Exploring the Different Culinary Traditions in Other Cultures
One of the things we always look forward to at the holidays is the food. Whether it’s pastries or eggnog, turkey or ham, pumpkin pie or figgy pudding it’s a big part of what make the holidays special. Those traditions can be very different in communities across the United States, but they become truly unique when you travel to other countries. Let’s take a look at some of the culinary customs that have come to symbolize the holidays in Scandinavia, Africa and Latin America.
The Holiday Food Specialties in Scandinavia
In most of Scandinavia, there’s always smoked, fried or pickled fish at the holidays, as well as many interesting side dishes.
The Danish love to serve juleforkost, herring pickled and spiced with sandalwood, cinnamon and cloves, as an appetizer at most gatherings. The preferred vehicle? A slice of rubbrod, or Danish rye bread.
The traditional holiday table in Finland often features a side dish known as lanttulaatikko. Take a rutabaga, boil it and mash it, then add double cream, nutmeg, treacle and breadcrumbs. Bake it until it’s golden and crispy and then sprinkle some buttered breadcrumbs on top.
If you travel to the west coast of Norway on Christmas Eve, you’ll likely get a whiff of pinnekjott, lamb ribs that are typically smoked, cured or dried and then slow-roasted of birch coals until the meat falls off the bone. Spread a little sweet lingonberry jam on the ribs wash it down with a shot of akevitt, a liqueur made with fennel, star anise an
d caraway.
The Holiday Treats of Africa
A couple African holiday dishes stand out:
- South Africans ring in the holidays with malva pudding, a sponge cake filled with apricot jam. While the dessert is still warm, it’s drizzled with a sweet butter cream sauce and often with a little brandy or Amarula, a unique South African liqueur.
- In Ethiopia, where Christmas is typically celebrated on January 7, following a 43 day fast, the menu features rooster doro wat, a spicy chicken stew with hard-boiled eggs. Spices prominent in the dish include coriander, cardamom and fenugreek. It’s traditionally finger food that you mop up with injera, the delectable Ethiopian flatbread.
The Most Well-Known Holiday Food Traditions in Latin America
Christmas in much of Latin America revolves around the tamalada, a large and festive family gathering where hundreds or even thousands of tamales may be produced. In addition to traditional fillings, the Christmas tamales often have sweet fillings, with raisins, pineapple, coconut and almonds included.
In Puerto Rico, Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas with pasteles, ground pork stuffed inside plaintain leaves and then boiled. Everyone has their own homemade adobo, a spice mix that typically includes turmeric, black pepper, garlic and oregano.
