we do HAPPY holidayzzzz

Article: Alexander James

​The yuletide season derailed by Covid or family feuds? We're not ones
to be conventional at SoEdited, and we're here to bring you an
international flavour so you can hang out the festive season a little
longer.

Celebrations are still going on in other parts of the world well into
the new year. Russia does not start celebrating Christmas for another
week, and the Chinese prepare for the New Year next month. And with
travel restrictions at a global high, you can do it all from your
computer.

In Australia and New Zealand you'd be better off swapping santa boots
for flip flops, as it's time to head to the beach and spark up a
barbie through the holiday season. Make it as portable as possible,
with a 'barbecue briefcase' that folds up, with a picnic set to boot
from Kikkerland (Kikkerland.com, £25) and chuck some prawns and
lobster on the barbie' for an authentic Down Under experience
(www.thefishsociety.co.uk).

Or get the South African braai experience with some internationally flavoured bangers from Heck (heckfood.com)
otherwise try them laced with booze from Dickies (dickiesbangers.com) or the traditional farmhouse from OIlie and Lucy's (www.ollieandlucys.co.uk).
​
In South Africa it's tradition to serve it with a juicy
steak.(thesteakshop.co.uk) or gourmet burger (waagyuburger.co.uk).
They still keep the Christmas cracker tradition alive, and there’s a lot
better out there than those with a cheap plastic fish, like Caroun’s
gin crackers (tesco.com)

​But if you want to trade meat for veggie, tucking in to a plant-based
imitation turkey. In the last 12-months, vegan food has leaped ahead
in quality of taste. Companies like Beyond Meat creating burgers,
sausages and mince that taste better than the real thing, and with
none of the cholesterol. Now you can pick up a festive vegan 'turkey
crowns' at a pinch of the price of the full-blooded bird such as
Aldi's (£10, groceries.aldi.co.uk) and with less of the bloating too.

If you think that's going overboard, check out Jamaica's traditions
which includes ackee, saltfish, breadfruit, fried plantains and boiled
bananas. You’d better save room for dinner too, where jerk chicken,
curry goat, stewed oxtail and rice and peas are served up. The best of
which you can get from Juici Jerk (juicijerk.com) and the New Kingston
(newkingstonjamaicancuisine.com).
​

​Perhaps the most bizarre festive custom is in Japan where Christmas
and New Year is marked by heading to KFC, even though the country does
not officially mark the holiday, the population heads for the local
Colonel Sanders delicacy at this time of year, with boxes ordered
two-months in advance. Thankfully you can get a bargain bucket big
enough to feed six (£25, kfc.co.uk) in moments, or go lean and mean
with Tesco's Southern Fried Chicken (£2.20, tesco.com) and use a air
fryer to cook a healthy alternative such as the Tower and Ninja
brands, now going for a bargain (from £60 at ao.com)

In Ukraine you can be sure of a traditional Christmas, but you'll have
to wait for January 7th to indulge. That's when you get stuck into a
traditional 12-course feast, one to symbolise each disciple. The
dishes are rustic classics, such as roasted whole lamb joints such as
Aldi's rack of lamb (£12, groceries.aldi.co.uk). Each course is
punctuated by drinking vodka shots, and you can wash it down with the
latest Ukrainian vodka, Dima's, renowned as the best vodka to sip with
food, and traditionally served with pickles (dimasvodka.com)

Throw away the Scotch and get stuck into the, um, Welsh. The latest
whisky to wow the critics is not made north of the border, but west of
it. Penderyn is fast over-taking the style factor of Irish, Scottish
and Japanese whisky, and distilled using waters that are filtered by
as they flow through the Brecon Beacons, to create the foundations of
this sip that has scooped 70 gold awards at international events. You
can also do some virtual tastings with its sister drink Siddiqui. Rest
assured, it has nothing to do with the Mayor of London. It’s a rum
that is probably the only alcohol drink to have come from the Middle
East: (www.penderyn.wales).