Around 95% Danes celebrate Christmas Eve each year, gathering with family around a Christmas dinner table adorned with twinkling lights, a Christmas tree, and gifts. Meat and poultry are a staple on Danish Christmas tables, with up to 78% eating duck and 65% (also) enjoying roast pork. Turkey and goose are also present, though in smaller numbers (6%–9%). Potatoes are another classic Christmas dish.
Around 88% percent of Danes who celebrate Christmas also make sure to eat Risalamand, a dessert of rice cooked with milk and topped with whipped cream and chopped almonds, then drizzled with some cherry sauce or chutney when served. While this dish is usually served cold, three out of four Danes prefer their cherry sauce to be hot.
It is customary for Danes, after having dinner on Christmas Eve, to celebrate by dancing around the Christmas tree, while Santa Claus (known as Father Christmas in Arabic) visits 15% of homes, probably families with children mainly.
