It’s Beginning to Taste a Lot Like Christmas

26th November 2021

Dig in Into Traditional British Christmas Food

The festive season is almost here. There’s a lot that goes into planning the ultimate Christmas: You decorate a Christmas tree, wrap presents and sort through your family’s favourite recipes to organise your menu full of Christmas side dishes. Without food, Christmas holidays are incomplete, Particularly Christmas dinner meals! The Christmas dinner menu needs to be tasty, and there need to be at least a few festive and hearty sides to go with it. 
Maybe you're hosting your first holiday and wondering what to serve? What do Brits eat during Christmas dinner? To help you with that, here is a list of food you may find during Christmas dinner across Britain. So, whether you want to make Christmas dinner yourself or are curious about traditional British Christmas dessert, read on to learn what people eat in the UK at Christmas.
 

Turkey And All The Trimmings

Probably one of the most popular dishes at Christmas because it is usually the main course! Turkey long ago replaced goose as the most popular main course. But it is what the turkey comes to the table with that make it especially British.

• Turkey is accompanied by:
• Potatoes - The British table almost always includes piles of crispy, golden roasted potatoes.
• Pigs in blankets - small sausages wrapped in bacon.
• Roasted root vegetables - mostly parsnips, which are sweet and moist.
• Brussels sprouts - even if you never eat a brussels sprout, you will manage a few for Christmas.
• Bread sauce - a mixture of bread crumbs, milk, cream, onions and seasonings.

Other popular dishes include ham or roast beef, but turkey is definitely the main course of choice in the UK. 

A Christmas tradition involving the turkey is to pull a wishbone. Two people each pull at the end and break the bone apart while making a wish. Whoever breaks off the larger part of the wishbone will have their wish granted.
 

Yorkshire Pudding

Yorkshire pudding originates from England and is made from a batter that includes eggs, milk, and flour. Yorkshire Puddings are traditionally served with roast beef, but many families serve them alongside their Christmas dinner.
 

Stuffing

Herb stuffing is a traditional choice, with large quantities of rosemary or thyme added to similar ingredients. The most popular type of stuffing at Christmas dinner is sage and onion. The stuffing can be served inside the turkey or as a side dish.
 

Gravy

A sauce, often made from the juices of meats that run naturally during cooking, is usually thickened with wheat flour or corn starch. The gravy may be further coloured and flavoured with gravy salt or gravy browning, and finally poured over the slices of turkey and stuffing.
 

Cranberry Sauce

Cranberry sauce or cranberry jam is a sauce or relish made out of cranberries, served as a condiment or a side dish with Christmas dinner. 
 

Christmas Pudding

The traditional Christmas pudding in the UK is made of dried fruit, nuts, flour, eggs, shredded suet (a solid beef fat) or a vegetarian version of suet, spices and loads and loads of alcohol. It comes to the table sprigged with holly or winter cherries and flaming with brandy.

It is accompanied by brandy butter, hard sauce, poured custard, white cornstarch sauce and, more recently, whipped cream or ice cream.

A good Christmas pudding is started months before Christmas, steamed for several hours, then tightly wrapped and left to age. 
 

Mince Pies

Mince pies are tiny pies filled with fruits such as raisins, cranberries, and sultanas, chopped nuts and spices such as cinnamon, sugar, and nutmeg, and dusted with icing sugar. Perfect with a cup of tea or a glass of wine and a nice finish to a delicious Christmas dinner!
 

Share laughs and memorable moments this year over a wonderful British festive feast. Happy eating!