Christmas traditions German Wurst still number one
Bonn · Most Germans prefer to keep things simple on Christmas Eve with sausage and potato salad the number one meal.
“Pranzo della Vigilia” is the flowery name Italians give to the meal of fish, often eel, they prepare on Christmas Eve. In Ireland, smoked salmon, a prawn cocktail and the flaming Christmas pudding doused in brandy are found on the table. In France, they celebrate with a stylish but calorific meal of “Bouche de Noel” (a type of buttercream cake), paté, oysters and “Dinde aux Marons” (turkey with chestnuts), naturally all washed down with champagne.
Here things are far more rustic: on Christmas Eve, Germany is for the large part a country of sausages and potato salad. In a survey carried out by the digital market place RetailMeNot, almost half of those asked (45 per cent) said they would choose this classic meal on 24 December. And this has not changed since the start of such surveys, even in the pre-digital age. The Germans love a hearty and simple meal.
Coming way behind the classic no frills bockwurst and potato salad in the rankings is poultry such as goose or duck (17 per cent) and carp and other fish (13 per cent). More exotic options are fondue or raclette, or perhaps lobster and herring salad. But meat is the German’s favourite food. Each household spends an average of 224 euros on food and drink at Christmas and 80 per cent of Germans admit they always eat too much over the holiday period.
(Original text: Thomas Kliemann. Translated by Kate Carey.)
