As a little girl, I strongly associated beef to Christmas. Since my Father is semi-vegeterian, we rarely had meals with beef {meat}. And to me, Christmas was a day to have unique and good meals. Because of that, I always told my friends that it was Christmas whenever my family had meals with beef.

Christmas is such a special day that world wide, there are dishes associated to it. The standard Christmas meal in Uganda can never go without smashed bananas {umunyige} and chicken while in Rwanda its Cassava flour {ubugari},greens {Isombe},French Fries, beans and beef.

With many in Rwanda, a Christmas meal is about having all those fancy foods; spaghetti, salad and mayonnaise. In Sweden, a spiced roasted turkey with rice is ideal for Christmas dinner. To the West, a Christmas a Christmas cake and ginger bread can’t miss on a lunch Christmas table. To Kenya, it’s Chapatti, Ugali {white flour} and stew.

Add a different dish this Christmas
This Christmas we can add to the routine dishes that we normally have. Here are the dishes that can spice up our Christmas lunch or dinner.

Roasted Fish
-Buy raw tilapia fish, Onions, green pepper, olive oil, curry powder, Gallic vineager, white onions and carrots, metallic net {available in Kimironko market}
-Prepare the fish {remove the scales and cut its stomach open to remove the unwanted inside parts}
- Put the fish in a warm place preferably under the sun for 15 minutes; this is done to rid it of the water.
- Light a fire {a charcoal stove is ideal for roasting}, put a metallic net on top of the stove.
-Slice up the green pepper, onions and gallic. Put a tea spoon of olive oil and curry powder in the already sliced spices. {Let them soak}
-Put the now soaked spices inside the fish.
-Roast the fish {keep changing its sides to ensure it’s evenly ready}
-Roast for 15 minutes.
-Slice up the white onions and carrot, put 3 spoons of vineagar and serve with the roasted fish.

lillianean@yahoo.com