50 Times People Made Such Festive Christmas Meals, They Just Had To Share The Ideas With Everyone

How are you when it comes to Christmas cooking? Do your cakes belong in Bon Appétit magazine, or are you more qualified for the show Nailed It? (Highly recommend their holiday episodes, by the way, if you’re looking for a good laugh and an ego boost!) We all love to eat our little hearts out around the holidays (as we should!), but we don’t all know our way around the kitchen as well as Santa’s Elves know their way around the workshop. I’m confident that there are things on this list each and every one of you pandas can make, though. I’m considering taking a stab at a pesto puff pastry tree or some cupcakes that look like Christmas trees myself this year.

Christmas is my favorite time of the year for many reasons, including the fabulous food obviously, but all around the world, the feast on December 25th (or 24th!) looks a bit different. For example, in the United States, it’s common to have a big turkey or roasted ham as the main component of the meal. However, in Texas, where my family lives, tamales are the hot item for Christmas. What can I say? We love Tex-Mex year round! Last year, I celebrated Christmas in Sweden and got to experience some of their most cherished holiday meals. I absolutely loved the adorable saffron buns, and rice pudding, or risgrynsgröt.

Learning about the wide range of festive meals around the world is fascinating. For example, in the UK, Christmas pudding, or plum pudding, is a holiday staple. Contrary to what the name suggests, this dessert is actually not made with any plums, but rather raisins, breadcrumbs, sugar, butter, and spices. It’s also cooked several weeks before the big day to allow it time to ripen and then doused with brandy, rum or another strong alcoholic beverage and then set on fire before serving. A dessert and fireplace all in one!   

In Lithuania, one of the most beloved holiday treats is kūčiukai, or a small, slightly sweet cookie baked with poppy seeds. When it comes to the main meal in Lithuania though, it is customary to serve 12 dishes, which mainly consist of fruits, vegetables, mushrooms and fish, as there is not supposed to be any meat on the table. In Japan, Christmas is not celebrated as widely as it is in many other places, so it’s actually common to get good old fried chicken from KFC on December 25th. Alongside the chicken, it’s common to have a seafood set called osechi-ryōri as part of any Japanese Christmas table.  

In Israel, latkes are a staple for any Hanukkah table. Latkes are delicious potato pancakes fried to perfection in plenty of oil and typically paired with sour cream or apple sauce. They are served as a reminder of the miracle when the temple light’s oil was burning for eight days, instead of one. And although the modern latke is a bit different from the original, which was made of cheese, this dish has been around since the middle ages. 

In Germany, a popular holiday treat is stollen. This is a pastry similar to fruitcake with candied fruit and raisins baked into a special yeast dough. After it’s been baked, it’s coated in clarified butter, or ghee, and sprinkled with powdered sugar. Stollen is often baked in advance and stored for a few months before Christmas, and it’s another classic dating back to the 14th century.  

In some countries, fish is the go-to main dish on a Christmas table. In Portugal, for example, a Christmas staple is bacalhau, or a very salty dried cod. This fish can be the basis for many dishes, but during the holiday season, it’s usually served boiled with boiled potatoes and green cabbage and a healthy amount of olive oil. In Ireland, smoked salmon is the most popular Christmas fish, served simply with sauce or vegetables. It can also be a lovely gift to give around the holiday season. Fish is also on the Christmas table in the Czech Republic, but in their case, it’s carp. Carp scales are actually considered a sign of good luck in the Czech Republic, and on Christmas, it’s typical to have two carps in the house: one to be cooked for dinner and another that waits in the bathtub and is later released.     

I grew up eating most of the typical American Christmas foods: roasted turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, roasted vegetables, pumpkin pie, apple pie, and tamales because I lived in Texas. But aside from all of the main dishes that are served during a Christmas feast, I love all of the holiday goodies that can be eaten during the whole season: Christmas cookies, eggnog, gingerbread, fancy charcuterie boards and more. This entire time of year feels special, and I’m definitely a proponent of stretching out the celebration for as long as possible. Plus, if you’re looking for a food item to make that will look Pinterest-worthy, it’s probably best to stick with simple ingredients and focus on the aesthetic. 50% of the work is already done for you if you buy pre-made puff pastry when making one of these gorgeous puff pastry trees, so that's an easy way to work smarter, not harder. There’s nothing wrong with cutting corners to get that gorgeous holiday treat of your dreams.     

There are many different holiday foods that are enjoyed all over the world, but not every seasonal dish is equally loved. Personally, I’m not a picky eater at all, so as long as a food item fits my dietary preferences, I’m all in. But not everyone feels the same way. According to a survey from Mashed, two Christmas dishes in particular are less than popular: Christmas goose and brussels sprouts casserole. When it comes to the goose, many consider it to be an outdated classic that’s just not worth the effort of preparing it. And as for the brussels sprouts, it seems that this vegetable just has a hard time getting good PR. I love roasted brussels sprouts tossed in some oil, salt, pepper, balsamic glaze and red pepper flakes, but if you associate the sprout with bland, tasteless boiled brussels, I can see why you might not be a fan.