Everything Trivia
Browse Trivia
Holiday

66 Christmas Food Trivia Questions and Answers

Reviewed by Aleesha Rubinstein, Editor·Updated Nov 2026·8 min read

66 Christmas food trivia questions and answers — from gingerbread and eggnog to panettone and tamales, with difficulty levels and multiple-choice options for every question.

Christmas Food Trivia

Christmas is a feast first and a holiday second, at least if you ask anyone who has ever fought over the last roast potato. Every country that celebrates it has its own table, and the dishes carry stories older than the carols.

Some of those stories are surprising. In December 1826, cadets at West Point staged the Eggnog Riot after smuggling whiskey into the academy to spike their holiday eggnog, and more than a dozen of them were court-martialed.

Italian-American families mark Christmas Eve with the Feast of the Seven Fishes, a meat-free supper whose roots lie in the Catholic tradition of abstaining from meat on the vigil of a feast.

And the gingerbread man has royal credentials: Elizabeth I is said to have had gingerbread figures made in the likeness of her guests.

The questions below travel from American cookie plates and British puddings to Polish carp, Japanese fried chicken and Venezuelan hallacas. Each one has a difficulty rating and three wrong answers beside the right one.

Start with the easy questions as a warm-up, then work up to the hard ones when the eggnog has taken effect. Hosting a party? Read one question out at the start of each course and keep score on the napkins.

  1. 1Which peppermint-flavored striped candy, shaped like a shepherd's hook, hangs on Christmas trees?

  2. 2What edible house, held together with icing and decorated with candy, do families build each December?

  3. 3Eggnog is a creamy holiday drink made from milk, sugar and which beaten ingredient?

  4. 4Which grated spice is traditionally sprinkled over a glass of eggnog?

  5. 5Which flaming dessert, studded with dried fruit and topped with a sprig of holly, ends a traditional British Christmas dinner?

  6. 6Which small, cabbage-like vegetable is a divisive staple of the British Christmas dinner?

  7. 7In 'The Christmas Song', which nuts are roasting on an open fire?

  8. 8In the carol 'We Wish You a Merry Christmas', which dessert do the singers demand?

  9. 9In 'A Visit from St. Nicholas', what do the children's heads hold visions of?

  10. 10On the first day of Christmas, a true love gives a partridge in what kind of tree?

  11. 11What do children traditionally leave out for Santa Claus to eat?

  12. 12In Elf, what does Buddy pour over his spaghetti?

  13. 13After the neighbors' hounds eat the family turkey in A Christmas Story, what do the Parkers eat at a Chinese restaurant?

  14. 14Which fast-food chain's fried chicken has become a Christmas tradition in Japan?

  15. 15What is a bûche de Noël, the French Christmas cake?

  16. 16Which corn-dough parcels, steamed in husks, are a Christmas Eve staple in Mexico and across Latin America?

  17. 17How many fishes are served at the Italian-American Christmas Eve Feast of the Seven Fishes?

  18. 18In A Christmas Carol, which bird do the Cratchits eat for their Christmas dinner?

  19. 19In Britain, what are 'pigs in blankets'?

  20. 20Modern British mince pies are filled with mincemeat. What is mincemeat mostly made of?

  21. 21Which silver coin was traditionally hidden in British Christmas puddings for luck?

  22. 22In Britain, what is the Sunday before Advent, when Christmas puddings are traditionally made, called?

  23. 23Panettone, the tall domed sweet bread with candied fruit and raisins, comes from which Italian city?

  24. 24Which German city is famous for its Christmas stollen and holds an annual Stollenfest?

  25. 25Which German city is famed for Lebkuchen, its spiced Christmas gingerbread?

  26. 26Which German drink, sold at Christmas markets, is red wine heated with cloves, cinnamon and orange?

  27. 27Which island is the home of coquito, a coconut-based holiday drink often made with rum?

  28. 28Turducken, a chicken stuffed inside a duck stuffed inside a turkey, is most associated with the cooking of which US state?

  29. 29Which fish is the traditional centerpiece of a Polish Christmas Eve supper?

  30. 30In Poland, what thin wafer is shared among family members before Christmas Eve supper?

  31. 31Which fowl is the traditional Christmas Eve dish of Iceland's hunters?

  32. 32Which food is traditionally left off the table at La Vigilia, the Italian Christmas Eve vigil?

  33. 33Turrón, the Spanish Christmas nougat, is made mainly from which nut?

  34. 34Which salted fish is the traditional main of Portugal's Christmas Eve supper?

  35. 35On which date is Mexico's rosca de reyes, a ring-shaped bread with a hidden figurine, traditionally eaten?

  36. 36In Quebec, which meat pie is the classic Réveillon dish after midnight Mass?

  37. 37Which shellfish is a Christmas Eve staple on French Réveillon tables?

  38. 38Which golden spice colors Sweden's St. Lucia buns, called lussekatter?

  39. 39In Denmark's risalamande rice pudding, what is hidden to win a prize?

  40. 40What purple sticky-rice treat, steamed in bamboo tubes, is a Filipino Christmas favorite?

  41. 41Australia and New Zealand both claim which meringue dessert, topped with whipped cream and fruit, as a summer Christmas favorite?

  42. 42Japan's classic Christmas cake is which strawberry-and-cream sponge dessert?

  43. 43Which US President's rye-and-rum eggnog recipe is still famous?

  44. 44Which dried flower buds are stuck into oranges to make pomanders and studded into glazed hams?

  45. 45On December 6, Dutch and Belgian children celebrate Saint Nicholas with which spiced, stamped biscuit?

  46. 46Leaving milk and cookies for Santa is commonly traced to which 1930s hardship?

  47. 47Which fairy tale by the Brothers Grimm is credited with popularising the gingerbread house?

  48. 48Which English monarch is credited with serving gingerbread figures shaped like her guests?

  49. 49The 1826 'Eggnog Riot' broke out at which US military academy?

  50. 50Which golden, star-shaped Italian Christmas cake from Verona has no fruit and is dusted with vanilla sugar?

  51. 51How many desserts are traditionally served after Christmas Eve supper in Provence?

  52. 52Which lye-cured fish is a polarizing Scandinavian Christmas dish?

  53. 53Which sweet dish of wheat berries, poppy seeds and honey opens the Ukrainian Christmas Eve supper?

  54. 54Which Swedish soft drink outsells Coca-Cola in Sweden at Christmas?

  55. 55Finland's Christmas star-shaped pastry, joulutorttu, is traditionally filled with which fruit jam?

  56. 56Which powdered-sugar-dusted almond shortbread cookies are a Greek Christmas staple?

  57. 57What is the Greek Christmas bread decorated with a cross called?

  58. 58Which flaky filo pastry, with paper fortunes tucked inside, is served on Bulgarian Christmas Eve?

  59. 59Which cornmeal parcels wrapped in plantain leaves are Venezuela's essential Christmas dish?

  60. 60Which hot fruit punch, made with tejocotes and cinnamon, is served at Mexican posadas?

  61. 61Which ruby-red hibiscus drink, steeped with ginger, is a Caribbean Christmas essential?

  62. 62Which round Dutch cheese in red wax is a Filipino Noche Buena table staple, known as queso de bola?

  63. 63Which whole roasted animal is the centerpiece of a traditional Cuban Noche Buena feast?

  64. 64Which braided, raisin-and-almond sweet bread is baked for Christmas in the Czech lands?

  65. 65Which stuffed cabbage rolls are the centerpiece of the Romanian Christmas table?

  66. 66Which rolled pastry filled with poppy seed or walnut paste is Hungary's Christmas classic?

Answer Key

  1. 1. Candy cane
  2. 2. Gingerbread house
  3. 3. Eggs
  4. 4. Nutmeg
  5. 5. Christmas pudding
  6. 6. Brussels sprouts
  7. 7. Chestnuts
  8. 8. Figgy pudding
  9. 9. Sugar plums
  10. 10. Pear tree
  11. 11. Milk and cookies
  12. 12. Maple syrup
  13. 13. Roast duck
  14. 14. KFC
  15. 15. A cake shaped like a log
  16. 16. Tamales
  17. 17. Seven
  18. 18. Goose
  19. 19. Small sausages wrapped in bacon
  20. 20. Dried fruit and spices
  21. 21. A sixpence
  22. 22. Stir-up Sunday
  23. 23. Milan
  24. 24. Dresden
  25. 25. Nuremberg
  26. 26. Glühwein
  27. 27. Puerto Rico
  28. 28. Louisiana
  29. 29. Carp
  30. 30. Opłatek
  31. 31. Ptarmigan
  32. 32. Meat
  33. 33. Almonds
  34. 34. Cod
  35. 35. January 6
  36. 36. Tourtière
  37. 37. Oysters
  38. 38. Saffron
  39. 39. A whole almond
  40. 40. Puto bumbong
  41. 41. Pavlova
  42. 42. Strawberry shortcake
  43. 43. George Washington
  44. 44. Cloves
  45. 45. Speculaas
  46. 46. The Great Depression
  47. 47. Hansel and Gretel
  48. 48. Elizabeth I
  49. 49. West Point
  50. 50. Pandoro
  51. 51. Thirteen
  52. 52. Lutefisk
  53. 53. Kutia
  54. 54. Julmust
  55. 55. Prune
  56. 56. Kourabiedes
  57. 57. Christopsomo
  58. 58. Banitsa
  59. 59. Hallacas
  60. 60. Ponche navideño
  61. 61. Sorrel
  62. 62. Edam
  63. 63. Pig
  64. 64. Vánočka
  65. 65. Sarmale
  66. 66. Bejgli

Keep Going