the christmas dinner table = sprouts.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.
What does SPROUTS mean?
SPROUTS noun- A new growth on a plant, whether from seed or other parts.
- A child.
- (chiefly in the plural) A Brussels sprout.
- (chiefly in the plural) A bean sprout.
- An edible germinated seed.
- To grow from seed; to germinate.
- To cause to grow from a seed.
- To deprive of sprouts.
- To emerge from the ground as sprouts.
- To emerge haphazardly from a surface.