Christmas begins on December 24 in Croatia. Catholics fast on Christmas Eve: no meat, sugar or fat. Although December 24 is a working day, people may shut shop early and head home so they can finish all their preparations before sitting down for dinner with the family and heading for Midnight Mass. As elsewhere, December 25 and 26 are public holidays.
Presents
Although the usual fir trees and kitsch fairy lights are nowadays popular, more traditional decorations include straw, which is scattered under and on the dinner table and slept upon in memory of Jesus' birth in a stable. Don't forget to put this straw on your plum trees on St John's Day for a good crop. Plaited straw ornaments and wreaths ensure boundless fertility in the coming year, so beware.
At this time of year flower shops and market stalls sell little pots of verdant green grass. Don't get too excited – it's wheatgrass, but health nuts may like to juice it and get an energising shot of vitamins. Buying sprouting pots are actually a cheat: you should sow a few wheat grains a few weeks before Christmas, because the resulting shoots symbolise your luck for the coming year. Don't throw these shoots away for they are sacred, and for this wanton act you will probably burn in hell. Feed them to our feathered friends, and they will flock to your aid in times of need, for example crapping on your worthless ex-boyfriend.
What to eat
Salt Cod – Bakalar
Despite the lack of such a fish in any nearby waters, many Croats eat salt cod on Christmas Eve (fish is allowed on a fast). This is nothing like English battered cod with chips – the aroma is very pungent, and there are hundreds of ways of preparing it. A rather more Central European alternative is carp. Visit Vinodol, Pri Zvoncu or Tip-Top to try it. (See our restaurant pages).
Sarma
A popular dish in family homes at any time of the year, Sarma is a must on Christmas Day. It's a tasty combination of minced and smoked meats and rice wrapped in soured cabbage leaves and cooked in spicy tomato sauce. Although it's eaten throughout South-East Europe, it's still considered a national dish. If there's only one thing you can try while you're here, make it this. Best sampled in cheaper, home-style restautants: we recommend Vallis Aurea in Tomićeva street.
Grah
The musical fruit exists in a thousand colourful varieties round these parts. Come icy weather, there's nothing more comforting than a plate of bean stew, perhaps with a jumbo sausage languishing in it. Try it after a good walk at Stara Puntijarka on the main footpath up Sljeme (starting from the cable car), or at the simple buffet Gaj at the back of the Branimir marketplace.
Spit roast pork
The further you travel into Slavonia on Christmas Eve, the greater numbers of heroic men you see rotating pigs on spits outdoors, even in sub-zero temperatures. Slavonia is the spiritual home of pork products, and Christmas Day would not be the same without a table groaning under the weight of a few hundred kilos of roast pork. Our tips for good roast meat: Pri Zvoncu and Pivnica Medvedgrad.
Christmas cake
A true domaćica (home-maker) will have been slaving for a week before the big day to prepare thousands and thousands of bite-sized cakes in myriad shapes, colours and flavours. Orahnjača and makovnjača An easier alternative would be to pop along to Slastičarna Meli and pick up a few kilos of pick'n'mix teacakes. Delish.
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