We all know and love our Czech Christmas meal – fish and potato salad – I mean, apart from me since I hate fish. But what are the traditional Christmas meals in the United States and United Kingdom? Do you want to know? Well then keep on listening!

Hi and Welcome to the advent edition of my podcast My Life and Other Funny Stories. In this edition, I bring you a new short Christmas-themed episode every day of December until Christmas. If you want to read the transcript of this episode, click the link in the description!

 Today, we will answer the question: What are the traditional Christmas meals in the United States and United Kingdom? Let’s get started!

It might come as a surprise to you but the Christmas meals in the United States and the UK are largely the same!

So what can we find on the plates of both countries?

Roast turkey; cranberry sauce; parsnips, carrots, and brussels sprouts; roast potatoes; a ball of stuffing (stuffing is a dish traditionally made with bits of bread and other ingredients); a couple of thin sausages; gravy; and a small Yorkshire pudding – do not think that Yorkshire pudding looks like a pudding, it is a pastry! I will put a picture into the notes of the podcast.

But they start to differ significantly in the desserts department. The British eat plum pudding, a dessert full of preserved fruit, steamed for hours and hours, and also full of brandy. More brandy is poured on top and set on fire as it IS delivered to the table.

The British also eat Christmas cake, a fruit cake – a cake full of candied fruit that is prepared months in advance.

Meanwhile, in the US, they most usually eat apple pie, chocolate chip cookies, pumpkin pies or such.

One funny story – when I was in France on Erasmus and had my lessons with an amazing American teacher, she asked me what was the traditional Christmas dinner. I told her and she asked me: And what about dessert? And I told her – I don’t know, we don’t really eat dessert. You can have small Christmas cookies if you want but in general, we don’t have a dessert. She couldn’t believe it. NO DESSERT? she exclaimed.

I guess Americans cannot imagine Christmas dinner without it.

And now you know.

Yorkshire pudding: