''Joulupöytä'' (; translating to "

Yule Yule, actually Yuletide ("Yule time") is a festival observed by the historical Germanic peoples, later undergoing Christianised reformulation resulting in the now better-known Christmastide. The earliest references to Yule are by way of indi ...

table") is the traditional assortment of foods served at

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bot ...

. It contains many different dishes, most of them typical for the season. The main dish is usually a large Christmas ham, which is eaten with

mustard Mustard may refer to: Food and plants * Mustard (condiment), a paste or sauce made from mustard seeds used as a condiment * Mustard plant, one of several plants, having seeds that are used for the condiment ** Mustard seed, seeds of the mustard p ...

. The ham is served with beetroot-carrot-potato-salad called rosolli, mushroom salad and casserole (''laatikko'') made with swede, carrot or potato or all three kind of casseroles, occasionally also a liver casserole. Gravlax and herring is also often served, and sometimes

lutefisk ''Lutefisk'' ( Norwegian, in Northern and parts of Central Norway, in Southern Norway; sv, lutfisk ; fi, lipeäkala ; literally " lye fish") is dried whitefish (normally cod, but ling and burbot are also used). It is made from aged sto ...

(lipeäkala) along with boiled potatoes, peas and ryebread. Christmas dessert consists of prune jam tarts, gingerbread and rice porridge with plum kisel. The traditional dessert beverage is alcoholic or non-alcoholic

mulled wine Mulled wine, also known as spiced wine, is an alcoholic drink usually made with red wine, along with various mulling spices and sometimes raisins, served hot or warm. It is a traditional drink during winter, especially around Christmas. It is us ...

(''glögi'' in

Finnish Finnish may refer to: * Something or someone from, or related to Finland * Culture of Finland * Finnish people or Finns, the primary ethnic group in Finland * Finnish language, the national language of the Finnish people * Finnish cuisine See also ...

Dishes

Most popular dishes in Finnish Christmas table are: * Christmas ham with

* Rutabaga casserole * Carrot casserole *Potato

casserole A casserole (French: diminutive of , from Provençal 'pan') is a normally large deep pan or bowl a casserole is anything in a casserole pan. Hot or cold History Baked dishes have existed for thousands of years. Early casserole recipes c ...

( sweetened or not, depending on the region and preference) *

Rosolli In Finnish cuisine, rosolli is a salad eaten mostly as a cold side dish, in particular as part of the traditional Finnish Christmas meal. Overview Rosolli is made of cooked, diced root vegetables, especially beetroot, carrot and potato, often ...

- salad from boiled beetroots, carrots, potatoes, usually also apples and pickled cucumber. Served with a sour cream based sauce and sometimes with eggs or herring *

Potato The potato is a starchy food, a tuber of the plant ''Solanum tuberosum'' and is a root vegetable native to the Americas. The plant is a perennial in the nightshade family Solanaceae. Wild potato species can be found from the southern Uni ...

es (boiled or smashed) *Rye bread *Lax (usually Gravlax),

Pickled herring Pickled herring is a traditional way of preserving herring as food by pickling or curing. Most cured herring uses a two-step curing process: it is first cured with salt to extract water; then the salt is removed and the herring is brined in ...

and roe, often served with chopped onion and

sour cream Sour cream (in North American English, Australian English and New Zealand English) or soured cream (British English) is a dairy product obtained by fermenting regular cream with certain kinds of lactic acid bacteria. The bacterial cultu ...

*Mushroom salad *Boiled peas * Liver casserole * Karelian stew * Lipeäkala with melted butter and

white sauce White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

Beverages

Beverages most often served are: *

Schnapps Schnapps ( or ) or schnaps is a type of alcoholic beverage that may take several forms, including distilled fruit brandies, herbal liqueurs, infusions, and "flavored liqueurs" made by adding fruit syrups, spices, or artificial flavorings to neu ...

such as ''

Koskenkorva Viina Koskenkorva Viina (also known simply as Koskenkorva or ''Kossu'') is a traditional clear spirit drink (38%) in Finland, produced by Anora Group at the Koskenkorva distillery in Ilmajoki and bottled in Rajamäki, Nurmijärvi. The grain ( barl ...

'' as an appetizer *

Beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...

. Most Finnish breweries have also

seasonal beer A seasonal beer is a beer that is typically brewed during or for a particular season, holiday or festival period. Many breweries and microbreweries produce seasonal beers. Seasonal beers may be produced when fresh ingredients are available during v ...

s for Christmas. Homemade non-alcoholic beer is also common. *

Milk Milk is a white liquid food produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals (including breastfed human infants) before they are able to digest solid food. Immune factors and immune-modulat ...

Mulled wine Mulled wine, also known as spiced wine, is an alcoholic drink usually made with red wine, along with various mulling spices and sometimes raisins, served hot or warm. It is a traditional drink during winter, especially around Christmas. It is us ...

(glögi) either alcoholic or non-alcoholic

Desserts

Most popular desserts in Finnish Christmas table are:4 ruokaa ylitse muiden - tässä ovat suomalaisten suosikkijouluruoat. https://www.iltalehti.fi/ruoka-artikkelit/a/d4fa6421-4a9c-4db7-aa89-db10a0703fbc *Prune jam pastries also known as '' joulutorttu'' *

Gingerbread Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses. Gingerbread foods vary, ranging from a moist loaf cake to forms nearly as cr ...

called piparkakku - commonly as flower or star shaped, and sometimes even as 3-dimensional houses, that are decorated with sugar *

Confectioneries Confectionery is the art of making confections, which are food items that are rich in sugar and carbohydrates. Exact definitions are difficult. In general, however, confectionery is divided into two broad and somewhat overlapping categorie ...

and other

sweets Candy, also called sweets (British English) or lollies (Australian English, New Zealand English), is a confection that features sugar as a principal ingredient. The category, called ''sugar confectionery'', encompasses any sweet confection, i ...

, especially

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cacao seed kernels that is available as a liquid, solid, or paste, either on its own or as a flavoring agent in other foods. Cacao has been consumed in some form since at least the Olmec ci ...

s and fruit marmalade candies *Rice porridge (riisipuuro) with cinnamon, sugar and cold milk or with raisin or mixed fruit soup (Usually the rice porridge is served from a large, common kettle and an

almond The almond (''Prunus amygdalus'', syn. ''Prunus dulcis'') is a species of tree native to Iran and surrounding countries, including the Levant. The almond is also the name of the edible and widely cultivated seed of this tree. Within the genu ...

has been hidden in it. The one who gets the almond gets his or her Christmas presents first or gets a wish. Sometimes rice porridge is served as breakfast.) * Glögi, glögi is usually served with almonds and raisins in it and is alcoholic or non-alcoholic *Mixed fruit soup or

kiisseli Kissel or kisel ( et, kissell, fi, kiisseli, Livonian: ''kīsõl'', ltg, keiseļs, lv, ķīselis, lt, kisielius, pl, kisiel, rus, кисель, r=kiselʼ, uk, кисiль, , , ) is a cold-solidified dish with the consistency of a thick ge ...

which is a plum runny dessert commonly served with rice porridge or sometimes with whipped cream *Fruit- date- or other type of cake *Coffee - the Finns prefer a mild roast; tea is less common.

References

Finnish Christmas recipe links by Santa ClubChristmas cookbook by thisisFINLAND
{{DEFAULTSORT:Joulupoyta Christmas in Finland Finnish cuisine Christmas food Christmas meals and feasts Yule