List of Christmas dishes facts for kids

Christmas is a special time of year when families and friends gather to celebrate. A big part of these celebrations is enjoying delicious food! Different countries around the world have their own unique and tasty traditions for Christmas meals. Let's explore some of these amazing dishes!

Christmas Foods Around the World

Albania: Pumpkin and Walnut Pie

• In Albania, especially for Catholic families, a traditional pie called Byrek me kungull dhe arre is popular on Christmas Eve. It's a tasty pie made with pumpkin and walnuts.

Argentina: Sweet Treats and Cold Dishes

Christmas in Argentina happens during their summer, so many dishes are served cold. Two very popular sweets are Panettone, known as pan dulce (sweet bread), and turrón, a type of nougat. These are enjoyed by almost everyone! Another favorite is Mantecol, a peanut dessert. People also enjoy sparkling drinks like ciders and sparkling wines.

Some other popular Christmas foods in Argentina include:

• Vitel toné – a cold dish of sliced veal with a creamy tuna sauce.
• Asado – different kinds of roasted meats like beef, chicken, or lamb.
• Clericó – a drink similar to sangria, mixing wine with chopped fruit.
• Budín – a type of fruitcake.
• Salads like Russian salad and Waldorf salad.
• Pionono – a rolled cake often filled with savory ingredients.
• Matambre – a rolled meat dish.
• Lengua a la vinagreta – beef tongue with vinaigrette.
• Garrapiñadas, dried fruits, and sweet treats.
• Sandwiches de miga – thin crustless sandwiches.
• Pavita – turkey.

Australia: Summer Christmas Feasts

Christmas in Australia is in the summer, so many meals are light and cold. People often enjoy cold ham and turkey, or fresh Seafood and salads. Roasts like chicken, ham, and turkey are also common.

Sweet treats include:

• White Christmas – a sweet slice made with coconut fat and mixed fruit.
• Christmas cake or Christmas pudding.
• Custard and Trifle.
• Gingerbread in festive shapes.
• Christmas damper – a type of bread baked in a wreath or star shape.
• Lollies like rocky road and rum balls.
• Candy canes and Christmas cookies.
• Pavlova – a meringue-based dessert with fruit and cream.
• Mince pies.

Belgium: Sweet Bread for the Holidays

• In Belgium, a sweet bread called Cougnou (or cougnolle) is popular. It's shaped like the infant Jesus.

Brazil: Roasts and Sweet Puddings

Brazilian Christmas meals often feature roasted meats and a variety of desserts.

• Lombo à Califórnia – pork loins.
• Rabanada – a type of French toast.
• Leitão assado – roasted piglet.
• Peru – roast turkey.
• Farofa – a toasted cassava flour mixture.
• Pavê – a layered dessert similar to trifle.
• Ham and Bacalhau (codfish).
• Brazil nuts.
• Arroz à grega – Greek-style rice.
• Potato salad and Salpicão (chicken salad with raisins).
• Panettone, Crème caramel, and Mousse.
• Drinks like Cider, Grape juice, and Wine.

Canada: Classic Christmas Dishes

Canadian Christmas traditions include many classic dishes:

• Bûche de Noël – a chocolate yule log cake.
• Butter tarts.
• Candy canes.
• Christmas pudding and Fruitcake.
• Eggnog and Mince pies.
• Cranberry sauce.
• Roasted turkey with Stuffing.
• Shortbread cookies.
• Trifle.

Chile: Unique Drinks and Sweet Bread

Chilean Christmas foods feature special drinks and a unique bread.

• Cola de mono – a Chilean Christmas drink with milk, coffee, vanilla, and cloves.
• Pan de Pascua – a Chilean Christmas sponge cake with candied fruits, raisins, walnuts, and almonds.
• Roasted turkey.
• Ponche a la romana – an eggnog-style drink made with champagne and pineapple ice cream.

Colombia: Sweet Desserts and Hearty Meals

Colombian Christmas dishes are often sweet. Some popular ones are:

• Buñuelos – fried dough balls.
• Natilla – a custard-like dessert.
• Manjar blanco – a sweet milk spread.
• Hojaldres – puff pastries.
• Brevas dessert with cheese.
• Christmas cookies.
• Sweet bread with fruits like raisins and raspberries.
• Lechona – rice baked inside a pig with peas and pork.
• Tamales.
• Ponqué envinado – red wine cake.
• Turkey and Pernil de Cerdo (roasted pork leg).
• Potato salad and Panettone.

Cuba: Traditional Roasts and Puddings

• Crema De Vie – an Eggnog made with rum, lemon, and spices.
• Majarete – a pudding made with corn, milk, lemon, and sugar.
• Platillo Moros y Cristianos – rice and black beans.
• Lechon asado – roasted suckling pig.
• Turrón.

Czech Republic and Slovakia: Fish and Cookies

Christmas meals in these countries often include fish and many types of cookies.

• Kapustnica – Christmas cabbage soup.
• Fish soup and fried carp.
• Potato salad with mayonnaise and vegetables.
• Kuba – groats and mushrooms.
• Grilled white sausage.
• Vánoční cukroví – Christmas cookies.
• Christmas bread (vánočka) and Fruitcake.
• Gingerbread.

Many sweet biscuits are prepared before Christmas and shared with friends.

Denmark: Pork, Duck, and Rice Pudding

Danish Christmas meals are hearty and include special desserts.

• Æbleskiver – spherical pancakes served with jam and powdered sugar.
• Sylte – a type of head cheese made from pork.
• Julesild – spiced pickled herring.
• Boiled whole potatoes and Brunede kartofler (caramelized potatoes).
• Brun sovs – a traditional dark gravy.
• Julebryg – Christmas beer.
• Gløgg – mulled wine with spices, raisins, and almonds.
• Risalamande – rice pudding with whipped cream and almonds, served with cherry sauce. A hidden almond brings good luck!
• Flæskesteg – roast pork with crispy skin.
• Andesteg – roast duck with apple and prune stuffing.
• Rødkål – pickled, sweet-sour red cabbage.
• Various Christmas cookies like Vaniljekranse and Pebernødder.
• Konfekt, marzipan, and chocolate-covered nuts.

Dominican Republic: Roasts and Sweet Drinks

Dominican Christmas foods include roasted meats, salads, and special drinks.

• Croquettes and Empanadas.
• Ensalada Rusa – Olivier salad (Russian potato salad).
• Ensalada verde – a simple lettuce, onion, cucumber, and tomato salad.
• Moro de guandules con coco – rice with pigeon peas and coconut milk.
• Pasteles de hojas – a type of tamale.
• Pastelon – a casserole.
• Pig roast and Pollo al horno (roasted chicken).
• Telera – Dominican bread.

Drinks:

• Anisette – an anise-flavored drink.
• Guavaberry – a traditional Christmas drink from the Lesser Antilles.
• Ponche crema – eggnog.
• Jengibre – ginger tea with spices and lemon.
• Mandarin Liqueur.

Desserts:

• Buñuelos – fried cassava dough balls with syrup.
• Turrón – honey and almond nougat.
• Vaniljekranse – Danish butter cookies.
• Fruits and nuts.

Finland: Christmas Smorgasbord

The Finnish Christmas smorgasbord, or "Joulupöytä" (Yule table), is a feast with many dishes.

• Christmas ham with mustard.
• Freshly salted salmon (gravlax) and whitefish.
• Pickled herring in different sauces.
• Rosolli – a cold salad with beetroot, potato, and carrot.
• Lutefisk and Béchamel sauce.
• Whitefish and pikeperch.
• Potato casserole, Carrot casserole, and Rutabaga casserole.
• Various sauces and an assortment of cheese.
• Christmas bread (Joululimppu).
• Karelian pasties – rice pasties served with egg-butter.
• Karelian hot pot – a traditional meat stew.

Desserts:

• Rice pudding or rice porridge with cinnamon, sugar, and milk.
• Joulutorttu – a star-shaped puff-pastry with prune marmalade.
• Gingerbread, often as a gingerbread house.
• Mixed fruit soup or prune soup.

Drinks:

• Glögg or mulled wine.
• Christmas beer and "Home beer" (non-alcoholic).

France: Oysters, Foie Gras, and Thirteen Desserts

French Christmas meals are often luxurious.

• Oysters, Foie gras, Smoked salmon, and Scallops.
• Champagne.
• Crêpes (in Brittany).
• chapon (roasted chicken) and dinde aux marrons (chestnut-stuffed turkey).
• Ganzeltopf (goose) in Alsace and Roast goose in Normandy.
• Bûche de Noël – a yule log cake.

• Kouglof (in Alsace).
• Thirteen desserts (in Provence): A special tradition where 13 different desserts are served, representing Jesus and the 12 apostles. These include Walnuts, Quince cheese, Almonds, Raisins, Calisson of Aix-en-Provence, Nougat (white and black), Apples, Pears, Oranges, Winter melon, and Fougasse (Provençal bread).

Germany: Stollen, Gingerbread, and Roast Goose

German Christmas foods are known for their sweet breads and hearty roasts.

• Christstollen – a fruitcake with candied fruits, raisins, nuts, and spices, often with marzipan.
• Pfefferkuchenhaus – a gingerbread house decorated with candies.
• Printen, Oblaten Lebkuchen, Springerle, and Weihnachtsplätzchen (Christmas cookies).
• Carp and Roast goose.
• Venison – meat from deer, often served with red cabbage.
• Herring salad and Kartoffelsalat (potato salad).
• Schäufele – a cured, smoked ham.
• Weisswurst – sausages with veal and bacon.
• Feuerzangenbowle and Glühwein (hot spiced wine).

Greece: Sweet Cookies and Christmas Bread

• Kourabiedes – butter cookies.
• Melomakarono – honey cookies.
• Diples – fried dough.
• Christopsomo – Christmas bread.
• Pork or turkey.

Guatemala: Tamales and Fruit Punch

• Tamales.
• Ponche – a hot Christmas fruit punch.
• pavo (turkey).
• Buñuelos – fluffy sweet dessert with maple syrup.
• chicken prepared with different stuffings.

Hungary: Fish Soup and Stuffed Cabbage

Hungarian Christmas meals often include fish and cabbage dishes.

• Fish soup (halászlé).
• Stuffed cabbage (töltött káposzta).
• Roast goose and Roast duck.
• Pastry roll filled with walnut or poppy seed (bejgli).
• Bread pudding with poppy seed (mákos guba).
• Szaloncukor – a traditional Hungarian Christmas candy.
• Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks.

Iceland: Smoked Meats and Special Cookies

Icelandic Christmas foods include smoked meats and a variety of cookies.

• Hamborgarhryggur – a smoked pork roast.
• Ptarmigan – a gamebird.
• Hangikjöt – smoked lamb.
• Oven-roasted turkey.
• Möndlugrautur – a Christmas rice pudding with a hidden almond for good luck.
• Caramelised potatoes and pickled red cabbage.
• Smákökur – small cookies of various sorts, like Piparkökur.
• Laufabrauð – thin, decorated flat cakes fried in oil.

India (South Asia): Cakes, Sweets, and Curries

Indian Christians celebrate Christmas with many delicious dishes.

• Allahabadi cake and Christmas cake (fruit cake).
• Mathri – a flaky biscuit.
• Gulab Jamun – a traditional sweet.
• Walnut fudge and Jalebi.
• Mincemeatpie.
• Kheer – rice cooked with milk, sugar, and nuts.
• Chhena Poda – a dessert made with cottage cheese.
• Ghee cookies and Rose cookies.
• Bolinhas de coco – coconut cookies.
• Chocolate covered fruit and Marzipan.
• Dumplings and Tarts.
• Nankhatai and Neureos (dumplings with sweet filling).
• Roast chicken and Dates roll.
• Bebinca – a layered dessert popular in Goa.
• Biryani and Stews (chicken, mutton, fish).
• Candy canes.
• Cormolas and Milk cream (milk fudge).
• Chocolate candies and Pitha.
• Vindaloo – a spicy Goan pork curry.
• Fruits like apples, oranges, and guavas.
• Mixed nuts, Kulkuls, and Pilaf.
• Duck curry and Jujubee.
• Cupcakes and various Drinks like cider and ginger ale.

The Koswad is a collection of sweets and snacks made by people in the Konkan region. South Indian states like Kerala have traditions of home-brewed Indian wine, slow-cooked beef fry, Rice & Coconut Hoppers, Lamb stew, and many steamed or baked sweets with coconut, jaggery, and spices.

Indonesia: Cakes and Stews

• Klappertaart – a coconut tart.
• Poffertjes – small Dutch pancakes.
• Ayam rica-rica – spicy chicken.
• Lampet and Kohu-kohu.
• Kidney bean soup.
• Bolo Rei – a type of cake.
• Chap chye – a vegetable stew.
• Steamboat – a hotpot dish.
• Devil's curry – from Eurasian tradition.
• Egg salad.
• Vindaloo – a spicy Goan pork curry.
• Semur (Indonesian stew).
• Christmas pudding and Candy canes.
• Kue semprong and Pineapple tart.
• Christmas cake.

Italy: Sweet Breads and Desserts

Italian Christmas foods are famous for their sweet breads.

• Panettone (from Milan) and Pandoro (from Verona).
• Panforte (from Tuscany).
• Prosecco (a sparkling wine from Veneto) and Spumante (from Piedmont).
• Struffoli (from Naples) and Pastiera (from Naples).
• Duck a L'Orange.

Jamaica: Fruit Cake and Sorrel Drink

• Christmas (fruit) cake or black cake – a rich fruit cake with dried fruit, wine, and rum.
• Sorrel – a concentrated drink often served with Christmas cake, traditionally with rum.
• Curry goat.
• Rice and peas – often made with fresh pigeon peas for Christmas.
• Christmas ham and Chicken.
• Pine and ginger drink.

Japan: KFC and Christmas Cakes

Christmas in Japan has some unique food traditions, including a surprising popularity for KFC!

• Christmas cake – a white cream sponge cake with strawberries.
• Christmas cookies – sugar cookies and chocolate chip cookies.
• Christmas cupcakes – chocolate and vanilla cupcakes with frosting.
• Crème caramel Pudding – a sweet custard.
• IKEA French fries.
• Fruit Parfait – layers of cream, ice cream, and fresh fruits.
• Gingerbread house – a fun, edible decoration.
• Ice Cream – a sweetened frozen dessert.
• KFC fried chicken – very popular, orders are placed months in advance!
• Milk in a plastic cup.
• Poached Egg Salad – mixed greens with a poached egg.
• Shōyu Ramen – a clear brown broth noodle soup.
• Tamagoyaki Japanese Omelette – a rolled omelette.

Lithuania: Twelve-Dish Christmas Eve Supper

Lithuanian Christmas tradition centers around a Twelve-dish Christmas Eve supper on December 24, with 12 dishes representing the 12 Apostles or months. No meat is served.

• Poppy milk (aguonų pienas).
• Slizikai – small pastries with poppy seeds.
• Auselės – deep-fried dumplings.
• Herring with carrots and herring with mushrooms.
• Cranberry Kissel – a thickened and sweetened juice.

Malta: European Influences

Maltese Christmas food shows British and Italian influences.

• Panettone – from Italy.
• Fruitcake and Mince Pies – from British influence.
• Christmas/Yule log (cake) – a chocolate cake shaped like a log.
• Timpana – a baked pasta dish, often served as a starter.
• Roast Turkey – from British influence.

Mexico: Roasts, Tamales, and Sweet Drinks

Mexican Christmas meals are rich with roasted meats, stews, and traditional sweets.

• Roasted turkey with gravy.
• Glazed ham with cherries and pineapples.
• Jamón (Spanish dry-cured ham) and Lechon.
• Seafood like Bacalao (cod Basque style), Shrimp, Octopus, and Crab.

Stews:

• Menudo – a tripe and hominy soup, often prepared on Christmas Eve.
• Pozole – hominy soup with pork.

Salads & side dishes:

• Tamales – can sometimes replace turkey.
• Ensalada Navideña – Christmas salad with apples, raisins, pecans, and marshmallows.
• Ensalada de Noche Buena – Christmas Eve salad.
• Ensalada Rusa – potato salad.
• Romeritos – small green leaves mixed with mole and potatoes.

Sweets:

• Buñuelo – fried sweet pastry.
• Capirotada – bread pudding.
• Turrón.
• Cocada – coconut candy.
• Volteado de piña – pineapple upside-down cake.
• Carlota de Chocolate – cake.
• Mantecados and polvorones – crumbly cakes.
• Marzipan, almond cakes, and Pan dulce (sweet rolls).
• Churros.
• Fresh Fruit like Tejocotes, Guayabas, and Caña de azucar (sugar cane).

Drinks:

• Champurrado – thick hot chocolate.
• Chocolate – hot chocolate.
• Cidra – apple cider.
• Atole – a corn-based drink.
• Rompope – similar to eggnog.
• Ponche Navideño – a hot, sweet drink with apples, sugar cane, and prunes.

Netherlands: Sweet Treats and Oliebollen

Dutch Christmas foods include many sweet treats.

• Banket – a pastry.
• Chocolate coins and Chocolate letters.
• Kruidnoten and Pepernoot – spiced cookies.
• Mandarin oranges and Marzipan.
• Mixed spice.
• Mulled wine.
• Oliebol – a type of doughnut.
• Speculaas – spiced shortcrust biscuits.

New Zealand: Summer Feasts and Pavlova

Like Australia, Christmas in New Zealand is in summer, so fresh and cold foods are popular.

• Pavlova.
• Ham and Turkey.
• Strawberries and Cherries.
• Christmas Pudding and Christmas mince.
• Wine and Trifle.
• Lollies like Warheads and candy canes.
• Potato salad.
• Peanuts and Seafood.

Norway: Ribs, Lutefisk, and Rice Porridge

Norwegian Christmas meals feature different kinds of meat and fish.

• Akevitt – a spirit flavored with caraway and aniseed.
• Gløgg – mulled wine.
• Julepølse – pork sausage.
• Lutefisk – fish preserved with lye.
• Pinnekjøtt – salted, dried, and steamed lamb's ribs.
• Svineribbe – roasted pork ribs with skin.
• Julegrøt – Christmas rice porridge with a hidden almond.
• Julebrus – a Norwegian Christmas soft drink.
• Julekake – Norwegian yeast cake with dried fruits.
• Sossiser – small Christmas sausages.
• Medisterkaker – large meatballs.
• Raudkål/Rødkål – sweet and sour red cabbage.
• Kålrabistappe/Kålrotstappe – purée of rutabaga.
• Peparkake/Pepperkake – gingerbread cookies.
• Lussekatter – St. Lucia Buns with saffron.
• Multekrem – a dessert with cloudberries and whipped cream.
• Riskrem – Risalamande.

Panama: Roasts and Fruit Cake

• Arroz con Pollo – rice with chicken.
• Tamales.
• Ham and Turkey.
• Grapes.
• Fruit cake.
• Egg nog.
• Potato salad.
• Pan de Rosca and Pan Bon.
• Spaghetti.

Paraguay: Roasts and Salads

• Apple cider and Cider.
• Beef Tongue with vinaigrette.
• Clericó – a fruit and wine drink.
• Roasted chicken.
• Potato salad.
• Roast pork.
• Sopa paraguaya – a savory corn cake.

Philippines: Rice Cakes and Roasted Pig

Filipino Christmas foods include special rice cakes and roasted meats.

• Bibingka – a traditional dessert made with rice flour and coconut milk, baked and topped with butter and sugar.
• Caldereta – a meat stew.
• Ham and Mechado.
• Menudo and Morcon.
• Pancit – Filipino noodle dish with meat and vegetables.
• puto bumbong – purple sweet rice cooked in bamboo tubes.
• Queso de bola (edam cheese).
• Salads (fruit, coconut, or garden).
• Lechon – roasted suckling pig.

Poland: Twelve Meatless Dishes for Christmas Eve

On Christmas Eve (December 24), Polish families traditionally serve 12 meatless dishes, representing the 12 Apostles. The meal starts when the first star appears.

• Barszcz (beetroot soup) with uszka (small dumplings) – a classic starter.
• Pierogi with sauerkraut and mushrooms; or with cottage cheese and potatoes.
• Zupa rybna – fish soup.
• Żurek – soup made of soured rye flour.
• Zupa grzybowa – mushroom soup.
• Bigos – a savory stew of cabbage.
• Kompot – a refreshing drink made from dried or fresh fruit.
• Gołąbki – cabbage rolls.
• Pieczarki marynowane – marinated mushrooms.
• Kartofle gotowane – simple boiled potatoes.
• Kulebiak – with fish or cabbage and wild mushrooms filling.
• Ryba smażona or ryba po grecku – fried fish.
• Sałatka jarzynowa – vegetable salad with mayonnaise.
• Łamaniec – a flat pancake soaked in milk with poppy seeds.
• Makowiec – poppy seed roll.

Portugal: Codfish and King Cake

Portuguese Christmas meals often feature codfish and special cakes.

• Bacalhau – codfish.
• Cabrito assado – roasted goat.
• Borrego assado – roasted lamb.
• Polvo cozido – boiled octopus.
• Carne de Vinha d' Alhos – a pork dish (especially in Madeira).
• Bolo de mel – cake made with molasses (in Madeira).
• Bolo Rei (king cake) – a beautifully decorated fruitcake.
• Bolo-Rei escangalhado – a variation of King Cake with cinnamon and jam.
• Bolo-Rainha (queen cake) – similar to Bolo-Rei but with only nuts and raisins.
• Bolo-Rei de chocolate – King Cake with chocolate chips.
• Broa castelar – a small cake of sweet potato and orange.
• Fatias douradas – slices of bread soaked in egg, fried, and sprinkled with sugar and cinnamon.
• Rabanadas – similar to fatias douradas.
• Aletria – a dessert with pasta, milk, sugar, and eggs.
• Formigos – a dessert with sugar, eggs, bread, almonds, and wine.
• Filhós / Filhozes / Filhoses – fried dough pieces.
• Coscorões – thin fried orange-flavored dough squares.
• Azevias de grão, batata-doce ou gila – fried pastries with sweet fillings.
• Tarte de amêndoa – almond pie.
• Tronco de Natal – Christmas log cake.
• Lampreia de ovos – a sweet made of eggs.
• Sonhos – orange-flavored fried yeast dough.
• Velhoses – similar to sonhos but with pumpkin.
• Bolo de Natal – Christmas cake.
• Pudim de Natal – Christmas pudding.
• Vinho quente – mulled wine.
• Turkey – recently popular on Terceira island.

Puerto Rico: Roasted Pig and Coquito

Puerto Rican Christmas meals are famous for their roasted pig and special drinks.

• Arroz con gandules – yellow-rice with pigeon peas, olives, and pork.
• Escabeche – pickled green bananas or cassava.
• Macaroni salad with tuna.
• Morcilla – blood sausage.
• Pasteles – Puerto Rican tamales made from root vegetables and plantains, filled with meat.
• Hallaca – tamale made from grated cassava.
• Pastelón – sweet plantain "lasagna".
• Pig roast – a national dish.
• Potato salad – often with apples and chorizo.

Drinks:

• Bilí – a drink made from Spanish limes or cherries fermented in rum with spices.
• Coquito – spiced coconut eggnog.
• Coquito de guayaba – spiced guava eggnog.
• Piña colada.
• Rum punch.
• La Danza – champagne with passion fruit juice.

Desserts:

• Arroz con dulce – spiced coconut and raisin rice pudding.
• Bread pudding with guava rum sauce.
• Dulce de cassabanana – musk cucumber cooked in syrup.
• Dulce de papaya con queso – fermented green papaya with cheese.
• Flancocho – Crème caramel with a layer of cream cheese and spongecake.
• Majarete – rice and coconut custard.
• Rum cake.
• Tembleque – a pudding made with cornstarch and coconut cream.
• Turrón – sesame or almond brittle.
• Mantecaditos – Puerto Rican shortbread cookies, often filled with guava or pineapple jam.
• Natilla – milk, coconut cream, and egg yolk custard.

Romania: Pork Dishes and Cozonac

Romanian Christmas foods are mostly pork-based.

• Piftie – pork jelly.
• Lebăr – liver sausages.
• Caltaboș – sausages made from organs.
• Cârnaţi – pork sausages.
• Sângerete – blood sausage.
• Tobă – head cheese packed in pork stomach.
• Sarmale – rolls of cabbage filled with meat and rice.
• Salată de boeuf – a popular salad with boiled vegetables and meat, mixed with mayonnaise and mustard.
• Cozonac – a sweet bread, similar to panettone.
• Strong spirits like Palinka, Rachiu, and Ţuică.

San Marino: Bustrengo

• Bustrengo – a traditional cake.

Serbia: Fish Soup and Christmas Bread

• Fish soup for Christmas Eve.
• Koljivo – boiled wheat used in church services.
• Česnica – Christmas soda bread with a silver coin baked inside for good luck.

South Africa: Summer Fruits and Braai

Christmas in South Africa is in the summer, so fresh fruits and outdoor grilling (Braai) are popular.

• Beef tongue and Gammon.
• Potato salad and Garden Salad.
• Turducken and Turkey.
• Braaivleis – outdoor grilling.
• Boerewors – a type of sausage.
• Potjiekos – a stew cooked in a three-legged pot.
• Breyani and Bobotie.
• Meatballs and Fried chicken.
• Trifle and Fruitcake.
• Christmas pudding and Ice cream.
• Melktert – a milk tart.
• Peppermint crisp tart – a fridge tart.
• Yogurt tart – a fridge tart.
• Cookies like Hertzoggies and Lamingtons.
• Fresh fruits like Watermelon, Melon, Mango, Pineapple, and Strawberries.
• Peanuts and Candy canes.

Spain: Ham, Seafood, and Turrón

Spanish Christmas meals feature cured ham, seafood, and sweet nougat.

• Jamón (Spanish dry-cured ham).
• Roasted turkey and Roasted lamb.
• Seafood like Langostinos (king prawns), Shrimp, Lobster, Crab, and Gilt-head bream.

Sweets:

• Turrón.
• Yema – egg-based dessert.
• Mantecados and polvorones – crumbly cakes.
• Marzipan – almond cakes.
• King cake known as roscón de Reyes or tortell.
• Churros.

Sweden: Julbord and Lutfisk

The Swedish Julbord (Christmas table) is a large smorgasbord with many traditional dishes.

• Köttbullar – Swedish meatballs.
• Julskinka – Christmas ham.
• Dopp i grytan ("dipping in the kettle") – dipping bread in ham broth.
• Prinskorv – small hot dog sausages.
• Fläskkorv – big pork sausage.
• Isterband – smoked pork sausage.
• Revbensspjäll – spare ribs.
• Inlagd sill – pickled herring.
• Gravad lax – cured salmon.
• Janssons frestelse – potato casserole with anchovies.
• Vörtlimpa – Swedish rye bread with orange peel.
• Knäckebröd – dry crisp bread.
• Rödkål – sweet and sour red cabbage.
• Grönkål – sweet and sour kale.
• Brunkål ("brown cabbage") – cabbage flavored with syrup.
• Beetroot and various cheeses.
• Lutfisk – lye-fish served with white gravy.
• Julmust – a traditional Christmas soft drink.
• Glögg – mulled wine.
• Knäck or Christmas Butterscotch – Christmas toffee.
• Pepparkakor (Gingerbread) – spiced cookies.
• Julost – Christmas cheese.
• Julgröt – Christmas rice pudding with a hidden almond.
• Lussekatter – Saint Lucy saffron buns.
• Limpa bread – orange and rye spice bread.

Trinidad and Tobago: Ham, Pastelles, and Sorrel

In Trinidad and Tobago, Christmas meals include baked ham, pastelles, and special drinks.

• Christmas ham.
• Sorrel – a traditional drink.
• Pastelles, also known as Hallacas.
• Ponche de crème – a version of eggnog.
• Black cake – a rich fruit cake.

Ukraine: Twelve Dishes for Christmas Dinners

Orthodox and Roman Catholic Christians in Ukraine have two Christmas dinners. The first is a meatless Lent Dinner on January 6. The second is a Christmas Festive dinner on January 7, where meat dishes are allowed. Both traditionally have 12 dishes.

• Kutya – a sweet grain pudding.
• Uzvar – a dried fruit compote.
• Varenyky – dumplings.
• Borscht – beetroot soup.
• Deruny – potato pancakes.
• Pampykhy – savory doughnuts.

United Kingdom: Roast Turkey and Christmas Pudding

In the United Kingdom, the traditional Christmas meal is roast turkey with cranberry sauce, roast potatoes, and other vegetables. This is followed by Christmas pudding, a heavy steamed pudding with dried fruit. Roast goose was traditional in the past.

• Beef Wellington (an alternative main course).
• Brandy butter.
• Bread sauce.
• Brussels sprouts.
• Candy canes.
• Chocolate yule log.
• Christmas cake.
• Christmas ham (often glazed).
• Christmas pudding.
• Cranberry sauce.
• Devils on horseback (prunes wrapped in bacon).
• Dundee cake (Scottish fruit cake).
• Gingerbread.
• Gravy.
• Hot chocolate.
• Mince pies.
• Mulled wine.
• Nut roast (a vegetarian option).
• Pigs in blankets (sausages wrapped in bacon).
• Roast turkey, Roast beef, Roast duck, Roast goose, Roast pheasant.
• Roasted chestnuts.
• Roast parsnips and carrots.
• Roast potatoes.
• Spiced beef (in Ireland).
• Stuffing.
• Trifle.
• Tunis Cake.
• Twelfth Night Cake (eaten on the final day of Christmas).

United States: Turkey, Ham, and Sweet Pies

Christmas meals in the U.S. often share similarities with Thanksgiving dishes.

• Apple cider and Champagne or sparkling apple cider.
• Boiled custard.
• Candy canes.
• Chocolate fudge.
• Christmas cookies.
• Cranberry sauce.
• Eggnog.
• Fish as part of the Feast of the Seven Fishes (especially for Italian-American families).
• Fruitcake.
• Gingerbread, often as a gingerbread house or gingerbread man.
• Christmas ham.
• Hawaiian bread.
• Hot buttered rum.
• Hot chocolate.
• Mashed potatoes.
• Mixed nuts, chestnuts, dried figs, dried dates.
• Oyster stew.
• Persimmon pudding.
• Pies like Apple pie, Pecan pie, Pumpkin pie, and Sweet potato pie.
• Yams/sweet potato casserole (with marshmallow).
• Red velvet cake.
• Russian tea cakes.
• Tom and Jerry (a mixed drink).
• Roast turkey, and sometimes roast duck, goose, chicken, or pheasant.
• Stuffing, also called dressing.

Venezuela: Hallaca and Pan de Jamón

Venezuelan Christmas meals are known for their special main dishes.

• Hallaca – a meal made of maize dough, filled with beef, pork, chicken, olives, and raisins, wrapped in plantain leaves and boiled.
• Pan de jamón – bread filled with ham, olives, and raisins.
• Dulce de lechosa – dessert made of cooked unripe papaya in syrup.
• Ensalada de gallina – salad made of potato, carrot, apple, and shredded chicken.
• Pernil – commonly known as roast pork.

See also

In Spanish: Anexo:Platos de Navidad para niños