Zagreb’s Christmas Table
We all know that Christmas is about family and friends, about being together. And is there a better place for bonding and sharing than around a dining table full of beautiful Christmas food? With all respect to the spiritual part of the holiday season, many traditions revolve around what’s served on the table, and good hosts spend weeks planning the Christmas feast ahead. The higlights are Christmas Eve dinner and Christmas Day lunch. Festive mood around the table means a lot to Zagrebians, and there are some basic customs to follow, regardless of your origins.
“Dried salted cod - the most wanted item for Christmas Eve dinner.” Image credit: Taste of Croatia
Christmas Eve is usually spent over a dinner in the intimate circle of the closest family, with the flickering light of candles and Christmas tree lamps, and the sounds of familiar Christmas songs. This meal has to be lean, so it’s time for fish. Traditionally, it’s cod fish, or maybe even carp if you’re more a freshwater fish type. A budget-friendly replacement for cod is usually found in the hake. Even though it’s not native to these parts, like in many other European countries, the Atlantic cod made its way to our cuisine and became a must-have item for Christmas. Probably because the dried, salted version can last long and that’s practical. You need to carefully pick your cod in advance and soak it for a few days. The preparation takes a while and it can be messy, but hey, you do it once a year. The most popular recipe is bakalar na bijelo (literally, “cod fish in white”). Apart the fish, the basic recipe includes potatoes, garlic and olive oil, and depending on the style you prefer, this dish can be thick and smooth like a pate, or with larger chunks of fish in a soup, like a stew. The alternative is to have a red version - cod fish brodetto with tomato. Of course, if you’re tired of these tried-and-true classics, you can always experiment, as the cod is really a great material for cooking. Purists will say that sweets and alcohol have no place at Christmas Eve table, but that’s entirely up to you. I know it’s hard to resist when you’re in company of your loved ones, with a kitchen fully stacked for holiday season.
“Roast duck - star of the Christmas lunch.” Image credit: Taste of Croatia
After the last lean meal of the year, some will go to a Midnight Mass, and some will go to a pub, bar or cafe to hang out with friends and wait for midnight there. Downtown is bound to be a very vibrant place at that time, and prove why Zagreb has just been named the best Christmas holiday destination. After all that celebrating and rejoicing, when you finally return home, you’re hungry again. But now serious food is brought on the table as an after-midnight snack: cold pork or poultry roasts, cold cuts, francuska salata (“french salad” - basically, Russian salad without meat) and similar heavy artillery. Fasting is quickly forgotten and turned into feasting. And it will remain like that for at least a week more.
“Creative take on classic roast pork.” Image credit: Taste of Croatia
When Christmas Day finally arrives, for those who make it, it’s time for rich breakfast, not much different than the above described last night’s last meal. Leftovers is the word. Still, most people save themselves for the culinary peak of the season - Christmas lunch. Women used to prepare it a day before, and kitchens looked like the toughest bootcamp. Soup is the obligatory introduction, usually beef or chicken broth with noodles. And very soothing after a long night out. The main course is a big juicy roast. In Zagreb it’s often turkey, especially the precious free range Zagorje turkey. If you have connections to get ahold of homegrown duck or goose, consider yourself lucky. The bird is accompanied with traditional mlinci pasta or roast potatoes, with plenty of seasonal salads on the side: beetroot, beans, cabbage, radicchio... And at the end, the thing that defines Christmas as much as a Christmas tree or Santa Claus - Christmas biscuits and cakes. Women used to compete (somewhere they still do) as if it was the world championship in baking. You had to do at least a dozen of different kinds of biscuits to be considered a decent hostess. Simple and long-lasting biscuits dominate over elaborate cakes because the trick is to have something to offer when guests arrive, and they will be coming in and out for days. Zagreb’s favourite holiday biscuits include vanilla crescents, Linz biscuits, orehnjača and makovnjača (walnut and poppy seed roll), hazelnut traingles, paprenjaci (pepper biscuits), Christmas stars, medenjaci (honey biscuits), Christmas sweet bread, Ischler biscuits… Trust me, this list could go on and on. Wine is usually the official drink, although there are also great winter beers to choose from. Zagrebačka pivovara, the largest brewery, has a traditional holiday edition of their famous Ožujsko lager, called Božićno pivo (Christmas beer), and small craft breweries, like Medvedgrad, have started to launch their specials, too.
“Plethora of long-lasting and decorative Christmas biscuits.” Image credit: Taste of Croatia
When the Christmas feasting is over, there’s no time to rest or recuparate, because New Year is just around the corner. And as much as every Christmas we all say we overdid it and will never eat like that again, let’s be honest and admit it - Christmas comes from the heart but passes through the stomach.
“Vanilla crescents - can’t escape from them.” Image credit: Taste of Croatia
Header image credit: Taste of Croatia
Author: Taste of Croatia