As we move forward into a new year, I wanted to share one more holiday tradition with you. This one isn’t strictly Italian. It’s more Italian-American, and is not called the Feast of Seven Fishes in Italy. This is a meal that is traditionally consumed on Christmas Eve, consisting of seven fish dishes prepared in different ways.
Italian culture differs significantly between the northern and southern portions of the country. Each of Italy’s 20 different regions have different culinary traditions for Christmas Eve. The Feast of the Seven Fishes is a Southern Italian tradition, and has its roots in the Roman Catholic tradition of avoiding meat and certain dairy products the night before a holiday.
The number seven relates to multiple Catholic symbols and Biblical stories, including the seven sacraments, the seven deadly sins, and the seven days of Creation. The official Feast of Seven Fishes first emerged in the early 1900s, when Italian American families rekindled old traditions by preparing a seven-course fish meal on Christmas Eve. These courses may consist of appetizers, soups, pasta dishes, and entrées.
On Christmas Eve, my family observed the no-meat tradition. I was never too fond of fish, but I enjoyed the fried Cod Fish with Polenta my grandmother made. On the other hand, I remember dreading my grandfather bringing home eel for dinner. He would get very mad at me when I expressed my disgust at seeing the snake-like fish wiggling even after death and having been cut. To this day, I never tasted an eel. They still creep me out.
