Mattak is the skin and fat of a whale, separated by a layer of cartilage. This is slightly different from whale blubber (also popular in Greenland) which is just the fat. The skin makes this dish very tough to chew, so it is often cubed and eaten in one bite — typically raw. Kiviak is another Greenland holiday delicacy, made from seabird wrapped in seal skin and left to ferment for a few months.

Bibingka is a rice cake cooked in banana leaves and made with rice flour, eggs, sugar, and coconut. It is a popular breakfast dish during the Christmas season in the Philippines, especially during Simbang Gabi (a nine-day festival for Filipino Catholics) from December 16 to December 24. Bibingka is often served with a warm drink like tsokolate (hot chocolate) or salabat (ginger tea).

Sufganiyot originated in the Jewish community in Israel, but the sweet treats have spread throughout the world as the perfect Hanukkah doughnut. They are fried in oil, then filled with fruit jelly or jam and dusted with powdered sugar. The oil is symbolic of the miracle of the oil that burned for eight days in the story of Hanukkah.

Determined by the lunar calendar, Chinese New Year falls sometime between January 21 and February 20 each year. “Longevity noodles” are a customary dish for the New Year celebration. The noodles are never cut or broken while being cooked, as longer noodles symbolize longer life. They are also eaten during birthday celebrations throughout China and are traditionally served in a stir fry with vegetables.

Shuba is a popular choice for New Year’s celebrations or Russian Orthodox Christmas. This rainbow-colored dish features layers of pickled herring and root vegetables, such as onions, beets, and carrots. In Russian, “shuba” means fur coat, particularly the dense winter coats that are commonly worn in this region. The dish is nicknamed “herring under a fur coat” thanks to this translation.

The longstanding Christmas tradition of “bathtub carp” hails from Czechia, Poland, and Slovakia, from a time when carp in the bathtub was a means for preservation without refrigeration. Families have kept with this tradition in modern times — some even swear that the bathtub “cleanse” increases the quality of the fish. The carp is often served breaded and fried alongside cabbage or fish soup and potato salad.

Thai Pongal is celebrated by Hindus all over the world. In South India and Sri Lanka, it is a multi-day festival, typically held around January 14, thanking the sun god for agricultural abundance. The staple dish is called pongal, made of freshly harvested rice boiled in milk and sugar cane for sweetness. There are many variations of the dish, including some made with ingredients such as cardamom, raisins, nuts, or coconut.

December 13, the Christian feast day of St. Lucia, marks the beginning of the Christmas season in Sweden. Called “lussekatter” in Sweden, these buns are served throughout the holidays. They are made with saffron, cognac, milk, sugar, flour, and butter, and are then decorated with raisins on top. The buns come in different shapes, particularly religious shapes and symbols of good luck.

Chuseok Day is a family holiday in South Korea and the country's biggest traditional holiday. Songpyeon is a dish that is synonymous with this three-day festival. These small, half-moon-shaped rice cakes contain fillings such as soybeans, chestnuts, dates, jujubes, sesame seeds, or honey, which are then steamed over pine needles for a distinct flavor.

Germans opt for goose, or sometimes duck, instead of turkey at holiday meals. Christmas goose is an especially important German tradition to celebrate the holiday with friends and family at the dinner table. This dish is seasoned with thyme, stuffed with onions and apples, and served with gravy, similar to a Thanksgiving turkey.

Christmas is a summertime holiday for those in the Southern Hemisphere, so a fluffy dessert with fresh fruit is ideal for the occasion. Pavlova is made with crisp white meringue, whipped cream, and fruit. Although the dessert originated in Australia or New Zealand, it was named after the Russian ballerina Anna Pavlova.

What started in the 1970s as a clever marketing campaign is now a beloved (and tasty) holiday tradition in Japan. Families across the country order their Kentucky Fried Chicken “Party Barrels” early, and Colonel Sanders is as integral to Japanese holiday celebrations as Santa-san. KFC sales in the country are typically tenfold during the Christmas holiday.

This French Christmas treat is a swiss-roll cake with a rich, chocolatey flavor and a fluffy cream filling. The origins of the dessert date back to the Middle Ages, when a log was brought into the home during the holidays for good luck in the coming year. Over the centuries, the tradition transformed from a real log to this tastier version.

If you happen to be in Quebec on Canadian Thanksgiving, chances are you’ll find freshly made tourtière among the holiday spread. The pie is a French Canadian specialty, usually made of potatoes with minced pork, veal, or beef. Other Canadian Thanksgiving dishes resemble those enjoyed at American Thanksgiving — turkey, mashed potatoes, and pumpkin pie abound.

Pasteles are a labor of love. This dish often requires an assembly line, making it a perfect Christmas tradition for family and friends. To make pasteles, a combination of yautia (taro root), green plantain, green banana, and kabocha pumpkin is mixed and wrapped in banana leaves, which are then boiled. To enjoy these tasty treats, they must first be unwrapped — just like presents under a Christmas tree.

While tamales are enjoyed year-round throughout Latin America and other parts of the world, they are especially cherished around Christmastime. Masa (a type of flower made from ground corn kernels), meat, and other ingredients of choice are pressed together and steamed inside corn husks until cooked to perfection.

You might recall figgy pudding from the song “We Wish You A Merry Christmas,” but despite its name, figgy pudding contains no figs. Instead, the beloved dish is made of raisins, beef suet, nuts, and spices, among other ingredients. Tradition calls for covering figgy pudding in brandy and setting it on fire before serving.

Popular in Poland and elsewhere in Central and Eastern Europe, borscht is traditionally made from beets (giving it its deep red color), garlic, onions, carrots, apples, leeks, and various spices. This comfort meal is consumed throughout winter, but borscht is especially popular on Christmas Eve, served with a side of pierogies.

Similar to a potato fritter, latkes are a savory dish traditionally made of grated potatoes, onion, breadcrumbs, and egg. Latkes can be served in a variety of ways, but the most popular way to eat latkes in Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine is with sides of sour cream and applesauce. The deliciously crisp fritters are also popular in central and Eastern Europe, where the recipe likely originated.

December 24 is “Christmas Feed” in Sweden, and the typical Julbord (Yule table) holds enough delicacies for all 12 days of Christmas. There is typically glögg (mulled wine) to warm up guests, and fish such as cured salmon and pickled herring, accompanied with dense rye bread. Hot dishes include ham, meatballs, creamed potatoes, and sausages — followed by a multitude of desserts.

The Feast of the Seven Fishes is a Christmas Eve tradition that originated in southern Italy as “La Vigilia” (The Eve), and it later spread to the United States along with Italian immigrants. While there is no set menu, most families serve ​​a seafood stew like cioppino or brodetto, a pasta dish (with seafood such as mussels, clams, shrimp, and calamari), and a whole baked or fried fish.