Beyond the Boar’s Head: A Global Culinary Journey This Festive Season
The traditional Christmas dinner, often a cornerstone of holiday celebrations, can sometimes feel more like a culinary obligation than a joyous feast. For many, the familiar sight of a dry turkey, overcooked Brussels sprouts, and a dense Christmas pudding evokes a sense of culinary resignation rather than festive cheer. It’s a sentiment that leads some to ponder how this particular menu became so entrenched, with historical narratives suggesting that influential figures may have steered the course of festive tables away from more robust, perhaps even wilder, ancient traditions.
While acknowledging the existence of exceptionally flavourful and succulent British turkeys today, and recognizing that turkey has graced tables since the reign of Henry VIII, a lingering wish persists for a return to a more primal, uninhibited Christmas. This desire often extends to exploring the diverse and sometimes surprising culinary landscapes of festive celebrations around the globe.
The Unlikely King of Christmas: Kentucky Fried Chicken in Japan
Perhaps one of the most sought-after and popular Christmas lunches globally is not a rare delicacy or an exotic import, but rather a fast-food phenomenon. In Japan, the Kentucky Fried Chicken Christmas Party Barrel has achieved legendary status. This special-edition bucket, available for around £25, typically includes eight pieces of fried chicken, a gratin, and a pudding. The ubiquitous slogan, “Kentucky is Christmas!”, perfectly encapsulates its cultural significance.
The rise of KFC as a Christmas staple in Japan is a testament to the country’s largely secular approach to the holiday. This commercial adaptation began in 1970 with the opening of the first KFC in Nagoya. Legend has it that the manager, Takeshi Okawara, overheard an expatriate lamenting the absence of turkey for Christmas. Inspired, he created the Christmas Party Barrel, drawing a parallel between chicken and turkey. By 1974, the promotion had gone nationwide, with Colonel Sanders himself donning a Father Christmas costume, cementing KFC’s place in Japanese Yuletide traditions.
Adventurous Appetites: Traditional Delicacies from Far-Flung Corners
While KFC offers a commercial comfort, other traditional Christmas dishes from different cultures present a more adventurous, and perhaps less universally appealing, culinary experience.
Kiviak from Greenland: This unique festive specialty involves a seal that is disembowelled and then stuffed with up to 500 small Arctic birds. The seal is sewn back up, sealed with fat to deter flies, and then buried to ferment for up to 18 months. Once sufficiently rotten, the birds are extracted and consumed by biting off the head and sucking out the juices.
Mattak: Another Greenlandic classic, mattak consists of whale skin with a layer of blubber attached. It can be enjoyed raw, deep-fried, or pickled. While a cultural delicacy, it’s a dish that might test the palate of many unfamiliar with its preparation and consumption.
European Feasts: A Symphony of Flavours and Traditions
Venturing into Europe reveals a rich tapestry of Christmas culinary practices, some more familiar and inviting than others.
Poland’s Wigilia (Christmas Eve): Celebrated on Christmas Eve in many Catholic countries, the Polish feast comprises 12 dishes, symbolizing the 12 Apostles and the 12 months of the year. Key components include carp, a fish popular across Central and Eastern Europe, barszcz (beetroot soup, known as borsch in Ukraine and Russia), pierogi dumplings, and various fruit and poppy-seed puddings.
Norway’s Pinnekjøtt: In western Norway, the scent of Pinnekjøtt, dry-cured lamb ribs slow-cooked over birch wood, fills the crisp winter air. This dish is traditionally accompanied by a shot of aquavit. The meal often concludes with risgrøt, a rice pudding in which a hidden almond promises a marzipan pig for the lucky finder.
Denmark’s Risalamande and Julesild: A similar rice pudding, risalamande, is found in Denmark, also featuring a hidden almond and a similar prize. Alongside roast pork, herring plays a significant role, particularly in the form of julesild, pickled and spiced herring served as a starter during the festive julefrokost (Christmas lunches) throughout December.
Finland’s Nordic Spread: In Finland, the festive table typically features roast ham, smoked fish, and pickled beetroot salad, all enjoyed with characteristic Nordic gusto. Lanttulaatikko, a spiced swede bake, is another popular accompaniment.
France’s Le Réveillon: The French approach Le Réveillon, the Christmas Eve feast, with considerable seriousness and indulgence. Expect lavish platters of oysters, langoustines, rillettes, gougeres (baked cheese puffs), foie gras, and pain d’épices (spiced bread). The meal often includes soup, snails in garlic butter, lentil salads, turkey with chestnut stuffing, roast quails, capons, ducks, coq au vin, boeuf en daube, gratin dauphinois, an abundance of cheese, and culminates in the iconic bûche de Noël (Yule Log).
Germany’s Festive Fare: German traditions often begin with fish on Christmas Eve, typically carp, salmon, or hake, served with fried potatoes and sauerkraut. Christmas Day lunch usually features roasted duck, turkey, or goose, accompanied by plump bread dumplings and braised red cabbage. The quintessential German Christmas pudding is, of course, stollen.
From Pasta to Pork: Festive Delights Across Continents
The culinary traditions continue to diversify as we explore other regions.
Catalonia’s Sopa de Galets: In Catalonia, Christmas lunch is a resolutely carnivorous affair, commencing with sopa de galets. This rich broth, made from beef and ham bones, chicken feet, and pig trotters, is simmered with meatballs and galets, large Catalan pasta shells.
Italy’s Anolini in Brodo: In the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, Christmas Eve is marked by anolini in brodo, a different style of pasta served in broth. The meticulous process of rolling and filling these tiny meat-filled pasta parcels is a cherished family ritual, often involving the entire household. Some believe this feast symbolizes the Seven Sacraments of the Catholic Church, while others link it to the seven hills of Rome. Regardless of its origin, the meal is designed to be a lengthy and leisurely affair.
Goa’s Sorpotel: In Goa, a southern coastal state of India with strong Portuguese influence, pork is widely consumed. Sorpotel, a vindaloo-style stew of pork and offal, is a popular dish enjoyed at Christmas, weddings, and other celebrations. Its tangy vinegar base and chilli kick make it a memorable festive offering.
The Philippines’ Lechon: With the largest Catholic population in Asia, thanks to centuries of Spanish rule, the Philippines celebrates Christmas Eve with the magnificent lechon, a whole roasted pig. The aim is for the skin to be shatteringly crisp, while the meat remains succulent. Seasoned with salt, lemongrass, garlic, and bay leaves, the lechon is a triumphant centrepiece.
Mexico’s Nochebuena Extravaganza: Mexican celebrations reach heady heights during Nochebuena on Christmas Eve. Tables groan under the weight of tamales (steamed corn dough parcels with sweet or savoury fillings), pozole (a hearty hominy-based stew with various meats and chilies), moles (complex sauces with diverse variations), and churros.
Southern Hemisphere Summers and Nostalgic Yearnings
- Australia’s Summer Barbie: In Australia, where Christmas falls during the summer heat, the barbecue reigns supreme. Celebrations involve grilling not only shrimp but also crayfish, yabbies, and lobsters. Alongside a glazed ham, turkey, salads, gingerbread, trifle, and the iconic pavlova, the Australian Christmas is a vibrant, sun-drenched affair.
The author’s personal Christmas traditions offer a blend of family obligation and individual preference. While a large family gathering might feature a traditional turkey the week before Christmas, the author’s own Christmas Day at home eschews the fowl in favour of a rare roast beef, accompanied by gravy, roast potatoes, sprouts with bacon, and pigs in blankets – a testament to the enduring appeal of simple, comforting classics.
However, a deeper yearning remains for the spirit of the “old Twelve Days of Christmas,” a time characterized by revelry, mischief, and merry-making, fueled by ample libations. The Victorian era, with its renewed emphasis on family, influenced by figures like Dickens and the Oxford Movement, saw the gradual disappearance of dishes like the “Christmas Pie.” This elaborate creation involved deboned game birds, chopped meats, livers, hearts, meatballs, pickled mushrooms, and spices, all encased in a bird-shaped crust and finished with a pheasant’s head and feathers – a culinary testament to a more robust and perhaps wilder era of festive feasting.
