Even though the influence of various cuisines of the world can be found in this quintessential holiday meal, traditional Christmas foods make space for themselves in every household, adding more fun to Christmas Eve. Delve deeper into this write-up to know more about the various Christmas traditional foods.

Christmas Food Traditions

Christmas falls just a month after the Thanksgiving. Starting from November, the Christmas celebrations extend until January. The reasons for celebrating this beautiful festival go beyond religion.

The major Christmas meal is a Christmas Eve dinner, which is enjoyed late in the night in the company of friends and relatives. In the US and Canada people enjoy roast turkey, stuffing,  shortbread, cranberry sauce, gingerbread, apple cider, pumpkin pie, minced pie, satsumas, doughnuts, eggnog, fruit cake, oyster stew, plum cake, hot buttered rum, Dungeness crab, champagne, Russian Tea cakes, tamales, and lefse.

Drinks have always been a part of the Christmas celebrations. Wassail is a toast, which means be whole or good health. A bowl is filled with a mixture of cider, brandy, ale, and spices. This is heated well and drunk hot. However, champagne alcohols have replaced this exotic drink, with eggnog and mulled wine being the preferred Christmas drinks.

Top 10 Popular Traditional Christmas Foods

Stuffed Roasted Turkey 

The stuffing is usually rich and intricate, drenched with fruits, sausage, olives, and nuts. The turkey is often marinated in a mixture containing wine or brandy before roasting with butter, which makes for juicy meat and richly flavored stuffing.

Frumenty 

Made with whole grains of wheat and boiled as a broth, this mixture, which had been the traditional side dish in a Christmas dinner, is a rich blend of crushed almonds, egg yolks, and milk. People used to enjoy this either with honey on the morning of Christmas or as a sauce with roast meat.

Mashed Potatoes 

Serve them plain and simple or just mash them with cheese, garlic, or any other seasoning of your choice and serve.

Cranberry Sauce 

Add some tropical warmth to your Christmas meal with this delicious cranberry sauce.

Oyster Stew 

This traditional Christmas side dish is made with oysters simmered in cream or milk and butter.

Panettone 

This holiday fruitcake is nothing but brioche dough with a filling of dried fruits and nuts. This is baked in round decorative paper molds.

Gingerbread 

Gingerbread, in the form of cookies, cakes, or gingerbread houses, are tasty traditional Christmas foods.

Doughnuts 

These deep-fried delicacies are often served with a sprinkle of powdered confectioners’ sugar or hot chocolate sauce on them.

Traditional Christmas Cake

The color of the dark brown plum cake is attributed to the presence of dark sugars and black treacle, while the moistened and richness of this cake comes from the blend of citrus fruits juices, brandy, and dry fruits and nuts.

Russian Tea Cakes 

These pastries, having a Russian origin, are enjoyed as one of the quintessential traditional foods for Christmas.

These are few of the traditional Christmas foods which each of you should know. Try these delicacies yourself!

Image Credit: britabroadinusa.blogspot.com, ifood.tv