Christmas In Chile Food

This consists of typical chilean foods oven roasted chicken turkey or other special meal.

Christmas in chile food. Pan de pascua a sweet fruit cake dessert is always a staple for this holiday. Dessert is an important part of the chilean christmas eve feast. The dishes prepared in chile are little different than america s other region. To a casual observer chilean food might seem similar to peruvian food.

In chile the most traditional empanada filling is called pino pino is a mixture of minced meat onions raisins black olives and hard boiled eggs. The recipe can be varied to suit your tastes be creative with the proportions of coffee cinnamon cloves and vanilla as well as with your choice of liqueurs. There are lots of people who celebrate christmas in full swing. Having enjoyed discovering argentina through empanadas we were quite eager to experience the chilean version.

Instead of waiting until christmas morning chilean families gather around the tree and open their presents at midnight on christmas eve or la noche buena following a big turkey dinner many families attend christmas eve mass or misa de gallo at their local church where traditional villancicos chilean carols are sung. Chile is known for its fantastic seafood grilled meats think patagonia stews and pasteles empanadas corn beans potatoes native tropical fruit lucuma and chirimoya pisco and excellent wines. In chile like in the rest of the southern hemisphere christmas comes in mid summer. Chile is a country in the south west region of america.

They also organize a procession in which they dance and enjoy. While chileans enjoy empanadas year round homemade empanadas de pino are one of the key traditional foods served during chile s fiestas patrias national holiday celebrations that take place in september. Although the country does not have a particularly torrid climate it is still hot at christmas time. Ponche a la romana eggnog style beverage made of champagne and pineapple flavoured icecream.

Therefore the christmas menu is likely to include salads fresh fruit ice cream and cold drinks. These fried or baked dough pastries are usually filled with either cheese seafood or a mixture called pino that consists of ground beef olive egg and onion. Both european and indigenous traditions have prominently influenced modern chilean food. Families usually gather together by late afternoon on christmas eve to begin the celebrations.

Cola de mono literally monkey s tail a chilean christmas beverage with aguardiente milk coffee and flavoured with vanilla and cloves. A favorite snack food in chile these baked pies or empanadas are available pretty much everywhere. People perform many events and establish stalls for the celebration of christmas. Later many people will attend mass at their local church and sing villancicos or tradition christmas carols.

Many families will enjoy a pan de pascua or easter bread which is a doughy cake encrusted with candied fruit and nuts with a cinnamon and nutmeg flavor. This is a traditional chilean christmastime drink of milk flavored with coffee and spices passed down to me by our chilean nanny isa. It is delicious and a must try if you don t care for egg nog. Chile has a distinctive cuisine.