Marc's Recipes

  • Type
  • Ingredient
  • Course
  • Cuisine
  • Dietary
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
  • Contact
  • Signup
  • Log In
menu icon
go to homepage
  • Type
  • Ingredient
  • Course
  • Cuisine
  • Dietary
  • Sign Up
  • Log In
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • search icon
    Homepage link
    • Type
    • Ingredient
    • Course
    • Cuisine
    • Dietary
    • Sign Up
    • Log In
    • Instagram
    • Twitter
    • YouTube
  • ×
    • Soy sauce butter shiitakes and snap peas.
      Fresh Shiitake Mushroom Stir-Fry
    • Succulent shrimp with basil and black pepper.
      Basil and Black Pepper Shrimp
    • A plate of corn fritters.
      Cheesy Corn Fritters
    • Sea bream, snap peas, and cherry tomatoes.
      Pan Fried Sea Bream
    • Juicy chicken chashu slices ready for a bowl of ramen.
      Chicken Breast Chashu
    • A mound of roasted fava beans with garlic and balsamic vinegar.
      Pan Roasted Fava Beans
    • A glossy mound of sautéed menma, the classic ramen topping, finished with a vibrant sprig of kinome.
      Menma (Ramen Bamboo Shoots)
    • Hamaguri no Sakamushi, a Japanese dish of sake-steamed clams, is plated here with opened shells and a light broth, finished with aromatic sansho leaves for a clean, herbal contrast.
      Sake Steamed Clams (Hamaguri No Sakamushi)
    • A hearty bowl of Mapo Zucchini glistens with spicy, umami-rich sauce, the tender squash and pork topped with a fragrant sprinkle of Sichuan pepper.
      Mapo Zucchini
    • Spicy kimchi and poached chicken in a salad.
      Poached Chicken & Kimchi Salad
    • Easy, spicy Curried Green Bean Salad.
      Curried Green Bean Salad
    • A side view of Carrot Kinpira, showing off its glossy strands and bold black sesame accents.
      Carrot Kinpira
    Home » Type » Holiday

    Christmas Menu

    December 21, 2022 by Marc Matsumoto Leave a Comment

    Cake roll with strawberries is traditional for Christmas in Japan

    For those of you that celebrate Christmas, you're probably well past the planning stage for planning dinner, and you may have even started prepping for it. But if you're anything like me, work, family, and life, in general, seem to press fast-forward on the last few weeks of the year.

    If you're behind on planning your holiday dinner, keep reading because I've put together a Japanese-themed holiday menu for your inspiration.

    Christmas in Japan is not a significant holiday, so it's not surprising that the food surrounding the day has been hijacked by marketers in Japan. Specifically, Christmas was indelibly tied to a bucket of KFC after a 1974 national ad campaign used the slogan "ケンタッキーはクリスマス!" which literally means "Kentucky (Fried Chicken) is Christmas."

    You don't need me to tell you how to order a bucket of the Colonel's original, though, so think of this as the Christmas dinner Japanese might be eating in some alternate timeline where KFC doesn't monopolize the holiday table.

    Canapes

    When I plan dinner, I usually start with a few canapes that can either be consumed standing up while guests mill about and chat, or they can be served family-style at the table.

    Green Spicy Edamame in a red lacquer bowl.

    Spicy Edamame - Although edamame is traditionally a summer food, it's sold frozen year-round these days, which makes it a popular appetizer. While they usually come salted, I dress them up with various things, such as garlic butter or lemon pepper, to take them up a notch. These red and green spicy edamame are always a hit, and they're chromatically on-theme to boot.

    Teriyaki Chicken Wings appetizer

    Teriyaki Wings - Chicken wings are always a crowd-pleaser, but the last-minute frying involved in making buffalo wings can be a chore. These sweet and savory teriyaki wings are tender and flavorful and can be made in advance. Just braise them and line them up on an oven sheet ready to bake before storing them in the fridge. Then it's just a matter of popping them in the oven to heat them up and brown the skin.

    California Roll for an appetizer

    California Roll - California rolls need no introduction, and you can make them fancy using real crab meat. I know making sushi can be a bit of a chore, but since we're using sushi rice in the main course, you can prepare a bigger batch and set some aside for these. I recommend rolling them just before your guests arrive and keeping the rolls wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. Then, all you have to do is slice and serve them.

    Main Course

    This is the "meat" of the meal, and the best part is that it can all be prepared in advance, so you're not in the kitchen cooking while your guests are eating.

    Stove top Roast Beef for the Holidays

    Roast Beef - Japan isn't historically a beef-eating culture, and to this day, it's an expensive meat. Still, roast beef has been in Japan for over a hundred years, and it's typically reserved for special occasions and holidays such as New Year. It's also an alternative to KFC for Christmas. Because Japanese homes don't tend to have ovens, it's usually made with a smaller piece of meat that can be pan-roasted. It's then chilled and sliced very thinly before being served at room temperature with an onion and soy sauce glaze. You can follow the process for my Roast Beef Don and skip the rice to make it.

    Serve Chirashizushi for your Holiday feast.

    Chirashizushi - Chirashizushi literally means "scattered sushi," and as the name suggests, it's made with seasoned sushi rice with various toppings mixed into the rice and scattered on top. Its colorful and festive appearance and the fact that it easily scales make it a popular dish for get-togethers. Since the Roast Beef provides plenty of protein, I'd recommend going with my plant-based chirashi, but if you feel like being extra, my seafood chirashizushi is festive and delicious.

    Sides

    Home-cooked meals in Japan are typically eaten family-style, with one or two main dishes at the center of the table flanked by several sides. These are easy to prepare, can be made in advance, and add a splash of color to your table.

    Ham and Sweet Potato Salad from above.

    Ham and Sweet Potato Salad - Loaded with whole grain mustard and savory bits of ham, this colorful side dish is a flavorful side that goes beautifully with the roast beef.

    Spicy Kinpira Renkon

    Lotus Root Kinpira - It's not the prettiest dish in the world, but the fun shape and crispy texture of this Lotus Root Kinpira make up for the brown color.

    Asparagus and Snap Pea Salad for the Christmas table

    Asparagus & Snap Pea Salad - It's not spring, but the table needs a splash of green, and this delightfully refreshing asparagus and snap pea salad delivers almost every shade of green.

    Dessert

    Christmas Cake - Christmas in Japan is associated with 2 foods. KFC, and Christmas Cake. Unlike Christmas cakes in other parts of the world, in Japan, a Christmas cake is basically a Japanese-style shortcake (sponge cake + whipped cream + strawberries). It was popularized about 100 years ago by a bakery called Fujiya (which also happens to be the company that makes the candy "Milky").

    Emerald green Matcha Basque Cheesecake

    Matcha Basque Cheesecake - "Burnt" Basque Cheesecakes took the world by storm a few years ago thanks to the custardy center and caramelized top, and they were a huge hit here in Japan. This isn't a traditional Christmas dessert, but if shortcake isn't your thing (or you live in an area without good strawberries in December), my Matcha Basque Cheesecake is still on-theme and much easier to make.

    Regardless of what holiday you celebrate, I hope you enjoy the last two weeks of the year, and may 2023 bring you health, contentment, and loads of delicious food!

    More Holiday

    • A close up of beautifully crisp rösti pancakes stacked in a wooden serving dish, showcasing irresistible golden-brown crispness.
      Crispy Potato Rosti
    • Roasted chicken on a plate.
      Perfect Roast Chicken
    • These orange glazed ham steaks are an easy holiday meal that comes togehter in about 15 minutes.
      Orange Glazed Ham Steaks
    • Kinako (roasted soybean flour) make these crinkle cookies taste like peanut butter.
      Kinako Crinkle Cookies

    Comments

    No Comments

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.

    I started No Recipes back in 2007 as a place to share original dishes I'd created with friends. It's since evolved into something much bigger than I could have imagined, but as it grew, the focus shifted from inventing dishes to improving classics. In the spirit of how No Recipes began, I'm bringing back my weekly original recipes for all of my supporters and friends!

    • Twitter
    • YouTube
    • Facebook
    • Pinterest

    More about me →

    Marc's Favorites

    • A plate of corn fritters.
      Cheesy Corn Fritters
    • Hamaguri no Sakamushi, a Japanese dish of sake-steamed clams, is plated here with opened shells and a light broth, finished with aromatic sansho leaves for a clean, herbal contrast.
      Sake Steamed Clams (Hamaguri No Sakamushi)
    • Spicy mentaiko and creamy butter adorn these steamed potatoes.
      Mentaiko Butter Potatoes
    • Roasted chicken on a plate.
      Perfect Roast Chicken
    • Tenderloin slices with mushroom wine cream sauce.
      Tenderloin Steak and Creamy Mushroom Sauce
    • Taiwanese style glazed pork chops.
      Five Spice Glazed Pork Chops

    Footer

    ↑ back to top

    About

    • Contact
    • About

    Newsletter

    • Recipe Updates by Email

    Legal

    • Privacy Policy
    • Cookie Policy
    • Terms and Conditions

    All text and photos ©2007-2023 by Marc Matsumoto. All rights reserved.