In the United States, Christmas traditions tend to follow a familiar and well-loved script, with rituals that many American households share year after year. Families usually decorate their Christmas tree right after Thanksgiving, often turning the entire weekend into a festive kickoff complete with hot cocoa and holiday movies. Stockings are hung on the mantel in anticipation of Santa’s visit, outdoor lights glow from porches and rooftops, and cookie-baking marathons fill kitchens with the smell of cinnamon and butter. From holiday parades to Secret Santa exchanges, these customs repeat across the country, but beyond America’s borders lie countless other Christmas traditions that look completely different from what we’re used to—some heartwarming, some unusual, and some wonderfully unexpected. Today, we’re taking a trip around the world to explore eleven of the most unique, curious, and delightfully strange ways different cultures celebrate the holiday season.
1. Greenland's Signature Dish (Not For The Faint of Heart)
If you ever spend Christmas in Greenland, or are invited by a Greenlandic friend, you'd better be prepared for the traditional lunch to be a real stomach-churning experience. According to local tradition, there are two typical dishes to be eaten on this holiday: the first is mattak, a strip of whale skin that's too tough to swallow without chewing; the second is kiviak, the meat of a native bird left to ferment for several months inside a piece of sealskin. Not for the faint of heart!
2. Japan and Christmas Eve Dinner… at KFC!
With all the delicious food Japan boasts, this Christmas tradition is certainly one of the most surprising. Here, on Christmas Eve, instead of gingerbread and sugar cookies, they eat fried chicken —and not just any fried chicken, but the kind from the fast food restaurant Kentucky Fried Chicken. It might seem like a joke, but it's actually the result of a marketing campaign created by KFC in the 1970s called Kurisumasu ni wa Kentakkii (“Kentucky for Christmas”) to compensate for the lack of Christmas traditions in a country where Christians make up a tiny percentage. Over the years, the Christmas menu has become so popular that KFC allows you to pre-order dinners months in advance and have them delivered to your home.
3. Louisiana Chicken-Stuffed Duck-Stuffed Turkey
In Louisiana, there's a special Christmas tradition that would worry even the largest stomachs: turducken. It's a boneless duck stuffed with a boneless chicken, which is in turn encased in a boneless turkey. The word "turducken" itself is a portmanteau of the words "turkey," " duck," and "chicken." During preparation, all the cavities of the chicken are stuffed with a mixture that may include breadcrumbs or heavily seasoned sausage meat. In some versions, the filling varies for each type of bird. The result is a fairly firm, layered poultry dish that can be braised, roasted, or grilled. There's also an English version called "gooducken," which replaces the turkey with goose.
4. The German Christmas Cucumber
In Germany, it's been a centuries-old custom to attach a cucumber to the branches of the Christmas tree, often wrapped in matching paper. The vegetable is hidden well because, on Christmas Day, a sort of treasure hunt is organized for children: those who find the cucumber will receive a lucky "bonus" for the coming year. The tradition has also spread to some areas of the United States, thanks to European immigration, where it's known as the "Christmas pickle" tradition: in this case, it consists of cucumber-shaped decorations that sometimes also contain sweets.
5. The Catalan "Caga Tio", The Wooden Log That… Expels Gifts
In Spain, and especially in Catalonia, children are crazy about one of the world's funniest Christmas traditions. It's the Caga Tio, literally "the uncle who poops," a small wooden log with a smiling face painted on it that expels gifts from its rear end. But its gifts must be earned: tradition dictates that the special log be displayed in the living room starting December 8th and "fed" the children with nuts and chocolate every evening until Christmas Day. Only then, if it has been treated well, does the Caga Tio reward them with nougat, sweets, toys, and money.
6. Mexican Carved Radishes
Oxaca, the capital of the Mexican state of the same name, is one of the most fascinating cities in the country: it's here that, on December 23rd, Radish Night is celebrated, a competition in which aspiring sculptors compete in carving the vegetable for decorative purposes. The depictions come in all shapes and sizes: from nativity scenes to fantastical creatures, cookie cutters, greeting cards, and so on. The radishes that are carved are grown using chemicals, which causes them to grow out of proportion: it's best to avoid eating them.
7. Russian Christmas Garlic Against Diseases
In Russia, the table for Christmas Eve dinner begins immediately after sunset: straw or hay is placed on the tablecloth, which will then be covered with wheat. A clove of garlic is placed at each corner of the table, which, according to belief, protects against disease. In the middle of the table, kutja is placed, a kind of sweet porridge made from wheat with the addition of sesame seeds, honey, and sometimes even hazelnuts: the first spoonful of this traditionally goes to the head of the family.
8. Sweden's Rice Pudding Which Predicts Marriage
In Sweden, between Advent candles and gingerbread cookies, there's a tradition that adds a touch of suspense to Christmas dinner: Julgrot, a creamy rice pudding served strictly hot. Its special feature? A whole almond is hidden inside. According to popular belief, whoever finds it on their plate will have a particularly lucky year in love, and even get married within the following year. A simple dessert that, for many, becomes a true romantic oracle.
9. Slovakia's Dessert Which Gets Thrown at The Ceiling
In Slovakia and Ukraine, during Christmas Eve dinner, a special ritual takes place with a dish called bobalky: a traditional dense dessert made with bread, milk, and poppy seeds that the head of the family picks up with a spoon and throws toward the ceiling. If it sticks, it is said that the family will be prosperous in the new year.
10. Norway's Sheep's Head as A Festive Dish
If you think nothing else could surprise you among the world's Christmas dishes, it's because you haven't heard of smalahove, a culinary tradition common in some regions of Norway. It consists of a whole sheep's head, boiled or steamed, and sometimes even smoked. Served with potatoes and turnip puree, it is considered a true local specialty. Its appearance may seem intimidating, but for many Norwegians, it is an authentic symbol of the holidays and traditional rural cuisine.
11. Iceland's Fermented Shark for Brave Stomachs
In Iceland, Christmas can have a decidedly extreme flavor. Among the most iconic dishes is hákarl, Greenland shark meat fermented and then dried for months. The result is a food with a pungent aroma and a particularly intense flavor, considered a true test of courage for those trying it for the first time. Icelanders serve it during the winter months and often also for holiday meals, as a symbol of their tradition and resilience: a morsel not easily forgotten, for better or worse.
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