What food do you eat in Poland at Christmas?

Answer 1

Polish people eat at Chistmas many many things, especially fishes (As you know fish is a symbol of Christianity): carps, salomons, tunas, trouts, herrings - cooked, baked, fried, grilled... They eat also bread, potatos, cabbage and mushrooms, some salads, champignons with sauce, hot beets, boiled carrots and more... For dessert: kutya (mix of wheats, poppy, raisin, nuts, honey), cheese cake, poppy cake, apple pie and GINGERBREAD of course. They eat also fruits, especially Oranges and manadrines. For drink: stewed fruit (usually plum or cherry), water and wine

Answer 2

The main meal at Christmastime in Poland is usually eaten on Christmas eve during the celebration called Wigilia. The word means vigil and refers to the watch for the birth of Jesus marked symbolically by the first star seen on Christmas Eve. It is then that the festivities of the season take off after the youngest child in the family is sent to watch for the first star.

The Christmas Eve meal is also called the Star Supper, but does not begin until after the ritual of "breaking the oplatki" and sharing it among the family members and friends with good wishes and a kiss (and a side of forgiveness if needed so there is a clean slate and good relationships to start the new year). Oplatki are wafers. The oplatki and a bite of each course of the meal is usually given to the animals and pets that night to honor the role of animals in the stable at the birth of Christ, who were the first to see the baby Jesus.

The Star Supper at Wigilia does not include meat since it was initially a Roman Catholic tradition to fast during Advent, including Christmas Eve. Much of Poland continues in the Catholic faith today. The tradition is to have 13 dishes in the meal representing the twelve Apostles and Jesus, although that has been altered by many families these days to have simply a fruit compote made from twelve fruits to symbolize the Apostles.

What is eaten in place of the meat are foods that exemplify the four corners of the earth. Which they define traditionally as: mushrooms from the forest, fruit from the orchards, grain from the fields, and fish from the lakes and sea. The fish used is often carp, but also can include whitefish or herring. Along with the fish, the meals usually include pierogi, vegetables and soup.

A typical soup would be borscht with mushroom dumplings made specially for Christmas Eve. Meatless cabbage rolls (golabki) and noodles with poppy seeds are included as well as a gruel-like cracked wheat and honey dish called kutia in parts of the country. Often nuts, spice cake, pastry, gingerbread cookies, tangerines and chocolates are traditional fare for the Wigilia meal, too.

The meal for Christmas Day usually includes meat and often has a main course of ham, Polish sausage (kielbasa) and roast goose or duck or Bigos (see the related question below about a typical every day meal in Poland for more information about Bigos, a staple in Polish kitchens.)

The New Year's Day meal varies, but roast turkey is often the tradition.

More about traditional Wigilia fare (in order of courses served):

Appetizers often are pickled or creamed herring, smoked salmon, caviar, mushrooms, and/or pickled beets.

Soups other than traditional borscht that are served include mushroom soups and barley soups. A favorite is sour mushroom barley soup that uses sauerkraut juice or sour cream to perk it up.

As mentioned above, the meal usually always has a main course of Freshwater Fish such as trout, pike, lake perch, carp or whitefish prepared in each family's favorite way and with hot boiled potatoes on the side.

Breads, often rye bread, dumplings, wheat noodles, pierogi, and barley are included to represent the grains of the field. There is also a favorite dish called kutia that is made from wheat berries, poppy seeds, honey and nuts.

Sauerkraut is an important part of the Wigilia meal. It may be in pierogi, in bigos, in other soups, or in a dish called kapusta z grochem (split peas and cabbage).

Fruit from the orchard is usually dried and made into a compote of the 12 fruits representing the Apostles for the Star Supper. Fresh fruits could also be served.

Christmas desserts include a poppy seed strudel-like dessert called Makowiec, fruitcakes, or other poppy-seed desserts since they are considered good luck.

Cookies can't be forgotten. A filled and flaky Christmas cookie called kolaczki is a must, but there are also traditions for gingerbread, sugar cookies and so many other Polish baked goods that are to die for!

Drinks on Christmas Eve include juices, coffee and tea and not much alcohol since the event has such religious significance. But a small amount of kurpnik, a honey-spiced vodka or some liqueur is usually available for sipping.

Answer 3

The main ingredient in a Christmas meal In Poland is Carp. It is served with potatoes cooked in skins, canned peas and onions.