A traditional Christmas dinner is part of Christmas for many families. This is where the family comes together and celebrates. In order for the celebration to be a success, you should prepare the Christmas dinner well. You can plan traditional dishes as well as use modern dishes. Get inspired by our Christmas dinner ideas.
What is the Christmas feast all about?
The tradition of the classic Christmas roast originally goes back to Lent. For a long time, roast goose and the like were only served on December 25, because that day marked the end of Lent. For a long time, feasts were served with a decoration of twelve apples. Because these apples symbolized the apostles and pursued the task of driving out evil spirits. The spices for roasting were also carefully selected. For example, the original meal of roast pork should be refined with three times three spices. This constellation should remind us of the trinity, which, in interaction with apples, should usher in a new year without sickness and hunger. However, the roasts were only served to rich people. Poorer families would eat sausages at Christmas time.
Ideas for a successful Christmas dinner
Christmas dinner is traditional and sacred in many families. Because on these evenings the family gets together. And that’s particularly nice because you usually have little contact with most family members throughout the year in hectic everyday life. Therefore, the Christmas days should be celebrated without stress in a cozy get-together. To ensure that everything goes well, you should plan and prepare the Christmas dinner well, if it is taking place at your place. Because a good Christmas meal lifts the spirits and calms the mind. With the following planning tips, the traditional Christmas dinner can come:
Plan the traditional Christmas dinner correctly
When you’re the one who has relatives visiting for Christmas. Then you should give some thought to the planning and implementation of the perfect dinner in advance. Because that way you can be sure that the preparation of the traditional Christmas dinner will be stress-free for you too. So you should ask yourself the following questions:
- How many people are coming?
- Are guests aware of any food intolerances?
- Which food preferences should be considered (vegetarian, vegan, without pork)?
- Is there enough crockery and cutlery?
- Is there enough seating?
- How should it be decorated?
- What can be prepared well and early?
- Preparing tips for Christmas dinner
If you don’t want to spend Christmas in the kitchen with enthusiasm, plan the Christmas menu so that a lot is prepared in the days before Christmas. Yeast dough can be frozen well, bread dough too, and even vegetables can be cleaned, cut, and frozen. It can also help if you choose cooking methods that don’t tie you to the stove. Even bratwurst can be prepared well in the oven. Another advantage of cooking in the oven is that the kitchen stays clean. In addition, it is a nice and stress-free solution for everyone if everyone contributes something homemade to eat. Then one makes the salad, the other the dessert and the hosts take care of the roast.
The traditional dishes at Christmas
At Christmas time there are many different specialties around the world that are otherwise rarely served. It’s mostly the same traditional dishes for Christmas throughout Germany, even if each region brings its own touch. Most German food on Christmas Eve is traditionally something more modest, while the days that follow are a feast.
Modern Christmas dinner
Since there are many different forms of nutrition these days, it is not easy to make everyone happy. Still, it’s not impossible. If there are vegetarians or vegans among your guests, you can fall back on numerous vegan minced meat alternatives here. There are also plenty of vegetarian dishes that the whole family will enjoy. However, so that all the work doesn’t get stuck on you, here’s a reminder of the idea that everyone can contribute something to the food. So everyone conjures up the dish that he can do best. Then everyone will like it.
Leftover menus for the following days
There is usually a lot of leftover food at Christmas. So the hard work was worth it twice over: you had a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones and you still have plenty to eat for the next few days. So you can relax and reduce the stress of the past few days.