Christmas is a special holiday for many people around the world. And, perhaps, one of the most important traditions is Christmas dinner. What kind of food is served on Christmas Eve for the festive table in different parts of our planet? Traditional German treats are mulled wine and a candied fruit pie called stollen. Stollen is often baked with humps, in memory of the camels on which the Magi got to the cradle of Jesus. Many Bulgarians go hungry on the eve of Christmas, and for the holiday they treat themselves to stuffed vegetables, soup and pies.
Fijians' festive table is made up of fish wrapped in banana leaves, stuffed chicken and baked pork. It is cooked in a lovo earthen oven lined with heavy stones.
In the United Kingdom, fig pudding is the decoration of the table. It should be doused with brandy and set on fire.
Italians call Christmas dinner "the feast of the seven fishes." The table is served with dishes from a variety of seafood - squid, cod, anchovies, as well as pasta with shellfish.
The French also prefer seafood. Lobsters, oysters and foie gras are usually on the table.
The traditional Swedish Christmas dish is rice pudding. Almonds are hidden in one of the portions, promising those who have found luck until the end of the year.
Residents of Costa Rica treat themselves to tamales, a pork and corn dish that has been passed down from generation to generation.
In Ethiopia, they eat doro wat, a chicken roast served on thin flatbreads. And forget about knives and forks, this dish should be handled.
In South Africa, Christmas comes in the summer, and locals flock to the braai, an African grill, to roast lamb, turkey or pork.
It's also summer in Australia in December, and Australians have a Christmas BBQ. They roast turkey, lamb and large shrimp.
Ghanaians eat corn porridge, okra stew, and a variety of root vegetables called fufu for Christmas.
Most of those who find Christmas in Antarctica celebrate the holiday on board the ship. So they have to settle for meat, canned food and frozen vegetables.
The Christians of Egypt observe a strict fast for the three days before Christmas. The main dish at this time is "kushari", made from pasta, rice and lentils, seasoned with tomato-vinegar sauce.
In India, biryani, or curry, is served for the holiday - a dish made from rice and spices with the addition of meat, fish, eggs or vegetables. Sweet milk pudding is offered for dessert.
The people of the Philippines prefer a whole baked suckling pig with a ball of yellow cheese in its mouth.
In Iceland, Christmas dinner starts at 6pm and consists of a wide variety of meat dishes, including venison.
Argentina serves "vitele ton" - veal in tuna sauce, as well as turkey, pork, and bread. Gala dinners are often served in the backyard barbecue style.
Finnish people organize a Christmas buffet with ham, bread, fish, various casseroles and vegetables, and warmed wine with spices
In the US, many people prefer eggnogg, or drunken eggnog, a drink made from beaten eggs with sugar and wine.
Believe it or not, on Christmas night, dozens of Japanese people flock to KFC to eat crispy chicken with a side dish.

Travels

New Year's recipes of the peoples of the world

New Year's Eve Dinner is truly a work of culinary art, no matter where you are in. Bright unusual dishes will tell a lot of interesting things about the addictions of the peoples of the world. Today we bring to your attention exotic New Year's dishes from all over the world.

Frog legs dance

Frog legs are a signature French dish that is very popular in Southeast Asia. Most often, the gourmet delicacy is deep-fried or baked in bread crumbs. There is also a festive version of the dish - frog legs in tomato sauce. Cooking begins with him. To do this, a clove of garlic and a stalk of celery are fried in olive oil. When the garlic has acquired a brownish hue, add 200 g of fresh tomatoes and stew for 10-15 minutes. Meanwhile, frog legs are fried in another frying pan, having previously rolled them in flour. As soon as they are covered with an even light golden crust, they are transferred to a pan with sauce and simmer for another 5-7 minutes. Such a treat is served with dried toast, and the legs themselves are decorated with herbs.

Holiday-flavored soup

Who said that soup is not a New Year's dish? Residents of Asian countries eat it with pleasure both on weekdays and on holidays. For example, mussel and seaweed soup will quite successfully complement the recipes for original New Year's dishes and will pretty much surprise the guests. The first step is to prepare mussels (300 g): rinse, peel, boil in water and lightly fry together with onions. For thickness and rich taste, you can add pearl barley to the dish. Boil 5 tbsp. l. pearl barley in a saucepan according to the usual recipe and at the very end add fried mussels with onions and pickled seaweed (200 g). Cook the soup for a few more minutes and at the very end put a couple of cloves of mashed garlic in it. Add any creamy sauce or sour cream to taste to the soup and decorate with parsley petals.

Dinner with an ostrich

The dish from in our eyes is undoubtedly an exotic New Year's recipe. But for the inhabitants of Africa and Australia, this is a completely familiar treat. It can be slightly adapted to our taste preferences by adding more traditional ingredients. First, onions are sautéed in a frying pan with the addition of 5 tsp. sugar and bay leaves. Ostrich liver (300 g) is thoroughly washed, allowed to dry and cut into small pieces. Each of them is rubbed with salt and pepper, doused in flour and sent to a pan with onions. Meanwhile, take 150 g of pork, cut into the same pieces and spread on the bottom of a baking dish. A layer of slightly fried ostrich liver is laid on top, along with golden onions. The meat is baked in the oven at 180 ° C for an hour. Before serving, the finished dish is garnished with fresh herbs.

Green, toothy and tasty

The crocodile is not only a dangerous predator and raw material for chic accessories, but an exquisite delicacy. Crocodile meat tastes like chicken, only it is much softer and more tender. It is not surprising that New Year's recipes for the peoples of the world, mostly Asians, often include crocodile dishes. Usually they are whole grilled, but for a festive dinner, you can cook something more sophisticated. First, onions are fried in a large skillet, to which pieces of crocodile fillet (3 kg) are gradually added. Then they put it in a deep saucepan, put a little ghee and pour a glass of water. The fillet is stewed for 10-15 minutes, after which more water is added so that it completely covers the meat and simmer for 30-45 minutes. Meanwhile, a dressing is being prepared: they mix 400 g of grated cheese with a dozen eggs and beat them well. Next, the crocodile meat is transferred to a baking dish, seasoned with salt and black pepper and poured with cheese sauce. The dish is sent to an oven preheated to 180 ° C for half an hour.

High flying chicken

You can include exotic salads in recipes for unusual New Year's dishes. You don't have to go far for ingredients, because even the most ordinary can be prepared with a twist, for example, according to the recipes of the inhabitants of the Caribbean islands. To do this, we need chicken fillet and liver with a total weight of 600 g. The whole fillet is boiled or grilled, and then cut into small pieces. Liver is cut in a similar way and fried in butter. Peel a couple of small pears and cut into cubes, sprinkle with lemon juice and mix with chicken fillet. Pour the fried liver with lemon juice, season with pepper, salt, sour cream and mustard to taste. It remains to combine two parts of chicken meat, mix thoroughly and add any herbs to the dish. This colorful salad is best served warm.

In Japan, every dish on the New Year's table is symbolic. The New Year's feast begins with the serving of the main dish soba - buckwheat noodles with broth. Soba is a symbol of longevity, and longevity is the main wish for the New Year. On the following holidays, the Japanese eat osechi-ryori - a set of a wide variety of seafood: there is nihon-tai fish, shrimp, herring roe, lobster, oysters, and seaweed. All of the above products are served either raw or steamed. Ozone soup with rice cakes is served with osechi-riori. For dessert, the Japanese prepare black soybeans, symbolizing health, and mashed sweet potatoes with chestnuts for good luck. For the new year, the Japanese prefer to drink green tea and moju rice vodka.

France

The French are real gourmets, complementing their traditional New Year's dish - turkey with goose liver and cheeses. The French cook turkey by adding cognac and cream. Served with baked chestnuts. An equally traditional New Year's dish of the French is goose liver pate with crispy French baguette toasts. Also traditional on the New Year's table are seafood: oysters and smoked salmon. And, of course, a cheese plate. Dessert - The Christmas log is a creamy brownie cake with lots of chocolate. French champagne and dry wines are always present on the New Year's festive table.

Mexico

Despite the fact that Mexico is famous for burritos, nacho, and fajito for the new year, Mexicans prefer to bake a young pig. It is served with a delicious and healthy side dish - oven baked rice with black beans and bell peppers. It is customary for Mexicans to serve a lot of vegetables and lettuce, as well as pacio, serano and jalapenos stuffed with hard cheese. For dessert - simple baked goods made from corn flour. Homemade tequila is the national New Year's drink.

Italy

On the Italians' New Year's table, there is always a place for small tortellini dumplings with ham pachutto and creamy sauce. But the main dish of the New Year's table is homemade pork sausage, in Italian it sounds like "cotecchino". The sausage is cut into small circles and served with a garnish of corn grits and stewed lentils. For dessert, the Italians prepare pannetone cake with dried fruits inside. On New Year's Eve, Italians prefer to drink dry or sparkling wine.

India

Surprisingly, in India, the country of spices, the New Year is celebrated with biryani pilaf and okroshka. Biryani pilaf is made from lamb. Rice and carrots are supplemented with kerchu nuts, raisins, pineapples, green peas and, of course, many local spices - cumin, cloves, coriander, turmeric, cardamom. The spices give the rice a few colors, which makes the dish look very festive. Pilaf is served with raita - Indian okroshka made from tomatoes, potatoes and cucumbers based on light kefir. And the dessert is the lasi sour milk drink - yogurt whipped with ginger and sugar.

Very little time is left until the most beloved and expected holiday by all - New Year. Very soon, under the chimes, the clink of glasses of sparkling champagne will be heard. , baked duck - traditional dishes of the Russian New Year's table. And what is rich in the New Year's table in other countries? What dishes are considered traditional in France, China, Japan, Mexico?

Let's take a little trip and find out about it.

In the most romantic country in the world France, in the New Year, wild boar or deer meat is served hot. Sometimes it is replaced by a bird, usually a pheasant or hazel grouse. Also an irreplaceable dish on this holiday is foie gras - specially prepared liver of a fatted goose or. The main dessert on New Year's Eve in France is "Christmas log": biscuit dough cake, covered with cream in such a way that it resembles the bark of a tree. It has long been believed that such a delicacy brings good luck to all family members. Also, in the country of the "Three Musketeers", it is customary to put on the table in the New Year bean pie... It is so named not because the main ingredient for its preparation is the seeds of this culture. The thing is that a bean is hidden in one of the pieces of dessert, the lucky one who stumbles upon it, is called the "bean king" all New Year's Eve and has every right to make wishes that are immediately fulfilled by other guests of the holiday.

Now let's go to the country and pastas - Italy! For the inhabitants of this country, the New Year is a real holiday of the belly. The hostess herself chooses what kind of dishes to regale the guests, only three traditional dishes remain unchanged: lentike, dzampone and kotekino. The treats themselves are not as difficult to prepare as they are to pronounce. Lentike - it's just with tomatoes, to which they sometimes add finely chopped. According to the stories, the more lentils you eat, the more money you will have in the coming year. Zampone - these are stuffed pork legs, and the meat is cooked in pork skin! This dish also has a special meaning: it is served right after midnight and everyone who treats themselves to this dish will have progress and success in business! AND kotekino - fatty pork sausage. Rumor has it that if you try it, nothing will happen. Unlike the previous two traditional dishes, this one is made just for you to eat.

Hear the clatter of castanets? We seem to be approaching the most passionate country - Spain! Here, in the homeland of flamenco, at the New Year's holiday those who cannot imagine their life without meat will take their souls. The most popular dish on New Year's Eve is here (and not only on New Year's): jamon - dry-cured pork leg. If you find yourself in Spain, be sure to try this dish, because it is a national delicacy. Also, a fish dish or a dish with seafood is always put on the table. Spain is famous for its desserts. Cookies with caraway seeds, almond cakes, marzipans - all this will please even the most fastidious sweet tooth.

And now it's time to move on to a country that will undoubtedly delight only the most risky and adventurous travelers with its New Year's dishes - Mexico! Country of sombrero and tequila! Here, on the New Year's table, guests and residents of the country are offered a very unusual dish: caterpillars. Fried or canned silkworm pupae are perhaps not the most common food for Russians, but on the other hand, what will you lose? It's worth the risk! If you still think that risk is not a very noble business, then try ateke, kedeanu or fufu - also national dishes, but with ingredients much more familiar to us. Ateke - unleavened cassava porridge (a root vegetable vaguely resembling a potato) with fish or meat sauce. Kejen - ordinary fried chicken with rice and vegetables. AND fufu - balls of banana dough, which are usually served with meat or fish.

Can you hear the bells ringing? This is how they announce the coming of the New Year. Here, traditional for this holiday are dishes made from classic Japanese ingredients: boiled seaweed, fish pie, sweet potato puree with chestnuts. Also in Japan, New Year is not New Year, if there are no cakes made from sticky varieties on the table - they are called mochi. Mochi, bring prosperity, wealth and success to the one who eats them in the coming year.

So, no matter what country we go to, New Year's dishes are everywhere - you will lick your fingers! If, however, something did not suit your taste, then remember: the main thing is that the holiday is in your heart, then everything else will seem fabulous and magical!

New Year is a holiday with a special aura, always magical, filled with the expectation of a miracle. And at the same time, it is a traditional holiday, marked by national characteristics, of course, this also applies to the New Year's menu. We, Armenians, cook dolma, ham, gata, baklava ... And, say, in some distant Scandinavian country, housewives put completely different dishes on the New Year's table. But, regardless of nationality, we all believe that special dishes on the festive table can bring happiness and well-being to the house. What traditional dishes will decorate New Year's tables in different countries of the world?

England: Country of Puddings

New Year's Eve in England is not complete without traditional plumpudding. This pudding is made from almost everything in the refrigerator - lard, bread crumbs, flour, raisins, eggs, fruits, etc. Every family has their own pudding recipe. A special sophistication to this dish is given by its spectacular serving on the table - it is poured with rum and set on fire. This makes the New Year's celebration even more vivid and unforgettable.

Also, in addition to pudding, turkey and ham stuffed with vegetables are accepted on the English New Year's table. Brussels sprouts and chestnuts are used as a side dish for such meat dishes.

USA: Turkey, and inside everything that is stale

In America, a baked turkey is always considered a traditional festive dish, which, unlike the "English" one, is prepared according to the principle - everything that is left in the refrigerator can be stuffed with it. Therefore, often in such a turkey you can find all the variety of products - from garlic and spices to apples, cabbage, prunes and mushrooms.

However, since the United States is a multinational country, you can find very different traditions here. For example, in the southern states, where slavery was especially widespread, the dish "Hoppin 'John" was invented. A very spicy dish made with rice, legumes, pork and stewed vegetables.

Denmark: Modesty Above All

Among the Danes and on the festive table, the first dish is traditionally more than modest - boiled cod with steamed cabbage.

However, this is just the beginning. This will be followed by a traditional New Year's dessert - a sweet pyramid. This confectionery miracle consists of a dozen rows of marzipans topped with chocolate sauce, vanilla cream and whipped cream.

Moreover, this dessert should be eaten completely, without leaving a single crumb (this is a prerequisite for financial prosperity), and the dish on which the dessert is served must be smashed against a friend's dwelling so that he will get well-being.

Italy: Country of piglets and round "boobies"

Italians believe that only the pork dish makes a lot of money in the New Year. Here the fried pig is considered the best decoration of the New Year's table, but in extreme cases even pork sausages will do.

In addition, in the tradition of Italians to eat something round on the New Year's holiday. This will symbolize good luck in the coming year. Well, after the feast, they throw old stuff out of the windows, otherwise the new good will not have enough space, and it will not come into the house.

Japan: Country of "red" gourmets

For the Japanese on the festive table, it is not so much the taste of the food that is important as its color. For example, if someone wants financial well-being in the New Year, they should not eat round, as in Italy, but red. For example, a piece of red fish or shrimp.

The festive dinner itself begins with the main dish - soba. This food is buckwheat noodles with broth. Grilled rice balls are immersed in the broth. Moreover, they should all be round, so that luck always returns to the Japanese house, going in a circle.

Poland: Without meat, but with fish

Having decided to celebrate the New Year in Poland, you will be surprised by the lack of meat dishes on the table. And although the festive feast includes exactly 12 dishes, you will not find meat in any of them.

For the holiday, Poles traditionally cook fish in its various variations - fried, stewed, boiled. In addition, a Polish New Year's table cannot be imagined without butter dumplings, mushroom soup and barley porridge with prunes. The dessert is usually a chocolate cake.

Germany: let's eat herring

In meat and sausage Germany, it is not meat dishes that are the main masterpiece of the festive feast. Traditionally, Germans believe that next year will bring them happiness if there is a simple herring on the table. In addition, the New Year holidays are not complete without pork shank, as well as sausages with stewed cabbage. And for dessert, a colorful dish with pies, nuts and apples is sure to be served.

Philippines: 12 round months

New Year's Eve Dinner in Filipino families is called Media Noche and consists of round food. Moreover, it is extremely important that twelve variations of fruits are present at the feast, but among them there should not be mangoes and apples. And the point here is not some ancient superstition, but the fact that these fruits are not considered festive in the Philippines.

It is very important not to eat all the food before the New Year. Filipinos deliberately leave more food on the tables, as starting the year with an empty table is a bad omen.

Austria and Hungary: So that the bird of happiness does not fly away

These two countries have common traditions, therefore, their festive dishes are very similar. So, in these two countries you will not see poultry dishes on New Year's tables, because they believe that if you serve a bird on the table, then happiness can simply fly away.

The traditional strudel and schnitzel, as well as carp or suckling pig, can be distinguished from the differences between the festive dishes. In Austria, it is considered obligatory to eat a piglet for good luck on New Year's Eve.

And in Hungary, bagels are served on tables - poppy seed and nut rolls.

India: Land of Spices

Indians celebrate New Year with okroshka and biryani pilaf. Pilaf is made according to a traditional lamb recipe with cashews, pineapples, green peas and many spices. Due to such a number of ingredients, the dish looks especially festive. Okroshka is prepared on the basis of light kefir with the addition of potatoes, tomatoes and cucumbers.

For dessert in India, lassi is served - a fermented milk drink that tastes like yogurt. However, it has a richer flavor that spices impart.