Christmas: what do they eat on Christmas Eve in Argentina, Venezuela and other parts of the world?

The Christmas dinner It is the perfect space to enjoy those special delicacies, prepared with great care and created to share with the family. We all know the classic menu: baked turkey, rice dishes -Arabic and olive, for example-, some salad like the Russian or the Waldorf and its inevitable apple or sweet potato puree. Over the years, this dinner has been transformed and we have ventured to prepare other meats -or not even include them- and also to try new accompaniments. From that, from Advantage We tell you what is included in the Christmas menu in other countries, as an inspiration for the upcoming celebration.

Thanks to the Internet and social networks we can learn more and more foods that are enjoyed in different countries of the world. And in this note we aim to show the gastronomic diversity that we can find. It should be noted that what is presented here may not represent the most traditional of each region or province, since it is a general view.

France

After attending the Misa de Gallo, the “awakening” dinner is held, an abundant menu with some luxurious foods. Some of the ingredients that we can find the foie gras, cheeses, oysters, caviar, shellfish, among others. One of the most outstanding gastronomic traditions is the Gros Souper et les treize desserts. It is about dinner accompanied by thirteen desserts representing the Last Supper with the twelve apostles. Although the types of desserts may vary, there are some inevitable components such as pompe à l’huile -a type of sweet bread-, nougat, nuts and fresh local fruits.

Nougat. (Photo: iStock) (etorres69/)

Italy

In Italy the traditions are divided into two areas: the north and the south of the country. At dinner, a soup prepared with stuffed pasta (such as tortellini) and meat is usually served. In addition, we find the Cotechino, a cold cut dish served with lentils. In the north it is usually eat stuffed poultryroasted or boiled, while in the south, the eel fried capitone it is part of the table. The Panettone It is one of the most typical sweets, but they are also enjoyed Pandoro and the panfortein Verona and Tuscany, respectively.

Cotechino. (Photo: iStock) (Andrea Donetti/)

Spain

As we already mentioned, gastronomic traditions vary between regions. For example, in Andalusia you can enjoy the jabugo ham, seasoned olives or stuffed eggs. In Aragon we can find the Christmas soup, the ajoarriero cod or the thistle with béchamel. In Cantabria you can enjoy mountain snails, prepared with a tasty stew that is accompanied with bread. If it is dinner in Galicia, seafood must be present on the menu. In the desserts category we can find the classics nougats, mantecados and polvorones.

Nougat, mantecados and polvorones. (Photo: iStock) (nito100/)

Japan

As is known, in this country Christmas is not celebrated as in Western countries, but Japan is steeped in cultural diversity and various elements of this festivity were introduced. One of the most curious traditions is to enjoy a banquet of Kentucky Fried Chicken family on Christmas Eve. Yes, as you read, many people bet on eating fried chicken, salads, French fries and other accompaniments from the well-known chain. Apparently, this tradition began in the 1970s when foreigners who visited the country only found something similar to their gastronomy in this chain. Today it is widely enjoyed and even the franchise prepares special menus for these dates.

(Photos: iStock)

Venezuela

In this country it is customary to prepare the hallacas, a tamale prepared with cornmeal that is filled with beef, pork, chicken or chicken stew. In addition, they enjoy Ham breadturkey or pork leg, chicken salad -a type of Russian salad with shredded chicken breast-, cream punch, nougat, cookies and other sweets.

Ham bread. (Photo: iStock) (only_fabrizio/)

Dominican Republic

The traditional dinner includes baked chicken and pig in puya -impaled and roasted pig-. You can also enjoy the well-known Russian salad, sheet cakes and the pigeon peas with coconut, which is a preparation based on Moorish rice and a type of pea called pigeon pea. The cassava empanadas They are prepared with different fillings for all tastes: meat, chicken or cheese. You cannot miss the wines, Christmas sweets and the punch.

Referential image. (Photo: iStock) (Janeth Warrick/)

Guatemala

One of the most enjoyed dishes in Guatemalan celebrations is the Tamale. One of the versions that we can find is the sweet one, in which corn dough is used and filled with a mixture of chocolate, almonds, plums and seeds. In addition, you can taste a delicious pork leg or a baked turkey, smoked ham or Three Pepper Loin, a meat prepared with black, white and red pepper.

Tamales. (Photo: iStock) (Black Salmon/)

Argentina

Definitely in this country the roast it’s what brings everyone together at the holiday table. Various cuts of meat that vary by region are prepared on the traditional grill. For example, in the south they eat lamb, in Mendoza the famous “chivito” and in Buenos Aires beef or suckling pig. Another of the inevitable dishes is the Vitel Tone consisting of beef served with a cold sauce based on tuna, anchovies, oil, egg yolks and mustard. The Russian salad Filled tomatoes and tongue vinaigrette are also on the menu. The clerical It is the drink of choice and is prepared with wine, assorted fruits, and ginger ale or lemon soda.

Vitel Tone. (Photo: iStock) (Olaf Speier /)

Source: Elcomercio