Christmas dishes in different parts of the world

Christmas is a time to spend with your loved ones, around a table, tasting the best dishes from your recipe book. But what are the rest of the world eating at this time?

The cold comes to our homes, and right behind it, Christmas. At this time of year, it predominates love, family and happiness. We all get together and give each other gifts, then sit around a table and enjoy a banquet worthy of the kings of yesteryear.

But Although the spirit that fuels these parties is the same, the dishes that are shared are not., and in every part of the world they have their typical dishes. These culinary traditions vary depending on the area you are in and, of course, the history that goes with it as well.

For this reason, we will see that the countries of Anglo-Saxon tradition share certain dishes, just as in Latin America we can find certain similarities with our Christmas gastronomy.

The world and its Christmas dishes

Christmas is a holiday celebrated all over the world, but traditions and, in particular, culinary traditions, vary greatly from place to place. Follow us and discover what is eaten around the world on these dates!

• Germany: In this country, Christmas has been an important holiday for centuries, be it celebrating the winter solstice or the birth of Jesus Christ. Therefore, their traditions remain unchanged at the time. At Christmas, the Germans eat their famous sausages (wiener, bockwurst, cracker), accompanied by kale with cream and spices. Another option is to roast carp and geese and serve them with a garnish of purple cabbage. In sweets, the Germans have many typical traditional recipes, such as the gingerbread (pepper cake) or the stollen (marzipan cake, almonds and dehydrated fruits).
• Japan: You do not expect the Christmas tradition of the Japanese country, because the Christmas food is made at the Kentucky Fried Chicken. Yes yes, you read that right, ¡el KFC! This strange tradition has its origins in the 70s, when the fried chicken company launched an excellent marketing campaign that convinced the Japanese population.
• Australia: How would Christmas traditions change if it was hot instead of cold? Well that answer can be found in Australia. Due to the weather on our beloved Christmas dates, celebrations in Australia are usually held outdoorseither with garden parties or barbecues on the beach. Among the typical dishes of this country we find roast turkey with vegetables, fruit cake and pudding. In pudding, there is a tradition of putting a coin inside, and whoever finds it will be lucky throughout the year (something similar to the roscón de reyes in our country).
• USA.: When you think of Christmas, those massive dinners that we see in American movies come to mind, but what do they eat at those gatherings? The typical dish that is prepared at Christmas in the United States is turkey served with cranberry sauce, or failing that, roasted beef ribs (the famous prime ribs). Accompany it with mashed potatoes and its green bean casserole (green beans, cream of mushrooms and fried onion). Without forgetting the delicious desserts such as pumpkin pie or the already mythical ginger cookies with Christmas shapes.

  Roast Turkey with Red Berries

• United Kingdom: In these European islands, the typical dish is that of roast turkey with baked potatoes cooked in duck fat. Sounds good right? Well, it will sound even better when you know that it is accompanied by gravy (meat and mushroom sauce) and bread sauce (made with boiled milk, onion and bread). To finish this meal, the British end with a christmas pudding made with chocolate, nuts and cheeseor, and they accompany it all with mulled wine o mulled cider, which is nothing more than wine or cider heated with spices, sugar and orange slices.

• Croatia: this country bathed by the waters of the Adriatic Sea is a culinary mystery for most of us, so we’ll try to shed some light on holiday meals. Before starting to describe dishes, it is important to say that in this country the Christmas tree is decorated with food: chocolates, bonbons, cookies and apples. And speaking of apples, there is also tradition Bozicnica or Christmas apple, in which, if you give someone an apple, your love will be for life. Among the Croatian Christmas recipes, we find cod soup, Pasticada (Beef Stew), Winding (cabbage leaves stuffed with meat and rice) y Crust (traditional fruit fries with sprinkled sugar).

• South Korea: their Christmas meals go through gather the whole family, not only to eat, but also to cook delicious dishes such as kinchis (Korean salad made from Chinese cabbage), the jeotgal (mixture of several fish and shellfish), or the bulgogi (baked marinated beef). And so that all this food goes down well, it is served accompanied by a rice liquor called Soy.
• Mexico: In Mexico, traditions mix their pre-Columbian culture with the culture that we brought with the colonization of the American continent. As a result, we found a great culinary wealth. At Christmas, the most popular traditional dish is Baked cod with vegetables and chili peppers, although they also have other traditional recipes such as romeritos, wild herbs that are sautéed with dried almonds, potatoes and shrimp. As a drink, Mexicans make a delicious punch made with arrak (sugar cane brandy), sugar, lemon, water and tea.

  Lechón Kowali

• Philippines: Christmas in one of the most religious countries in the world, such as the Philippines, is a feast of worship to Catholicism and the birth of its messiah, Jesus Christ. But not everything is prayers and religious ceremonies, a Philippine tradition inherited from the occupation of these islands by the Spanish and British is to sing Christmas carols from door to door, and if they like what you have sung, they offer you Salabat, a hot drink made from ginger. And when it comes to food, in the Philippine islands it is customary to eat puto bumbong, purple rice mixed with butter, sugar and cheese balls. They can also taste piglet kowali, a baked bacon that results in a tender and crunchy dish at the same time that is usually served with rice and oyster sauce. And for dessert, Filipinos taste their traditional rice crackers called kakanin.

In Food Service Magazine we wish you Merry Christmas!