Christmas is a pretty big deal in Italy. After all, it is a primarily catholic country that puts a huge emphasis on both family and eating. So naturally the holiday overflows into a delicious feast! But is the Feast of the Italian Fishes actually an Italian holiday? And what do you even eat? We discuss that and more in this post.
What is the Feast of the Seven Fishes?
The Feast of the Seven Fishes is an Italian-American tradition celebrated by serving a dinner featuring seafood on Christmas Eve. In Italy it's typical and often expected to eat seafood on Christmas Eve and meat on Christmas Day. It's believed that this tradition was brought to the US by Italian immigrants and given a formal name of The Feast of the Seven Fishes. But in Italy it doesn't have a formal name.
How Do You Celebrate?
Well as the name insinuates you feast on fish. Some family make 4 different seafood dishes while others make 12. There's no exact number of dishes you are required to make. But the theme of the meal should be seafood.
Menu for the Feast of the Seven Fishes
Since we absolutely adore seafood and always share photos and videos of us making it on social we thought it would be fun to put together a Feast of the Seven Fishes seafood menu for Christmas Eve! So what's on the menu?
- Fried Calamari / Fried Cuttlefish
- Salt Cod Fritters (Frittelle di Baccalà)
- Seafood Ravioli
- Pasta with Mussels and Clams (Linguine con Cozze e Vongole)
- Fried Mullet (Triglie Fritte)
- Stuffed Mussels (Cozze au Gratin)
- Fish in Foil (Sea bass al Cartoccio)
- Steamed Mussels (‘Mpepata di Cozze)
Several of these recipes call for frying with olive oil, while others require steaming and baking. Whether you're new to making seafood or an expert we hope you'll make some of these delicious recipes and tell us what you think!!
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If you make this recipe please let a comment and let us know! We love to hear from you. If you’re on Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok don’t forget to tag us and use #EXAUoliveoil so we can repost!
