Christmas in Mexico

Stuffed and Baked Christmas Turkey Stuffed and baked turkey is very popular at Mexican Christmas parties. The recipe varies greatly according to the house in which it is prepared. Some of the most common ingredients in the filling are: almonds, prunes, apple, pine nuts, walnuts, orange juice, white wine, and ground pork. Biscayne style cod In Mexico we eat the so-called Biscayan cod. It consists of dried cod, olive oil, chopped onion, minced garlic cloves, diced tomato, peeled and diced potatoes, capers, chopped shelled almonds, green olives stuffed with bell peppers, güero chili peppers, salt and pepper. Apple salad One of the most chameleon-like Christmas dishes, because for some it is a dessert and for others it is a garnish: apple salad. It is usually prepared with apples cut into pieces, nuts, raisins, cream and condensed milk. Sometimes even pineapple, melom, pine nuts or peach are added.

Despite the fact that the Christmas menu can vary in each house according to tastes and traditions, here we will tell you which are the most typical preparations. That being said, now we begin with this tour of the dishes we eat in Mexico at Christmas. Baked pork leg or loin Without a doubt, one of the greatest representatives of Mexican gastronomy is chili. A clear example is the marinade in which we bathe the leg or loin. The adobo is practically a thick sauce of dried chiles, spices and vinegar in which we marinate this meat, to later cook it slowly and finally enjoy it juicy. Romeritos with shrimp pancakes It is a stew of quelites that are prepared with mole and accompanied with dried shrimp pancakes and nopales. And in fact, this recipe has its origin in Mexico, since the Aztecs included romeritos in their diet, only instead of shrimp they used to include ahuautles, considered Mexican caviar. 

January 6: Three Kings Day Santa Claus has become more popular in Mexico and Latin America in recet years. However, the traditional custom is that the three Wise Men bring gifts to children on the twelfth and final day of the Christmas season: Januery 6. Many families are still faithful to this tradition. The children write letters to the three Wise Men expressing their wishes, and they leave them on the night of January 5, hoping that the gifts they have requested will be delivered the next day. February 2: Candlemas Day This is the official final day of the Christmas season in Mexico. Although many people know this day as the day that tamales are made and eaten, it is also a religious celebration. The Virgin Mary of Candelaria (from the word candle, which means candle and light) has its origins in Tenerife, an island that belongs to Spain. The day that commemorates this apparition of the Virgin arrived in the Americas through the Spain conquest.

December 16-24: The Season of Advent. Many people in Mexico enjoy participating in the posadas i the days before Christmas. This is an old tradition, similar to Christmas carols in the United States. Posadas begin on December 16. Each posada consists of a procession, which is usually led by a child carrying porcelain figures representing Mary and Joseph, and followed by family and friends outside a house. The posada is centered on the commemoration of the holy family and the havoc they went through to find a place where the Virgin Mary could give birth to the Child Jesus. December 25th In Mexico, as in many Latin American countries, the main Christmas celebration takes place on the nigth of December 24. Some families go to mass at nigth orbgather i  their homes to wait for the arrival of midnigth and the arrival of Christmas.

Mexicans celebrate the Christmas season in many ways, and so do the holidays that follow Christmas in January and February.Various customs and traditions characterize the holiday in Mexico. December 12: Our Lady of Guadalupe The Roman Catholic church's celebration of the Virgin of Guadalupe, patron saint of Mexico and the Americas, falls on December 12, thus kicking off the season. This day commemorates the appearance of the Virgin Mary to Juan Diego Cuauhtlatoatzin, an Aztec convert to Christianity, in December 1531 on the Tepeyac hill (today located to the west of Mexico City). This day is celebrated not only with the officiating of masses and prayers, but also with traditional songs and dances (including the live television broadcast of the mornings).