Taste Czech Christmas!

Sweet Magic on a Plate

As soon as December comes, Czech homes fill with the aroma of vanilla and cinnamon. It’s to make sure that the tables are full of various Christmas cookies of all shapes and flavours on Christmas Eve. The tradition to cut out, bake, fill and ice tiny ‘cakes’ before Christmas probably dates back to pagan times! Then, cookies resembled animals and the ‘magical’ delicacy was hung on trees and stables on winter solstice as an offering to the gods in exchange for protection of the crops and animals from disasters.

Czechia – A Powerhouse of Domestic Confectioners

The Czechs have gradually worked their way up to becoming a ‘powerhouse’ of cookie bakers – the vast majority of Czech homes make Christmas cookies, which is unlike any other European country. Czech homemakers commonly make 5 to 20 different kinds!

But we won’t give you that many recipes. We have two of the most popular ones. The delicate vanilla rolls are a safe bet; they are simply necessary on the Christmas table and you don’t need any cookie cutters or moulds to make them. You also can’t go wrong with the most popular Christmas cookies of the first Czechoslovak President, T. G. Masaryk. His mother used to bake the cookies with nuts and so no wonder he wanted to have those cookies made every Christmas even in adulthood.

Christmas Bread Against Evil Forces

If making tiny cookies seems like too much work for you, you can try the larger treat made in this country since the fourteenth century! We are talking about the Christmas bread. It’s shaped to resemble swaddled Baby Jesus and it symbolises a new life and fertility and that’s why it simply had to be included on the Christmas dinner menu. Also, people used to believe that the cross braiding would protect the people around the table from evil forces. Don’t mistake it for the Jewish Challah bread. The Czech Christmas bread is sweet and full of raisins and almonds.

Carp for the Fast, A Practical Salad

Most Czechs cannot imagine Christmas without some fried carp and potato salad. It has been a traditional Christmas meal since medieval times.  Why carp? The Christmas Eve dinner symbolises a fasting dinner when no meat dishes from slaughtered animals are allowed. And the tradition of the potato salad most likely relates to its distinct flavour, an excellent contrast to the delicate carp, and also to its practicality. The salad can be made in advance and so the homemaker has time to take care of other things on Christmas Eve, such as decorating the tree, baking the Christmas bread or making the fish soup.

To the Last Bone!

Fish soup is a staple on the Czech Christmas table; it is made of what is left over from the carp. The reason for making this tasty soup is quite logical – not to waste any food!  There are countless recipes for fish soup. Clear, creamy, with bits of meat, with milt and roe... We’ve selected a recipe for a luxurious creamy fish soup with dumplings.

Our tip: Remember to keep a few scales from the carp. Put them under the plates before Christmas dinner to stay wealthy next year!

Carp for the Rich, ‘Kuba’ for the Poor

It should be noted that carp used to be served only in rich households at Christmas. The poor would make kuba – a simple but hearty meal made of pearl barley and dried mushrooms, which were cheap and available ingredients. People used to cook with seasonal ingredients. In winter, those were cereal and dried mushrooms picked in summer. Even though it is simple country food, it is still popular (even in cities). You’ll understand why as soon as you taste it.

Advent and Christmas Eve menus in Prague’s restaurants

We leave you with a few traditional Czech Christmas recipes below. Yet if you’d rather taste Czech festive culinary specialties prepared by top chefs, we present three tips for great Prague restaurants awarded the Czech Specials certificate to give your taste buds a real treat.

On 10th December definitely don’t miss the Advent brunch at the Municipal House. The ambience of this stunning Art Nouveau restaurant offers the perfect festive atmosphere and is sure to get you in the mood for the upcoming Christmas holidays.

Planning to spend Christmas in Prague? Then book ahead for your Christmas Eve dinner!

If you choose of the following restaurants, you really can’t go wrong.

Prague’s famous U Pinkasů restaurant is preparing a traditional Christmas Eve menu for its guests: Goose liver in lard with pomegranate and toast, traditional fish soup with vegetables and croutons, Old Bohemian barley and mushroom ‘kuba’, carp fillet fried in lard with potato salad and lemon, and as a sweet finisher, vanilla ice cream with plum sauce and gingerbread.

The Triton Restaurant, the interior of which is in the style of an Art Nouveau stalactite cave will be offering a modern 7-course Christmas Eve menu, paired with selected wines and glasses of Moët & Chandon Imperial Brut Champagne, all against the pleasant backdrop of piano music. Delicacies on the menu will include celery with walnuts, ginger, curry and rosemary; cream of wild king trumpet mushroom soup, confit egg yolk, thyme and truffle; St. Peter's fish with saffron sauce and black lemon; or guineafowl with chestnuts, marinated pumpkin and pumpkin demi-glace.

Taste Czech Christmas cookies in Prague confectioners and cafés

A Christmas souvenir from Czechia? How about neatly wrapped traditional Czech sweets or Christmas cake from certified confectioners and cafés? We’ve picked out the ones that bake the best Christmas goodies. That’s another reason why they’ve been awarded the Czech Specials certificate.