Christmas dinners through history | English Heritage (2024)

FAQs

What was the traditional Christmas dinner in England? ›

Christmas dinner in the United Kingdom usually consists of roasted turkey, stuffing, gravy, pigs in blankets, bread sauce, redcurrant jelly, roast potatoes; vegetables (particularly Brussels sprouts, broccoli, carrots, and parsnips) with dessert of Christmas pudding, mince pies (both served with brandy butter, custard ...

For Christmas Day the feast featured eight different meats, demonstrating the status of the household. The shopping list for such a feast included a whole wild boar, three beef cattle, two calves, four doe, four pigs, eight partridges, two geese and over 60 birds (mostly hens).

He says plum pudding, along with maybe a fruitcake, sugar cookies, mincemeat tarts, ham or a big game bird like goose, duck or turkey sourced from farms surrounding Toronto, would be fairly common at a Victorian Christmas meal.

Going by consumer's festive food plans, Christmas dinner in the UK will most commonly feature roast potatoes, gravy, and turkey. Over sixty percent of respondents planned to have these dishes at their table.

Beyond turkey, traditional British Christmas food usually consists of stuffing, gravy, cranberry sauce, roast potatoes, Brussels sprouts, carrots, and parsnips. Redcurrant jelly, Yorkshire pudding, pigs in blankets, and other sides and condiments figure in as well.

This traditional British holiday feast features classic dishes like holiday roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, braised red cabbage, and pureed parsnips, plus classic English Trifle and Christmas plum pudding.

Terrific Tudor Feasts

The traditional choices were beef, venison and wild boar, but the Tudors also ate a range of wild animals and birds that we wouldn't eat today, including badger, blackbird and woodco*ck. Turkeys first came to England during the Tudor period were seen as an exotic delicacy.

Turkey or Festive Bird for Dinner

Like many of us, Victoria and Albert enjoyed turkey at Christmas time. They would sit together as a family for their main meal and enjoy turkey with all the trimmings. As you would expect, the royal family were fortunate to share in several courses.

In medieval England the main meat served with Christmas dinner was wild boar! Through the 16th and 17th centuries goose or capon was commonly served, and the rich sometimes dined upon peaco*ck or swan.

This 1950's Christmas dinner menu was listed in Better Homes and Gardens Holiday Cookbook, “French onion soup, holiday duckling with orange stuffing, cranberry sauce, mushroom wild rice, almond green beans, gala fruit wreath, Parker House rolls, butter, assorted cheese and crackers, hot coffee.”

What was Christmas dinner like in ww2? ›

Rationing meant that the traditional Christmas dinner was off the menu. By Christmas 1942 almost all foods apart from bread and fresh fruit and vegetables were rationed, which meant using substitute ingredients to bake staples such as plum pudding and Christmas cake.

The turkey came with all the trimmings: chipolatas or pigs in blankets, bread sauce and stuffing. The stuffing was sometimes sausagemeat and sometimes chestnut, a little more luxurious than the usual sage and onion. Roast potatoes, mashed potatoes, carrots, parsnips and of course, sprouts accompanied the meat.

It is believed that the forerunner of the Christmas dinner was the midwinter feast enjoyed by our ancient ancestors. Feasts were held to celebrate the pagan midwinter solstice, and archaeological digs have discovered that the most popular meats served up were pork and beef.

Turkey is definitely the most traditional meat for Christmas dinner and you can take a look at our wide selection of whole, rolled and diced turkeys here – perfect for your traditional Christmas dinner!

Brussel Sprouts

This polarizing vegetable is a key part of a traditional British Christmas dinner. Even though many people dislike brussel sprouts (they can have a slightly bitter taste) they can always be found on the table at Christmas! They are normally served steamed or fried with bacon- delicious!

The family would dine on "turkey, different stuffings – sage and onion, chestnut – and the traditional sides like roast potatoes, mash potatoes, parsnips and Brussels sprouts," added Darren, and then Christmas pudding for dessert.

Wondering why we have turkey on Christmas day? During his time on the throne, King Henry VIII decided to swap out his traditional goose for a turkey on Christmas day. After this, King Edward VII took to the delicacy and popularised having turkeys for Christmas.

They decorate their homes with holly, ivy, and other evergreens and hang a mistletoe "kissing bough." Throughout the holidays, carolers go from house to house at twilight ringing handbells and singing Christmas songs. "The Holly and the Ivy" and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing" are English favorites.