That's it, Christmas is here and we're starting to think about the good little holiday dishes that we're going to enjoy between the tree 🎄 and Santa's sack 🎅. Friendly, generous, Christmas recipes make us salivate in anticipation: oysters, smoked salmon, turkey and Yule logs are on most French tables on New Year's Eve. But what do we eat at Christmas elsewhere in the world?… Let’s discover together some foreign gourmet Christmases.
Some Christmas traditions from around the world
Let's really start at the end of the world, Australia. The holiday table is a reflection of its inhabitants: colorful, varied and multicultural. You might as well eat a turkey with cranberries and a Christmas Pudding so British as Asian-style parsnips and squash. But The specialty of Australian Christmas is barbecue! 😎
Yes, at Christmas it's summer in the land of kangaroos, we eat grilled lobsters on the beach and pavlova, a meringue dessert with red fruits. In the Blue Mountains near Sydney, some people also celebrate Christmas in July, during the southern winter, in homage to their European origins (the good excuse 😜). Get out the barbecue on the terrace and you will be there… mittens and more!
Closer to us in Mexico, we taste Tamales, savory or sweet papillotes, steamed in a corn husk. In the USA, we start with the eggnog, an eggnog with or without rum flavored with cinnamon and nutmeg, then we eat a whole roasted ham with pineapple 🍍. A roasted ham that we also find in the West Indies, accompanied by Creole puddings.
Finally in Canada, Christmas is close to the body! We enjoy tourtière, a spicy meat pie accompanied by split pea soup, or cipaille, a “lasagna” of tourtières with potatoes. If you're feeling peckish, it's log, butter (read sugar) or pecan tart, drizzled with maple syrup... Real sweet tooths, these Canadians!
Christmas tables in Europe
Christmas being originally a Christian holiday, it is rarely celebrated in Asia, the Middle East or Africa, so let's return to Europe, more particularly to Scandinavia, the cradle of Christmas traditions and mulled wine! 🍷
In Sweden, we don't joke about Christmas. The festivities begin on Saint Lucia, December 13, and last an entire month. During the New Year's Eve buffet, we taste the Janssens fretelse, a specialty made from potatoes, onions and herring. In Finland, it's vegetables, fish and pork, then a rice pudding garnished with an almond to attract luck. Finally, special mention to the rustic Hagikjot Icelandic, a lamb smoked with birch wood.
To the east, you will taste zakouskis in Russia, fish appetizers in all its forms (smoked, marinated, caviar, etc.), washed down of course witha good vodka. Estonian Christmas evokes our Alsace, with sauerkraut, gingerbread and beer. Poland, it's a buffet of 12 very "natural" dishes, without meat or alcohol (OK, but génep for example, it's a plant 😄). THE Borscht red beets and a delicious carp soup are on the menu.
In the west, you probably know some of our neighbors' Christmas culinary traditions. Cod in Portugal, pudding and mince pies UK, nougat in Spain, fish and pasta Italy… Many desserts are based on dried or candied fruits: Portuguese Bolo Rei, German Stollen, Italian Panettone are a bit reminiscent of our Provençal brioche des rois.
Celebrate Christmas with Quai Sud!
Every year, you impatiently await the return of certain events: holidays, sales, Beaujolais Nouveau... and the Quai Sud Christmas selection! 😊 So what do we eat at the Quai Sud Christmas table?…
We are opening the Christmas specialties ball in November. To accompany the opening of the Strasbourg Christmas market, this year we have a mulled wine ready to taste. Then it's the Advent calendar which invites itself with tasty chocolate bites 🍫, while our delicious gingerbread mix will be used to make Christmas cookies. Beautiful Christmas culinary traditions straight from Germany.
As for gifts, let yourself be tempted by our Christmas box which allows, among other things, to prepare hot drinks flavored with orange and cinnamon. Our Harlequin whiskey will be perfect for spirits lovers; introduce them to the Irish Christmas tradition, which requires children to leave a glass of whiskey for Santa Claus 🥃 and carrots for his reindeer... Consume in moderation to avoid sending the sleigh into the trees! 🌲
Our Christmas selection is there every year to please your loved ones and yourself 🎁. Discover our new products and take advantage of the holiday season to try delicious Christmas recipes from here and elsewhere. You will create your own traditions that will make all your Christmases unforgettable.
