List of Christmas dishes


This is a list of Christmas dishes by country.

Albania and Kosovo

and turrón are the most popular Christmas sweets in Argentina regardless of socioeconomic status, with 76% of Argentines choosing the former and 59% the latter in 2015. Mantecol, a typical peanut dessert, is also popular, being favored by 49% of Argentines in the same survey. Sparkling wines, ciders and frizzantes concentrate most of their sales during Christmas season; sparkling wine is mostly consumed by small families with high and medium socioeconomic status living in Greater Buenos Aires and the country's largest cities, while cider and frizzantes are popular among lower classes and large families.
Colombian Christmas dishes are mostly sweets and desserts. Some of the most popular dishes include:
Before the Christmas holidays, many kinds of sweet biscuits are prepared. These sweet biscuits are then served during the whole Christmas period and exchanged among friends and neighbours. Also very popular are a preparation of small gingerbreads garnished by sugar icing.

Denmark

Drinks:
Desserts:
Christmas smorgasbord from Finland, "joulupöytä",, a traditional display of Christmas food served at Christmas in Finland, similar to the Swedish smörgåsbord, including:
Other meat dishes could be:
Desserts:
Drinks:
and Pakistani Christians in Indian subcontinent celebrate Christmas by enjoying several dishes, such as Allahabadi cake, Candy canes, Plum cakes etc. Some of the popular dishes eaten during Christmas in India and Pakistan are:
Church services are also held in churches throughout India and Pakistan, in which Christmas dinners are held which include dishes such as Allahabadi cake, candy canes, Christmas cookies.
The Koswad is a set of sweets and snacks prepared in the Christmastide by people of the Konkan region. South Indian states such as Kerala have traditions observed of home-brewed wine, mostly grapes but sometimes other fruits as well like apple and rose apple; ethnic recipes of slow-cooked Kerala [beef fry|beef fry], rice and coconut Hoppers, lamb stew, fried rice Indian and fusion style; desserts such as Falooda, pastry, and a whole array of steamed, boiled or baked sweets, often with coconut, jaggery, sugar and spices such as cardamom and cloves.

Indonesia

is one of the country's major holidays and begins on 8 December, with the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the day on which traditionally the Christmas tree is mounted and ends on 6 January, of the following year with the Epiphany. According to tradition, the Christmas Eve dinner must not contain meat. A popular Christmas Day dish in Naples and in Southern Italy is capitone, which is a female eel. A traditional Christmas Day dish from Northern Italy is capon. Abbacchio is more common in Central Italy. The Christmas Day dinner traditionally consists by typical Italian Christmas dishes, such as abbacchio, agnolini, cappelletti, Pavese agnolotti, panettone, pandoro, torrone, panforte, struffoli, mustacciuoli, bisciola, cavallucci, veneziana, pizzelle, zelten, or others, depending on the regional cuisine. Christmas on 25 December is celebrated with a family lunch, also consisting of different types of pasta and meat dishes, cheese and local sweets.
South Korea celebrates Christmas as a holiday after support of the united nations during the Korean War. Generally, Christmas themed foods similar to the ones found in western countries are enjoyed. Because North Korea bans any form of religion, Christmas is not allowed.

Latvia

On 24 December, Christmas Eve, twelve dishes are served as a reminder of the Twelve Apostles. Polish people often do not eat meat on this day; instead, they choose from a variety of fish and vegetable dishes. The meal begins when the first star is seen.
File:Uszka-aasica.jpg|thumb|200px|Barszcz with Uszka
  • Barszcz with uszka - a classic Polish Christmas starter.
  • Pierogi with sauerkraut and forest mushrooms; filled with cottage cheese and potatoes
  • Zupa rybna – fish soup
  • Żurek – soup made of soured rye flour and meat
  • Zupa grzybowa – mushroom soup made of various forest mushrooms
  • Bigos – savory stew of cabbage and meat
  • Kompot – traditional drink a light, refreshing drink most often made of dried or fresh fruit boiled in water with sugar and left to cool and infuse.
  • Gołąbki – cabbage rolls
  • Pieczarki marynowane – marinated mushrooms
  • Kartofle gotowane – simple boiled potatoes sprinkled with parsley or dill
  • Kulebiak – with fish or cabbage and wild mushrooms filling
  • Ryba smażona or ryba po grecku – fried fish laid under layers of fried shredded carrots, onions, root celery and leek
  • Sałatka jarzynowa – salad made with boiled potatoes and carrots with fresh peas, sweetcorn, dill cucumber, and boiled egg, mixed with mayonnaise.
  • Łamaniec – type of flat and rather hard pancake that is soaked in warm milk with poppy seeds. Eaten in eastern regions such as around * Białystok
  • Makowiec – poppy seed roll

    Portugal

  • Bacalhau – codfish
  • Cabrito assado – roasted goat
  • Borrego assado – roasted lamb
  • Polvo cozido – boiled octopus
  • Polvo à lagareiro - dish based on octopus, olive oil, potatoes, grelos and garlic.
  • Carne de Vinha d' Alhos – mainly served in Madeira – pork dish
  • Bolo de mel – mainly served in Madeira - Cake made with molasses
  • Bolo Rei – a beautifully decorated fluffy fruitcake
  • Bolo-Rei escangalhado – it is like the first one, but has also cinnamon and chilacayote jam
  • Bolo-Rainha – similar to Bolo-Rei, but with only nuts, raisins and almonds
  • Bolo-Rei de chocolate – it is like the Bolo-Rei, but has less fruit, nuts, chilacayote jam and many chocolate chips
  • Broa castelar – a small, soft and thin cake made of sweet potato and orange
  • Fatias douradas – slices of pan bread, soaked in egg with sugar, fried and sprinkled with powdered sugar and cinnamon
  • Rabanadas – they are like fatias douradas, but made with common bread
  • Aletria – composed of pasta, milk, butter, sugar, eggs, lemon peel, cinnamon powder and salt
  • Formigos – a delicious dessert made with sugar, eggs, pieces of bread, almonds, port wine and cinnamon powder
  • Filhós / Filhozes / Filhoses – depending on the region, they may be thin or fluffy pieces of a fried dough made of eggs, honey, orange, lemon, flour and anise, sprinkled - or not with icing sugar
  • Coscorões – thin squares of a fried orange flavoured dough
  • Azevias de grão, batata-doce ou gila – deep fried thin dough pastries filled with a delicious cream made of chickpea, sweet potato or chilacayote, powdered with sugar and cinnamon
  • Tarte de amêndoa – almond pie
  • Tronco de Natal – Christmas log – a Swiss roll, resembling a tree's trunk, filled with chocolate cream, decorated with chocolate and mini – 2 cm Christmas trees
  • Lampreia de ovos – a sweet made of eggs, well decorated
  • Sonhos – an orange flavoured fried yeast dough, powdered with icing sugar
  • Velhoses – they are like the sonhos, but made with pumpkin
  • Bolo de Natal – Christmas cake
  • Pudim de Natal – Christmas pudding, similar to flan
  • Vinho quente – mulled wine made with boiled wine, egg yolk, sugar and cinnamon
  • Turkey – on the island of Terceira, turkey has recently taken over as the traditional Christmas dish over Bacalhau, due to the influence of American culture on the island, home to the United States Air Force's 65th Air Base Wing.

    Puerto Rico (U.S.)

  • Arroz con gandules – yellow-rice, pigeon peas, olives, capers, pieces of pork, spices and sofrito cooked in the same pot.
  • Escabeche – pickled green bananas or cassava and chicken gizzards.
  • Macaroni salad – with canned tuna and peppers.
  • Morcilla – blood sausage.
  • Pasteles – Puerto Rican tamle made from milk, broth, root vegetables, squash, green banana, plantain dough, stuffed with meat, and wrapped in banana leaves.
  • Hallaca – tamale made from grated cassava and stuffed with meat wrapped in banana leaves.
  • Pastelón – sweet plantain "lasagna".
  • Pig roast – Puerto Rico is famous for their pig roast. It is also a part of their national dish.
  • Potato salad – most commonly made with apples, chorizo and hard-boiled eggs. Potatoes are sometimes replaced with cassava.
Drinks:
  • Bilí – Spanish limes or cherries fermented in rum with spices, brown sugar, citrus peels, bay leaves, avocado leaves, often cucumber, ginger, and coconut shells.
  • Coquito – spiced coconut eggnog.
  • Coquito de guayaba - spiced guava eggnog with cream cheese or coconut milk added.
  • Piña colada
  • Rum punch – rum, orange liqueur, grenadine, ginger ale, grapefruit juice served with fruit, lemon and lime slices.
  • La Danza – champagne with passion fruit juice, orange liqueur, lime juice, lemon juice, and strawberry juice.
Dessert:
Romanian Christmas foods are mostly pork-based dishes. Five days before Christmas, Romanians are celebrating the Ignat Day, a religious holy day dedicated to the Holy Martyr Ignatius Theophorus, associated with a practice that takes place especially on villages scattered around the country: the ritual of slaughtering the pigs. And they are using everything from the pigs: from their blood to their ears. Five days later their tables are filled not only with generous pork roasts but also with:
  • Piftie – pork jelly, made only with pork meat, vegetables and garlic
  • Lebăr – liver sausages, a local variety of liverwurst
  • Caltaboș – sausages made from organs
  • Cârnaţi – pork-based sausages
  • Sângerete – blood sausages
  • Tobă – head cheese made from various cuttings of pork, liver boiled, diced and "packed" in pork stomach like a salami
  • Sarmale – rolls of cabbage pickled in brine and filled with meat and rice
  • Salată de boeuf – a more recent dish, but highly popular, this type of salad uses boiled vegetables and meat. It can include potatoes, carrots, pickled red peppers and cucumbers, egg whites bits. Everything is mixed together with mayonnaise and mustard.
  • Cozonac, the Romanian equivalent of panettone or sweet bread.
  • Strong spirits: Palinka, Rachiu, Ţuică

    Russia

  • Borscht
  • Kutya

    San Marino

  • Bustrengo

    Serbia and Montenegro

  • Česnica – Christmas soda bread with a silver coin to bring health and good luck baked in the bread.
  • Koljivo – boiled wheat which is used liturgically in the Eastern Orthodox and Greek Catholic Churches.
  • Riblja čorba for Christmas Eve

    South Africa

Christmas is in the summer in South Africa, so many summer fruits such as watermelon and cantaloupes are enjoyed at this time. Popular desserts include trifle, melktert and peppermint crisp tart. Many people in South Africa hold Braai barbecues for Christmas or New Year's Day.
cider

Sri Lanka

In Trinidad and Tobago traditional meals consists of generous helpings of baked ham, pastelles, black fruit cake, sweet breads, along with traditional drinks such as sorrel, ginger beer, and ponche de crème. The ham is the main item on the Christmas menu with sorrel to accompany it.
Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians in Ukraine traditionally have two Christmas dinners. The first is a Lent Dinner, it is held on January 6 and should consist of meatless dishes. The second is a Christmas Festive dinner held on January 7, when the meat dishes and alcohol are already allowed on the table. The dinner normally has 12 dishes which represent Jesus's 12 disciples. Both Christmas dinners traditionally include a number of authentic Ukrainian dishes, which have over thousand-year history and date back to pagan times.
In the United Kingdom, what is now regarded as the traditional meal consists of roast turkey with cranberry sauce, served with roast potatoes and parsnips and other vegetables, followed by Christmas pudding, a heavy steamed pudding made with dried fruit, suet, and very little flour. Other roast meats may be served, and in the nineteenth century the traditional roast was goose. The same carries over to Ireland with some variations.
See also: Thanksgiving Dinner

Venezuela