What are some traditional dishes for Christmas in Germany?

Question

What are some traditional dishes for Christmas in Germany?

Answer 1

I'm from catholic Bavaria, but I'm not religious; this as a starter.

My parents used to do it this way:

Dec 24th is a traditional catholic fasting day. People go to church at 4 pm with their kids; the adults go at 10 pm to the "Christmette". Originally, you wouldn't eat the whole day; but to give the believers some relief, some light meal in the evening is allowed, and that's the traditional potato sald with sausage.

Children (and adults, too) usually get their christmas gifts after the "break-fast" on Dec24th in the evening. Instead of "Santa Claus", there's the "Christkind", "Baby Jesus", who brings the gifts.

After late night mass, we all go to sleep, but the next day, the feasting starts. We indulge in baked geese and ducks, red cabbage, all sorts of salads, and the whole family meets (each year at another one's home, to balance the load), and there's been talking about family history centuries ago, and late in the evening, it may come to personal insults, as the ritual involves heavy drinking, but also involves the mutual affirmation that it had been a fine meeting.

Germany, I think, is one of the few countries in Europe that have Dec27th a national holiday. I swear, you need it. When my relatives first came upon me, I thought, what's happening? Vandals? Goths? Roman invasion?

But then again: Who am I?

Answer 2

Cristmas potato salad with a carp is a Czech thing, some Germans have stolen that from us.

Many Germans eat typical Czech food and they think it is "typical German".

Sauer k***t with dumplings, for example...

But that is alright. That happens everywhere...

I like their saussages. These are really typical German food, even for Xmas!

:)

Answer 3

my family usually eats turkey, patatoes, some kind of soup, meat, bread. yummy stuff (:

Answer 4

On Chrismas Eve, Carpen blue, with sweet sour cream horseraddish boiled potatoes melted butter and a Riesling.

First and 2nd Chrismas day (we have 2)  Roasted polish gooze stuffed with apples and sultanas red cabbage, boiled potatoes, Riesling.

The day after Chrismas we had "Gänseklein" that is the neck, the wings, the stomack and the heart in aspik with roasted potatoes.

Greetings from Hamburg, Germany

Heinz

Answer 5

wurstchen mit kartoffelsalat- sausage with potato salad! :D

Answer 6

Roasted goose.. hhhmm lecker..taste good

Answer 7

Two ways to find out. Go there or buy a cook-book??

Answer 8

anything they can put in the oven

Answer 9

spoetzle n schnitzle, brauts n beer

Answer 10

something simple. Usually hot sausage and potato salad. You get stuffed visiting wider family the next two days anyway, and nobody has time for cooking on Christmas eve. AND: everybody likes it!

Answer 11

Germany:

Roast Goose is the favoured Christmas meal, accompanied by potatos, cabbage, carrots, parsnip and pickles. The meal is usually eaten on Christmas Eve. Rural southern Germany feast on game like wild boar and venison.

Answer 12

German customs are quite varied, generally, ans that is also true for the Christmas dinner. I'm from the Southwest, and the custom is that there will be a light meal that's easily prepared on Christmas Eve, like potato salad and sausages, or potato soup,  or other soups and stews, depending on local and family tradition, followed by the first sight of the Christmas tree and the presents for the children.

On Christmas day roast goose is one of the favourites, but also carp, especially in the North and East. Germans are not as fixated as most Anglo-Saxons and Irish on the one and only possible Christmas meal (pronounce:"turkey") every year. The baking is the real and invariable tradition, there have to be lots of different Christmas biscuits and stollen.

It seems to be important for most Germans that there be gluttony and sloth for 2 days, whole families unable to move from all the eating (and drinking).

Answer 13

well, for Christmas Eve my family eats sausages (wiener) with potato salad. On either the first or the 2nd Christmas day we eat goose with dumplings and red cabbage. Yummy!