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Table of Contents
Like with other national holidays, Christmas is celebrated with food and good company. Every Christmas, a traditional meal called a Christmas dinner is enjoyed with family and friends. It can be served anytime from the evening of Christmas Eve to the evening of Christmas Day.
See the fact file below for more information on the Christmas Dinner or alternatively, you can download our 25-page Christmas Dinner worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
Feast Day
- The significance of a Christmas dinner is inspired by the traditional feast day celebration observed by Christians.
- Feast day is a Christian tradition where a particular day is dedicated to a saint.
- Feast days do not normally mean grand celebrations with lots of food, but rather a religious celebration.
- Christmas dinners are served not just to enjoy the food or the celebration, but to honor the Christmas tradition.
- At times, a religious ritual is incorporated with the meal.
All Over The World
- The food served as Christmas dinner is different from one country to another because of different cultures, resources, and beliefs.
- What would be part of the meal largely depends on the local cuisine and the traditional food in the community where it is served.
United States
- In the United States, a common Christmas dinner includes roast pork, turkey, or ham; dressing, roasted root vegetables or squash, and mashed potatoes with gravy.
- Dessert is also served, which is usually a pie or a Christmas pudding.
- Pumpkin pies, pecan pies, sweet potato pies, and fruit mince pies are some of the most popular types of pie that is served.
- Christmas pudding is a type of pudding that is British in origin and is composed mainly of dried fruit.
- Christmas pudding is also known as plum pudding.
- Roast turkey is a traditional meal during Thanksgiving so it is more common for people to serve roast pork, ham, or beef during Christmas.
- Of course, there are variations and additions to the usual dishes depending on the state or locality.
- In the South, mashed potatoes are replaced with rice.
- Oysters and biscuits are included in the meal in Virginia because of its English history.
- On the Gulf Coast, seafood makes popular appetizers and charlottes are the go-to dessert.
- Italian American families opt to serve fish and seafood as part of the Feast of the Seven Fishes.
- Some families, like Jewish American ones, also have American Chinese food ready on their Christmas table.
North America
- In Canada, Christmas dinners take on American or British traditions if the area is English-speaking or French traditions if the area is French-speaking.
- In English-speaking Canada, the Christmas dinner is same as that of the United States, but with additional treats, such as eggnog (an alcoholic dairy-based beverage) and baked goodies such as Christmas cookies, shortbread, and butter tarts.
- A tamale is a traditional delicacy served in Honduras on Christmas Eve. A tamale is a dish made of maize dough stuffed with pork or chicken and steamed in a banana leaf or corn husk.
- Torrejas is also a famous dessert in Honduras, which is French toast soaked in a dark, sugary syrup.
- In Mexico, the Christmas dinner coincides with Nochebuena (meaning “Good Night”), an event that marks the last evening of the Posadas celebrations, which is also how they celebrate it in Spain and other Hispanic countries.
United Kingdom
- The main dish in the UK is a stuffed turkey, accompanied with roast potatoes, boiled or steamed vegetables, yorkshire pudding, bread sauce, and cranberry sauce.
- The common appetizers have unique names: pigs in blankets and devils on horseback, which are both savory.
- For dessert, the British serve Christmas pudding, or English desserts like trifle or mince pie.
Asia
- In India, a mixed rice dish called Biryani is served with chicken or lamb. For dessert, a rice pudding called Kheer is enjoyed by many, while some prefer eating cakes or other sweets.
- In Japan, the famous Japanese Christmas cake is popular among locals. It is a white sponge cake coated with cream and topped with strawberries.
- In the Philippines, the Hispanic tradition of Nochebuena is followed. Common food served are lechon (roasted suckling pig), lumpia (spring rolls), stuffed chicken, adobo, paella, and more traditional fiesta dishes.
Europe
- In France, a dinner or a party is held on Christmas Eve called réveillon which means “waking” because people stay awake until midnight.
- In Germany, some regions partake in Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve while some do so on Christmas Day. Roast goose, roast carp, and suckling pig are famous main dishes.
- In Germany, desserts like marzipan, spice bars, and cakes like Christstollen and Dresdner Stollen are served.
- In Italy, the appetizer (primo) is usually soup made with pasta boiled in broth.
- The main dish (secondo) and dessert is different between Northern Italy and Southern Italy.
- In Northern Italy, they celebrate with poultry, panettone, torrone, and nougat while in Southern Italy they satisfy their Christmas cravings with fried capone eel and a variety of sweets such as marzipan, zeppole, cannoli, biscuits, and fruits (candied and dried).
- In Poland, the Christmas Eve meal is called Wigilia.
- In Sweden, the Swedish Christmas dinner is called Julbord.
South America
- In Brazil, locals enjoy Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve and they feast on colorful rice, ham, fresh fruits, vegetables, Brazil nuts, and desserts like chocolate cake, lemon tart, and panettone.
- In Colombia, Christmas dinner is eaten on Christmas Eve and named Cena de Navidad.
- In Peru, roast turkey served with white rice is a common main meal. The star dessert is the panettone.
Australia and New Zealand
- Aside from traditional English dishes, Australians serve their famous pavlova for dessert, which is a baked meringue topped with multiple fresh fruits and whipped cream.
- New Zealand’s Christmas dinner is very similar to that of the United Kingdom’s Christmas dinner.
Christmas Dinner Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about Christmas Dinner across 25 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Christmas Dinner worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about the Christmas Dinner. Like with other national holidays, Christmas is celebrated with food and good company. Every Christmas, a traditional meal called a Christmas dinner is enjoyed with family and friends. It can be served anytime from the evening of Christmas Eve to the evening of Christmas Day.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- Christmas Dinner Facts
- Feast Day
- Dinner Drawing
- Covert Countries
- Dish Vocabulary
- Truly American
- Local Cuisines
- Christmas Crossword
- Holiday Sweets
- National Names
- Christmas Cookbook
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Link will appear as Christmas Dinner Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, November 25, 2021
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.