Christmas In The Czech Republic: A Carp In The Bathtub

[Kazimiera]

Christmas In The Czech Republic: A Carp In The Bathtub

Source: http://www.praguemorning.cz/christmas-czech-republic-carp-in-the-bathtub/

http://www.praguemorning.cz/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/Schermata-2016-12-05-alle-09.42.58.png

The featured meal for the traditional Christmas Eve dinner in the Czech Republic is not turkey, like in many other countries, but fried carp. The most curious fact about the Christmas dinner is that the carp is bought alive a week before that night or a few days prior it.

Carps are kept alive in the bathtub for days (kids event name them) until ready for cooking on the day of Christmas Eve! When preparing the fish, you have to clean it from fish-scales and that is when Czech tradition comes in hand.

The bathtub carp tradition is only one of many followed on Christmas Eve. Apparently many feel sorry to kill a live fish and let it go.

The Christmas carp tradition started centuries back in Slovakia and its neighboring countries including Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria, Germany and Croatia.

Local people believe the bathtub fish tradition can be explained scientifically. According to them, the carp being a bottom feeder contains mud and dirt which gets washed away when in swims in clean bathtub water.

The tradition also helps in keeping the fish fresh till dinner time. Traditionally, it is the father of the family who takes the carp out of the tub and cleans it before cooking.

[Magnolia]

... some people still keep this tradition:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGN42r-nMlw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=os3m_MOTr8Q

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8pctSUG6xoA
But a lot of people don't do it anymore because it is kind of cruel.

[Bezprym]

I've seen a carp in my bathtub when I was a kid.

[Maintenance]

Thats pretty cool :)

How many fishes is needed for a family? 1 fish = 2 people?

[Melki]

I've heard it comes from an old Jewish tradition (I mean the carp in the bathtub, not Xmas :p)

[Mikula]

I've heard it comes from an old Jewish tradition (I mean the carp in the bathtub, not Xmas :p)

Foreigners often asked me why Czechs eat for Christmas dinner a carp.
Fish was traditional fasting-food for Christians, and to eat fish for Christmas seems to be logical.
Question is why too choose carp - there are a lot another and more tasteful fish kinds in our country.
Since Middle Ages were built fishponds by cloisters to be fish easily available as a fasting-food.
And carp (imported from Asia) prospered in fishponds better than another kinds of fish.
The most powerful and the richest aristoratic family of Bohemia - the Rosenbergs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosenberg_family), found that building of fishponds and selling the carps could be profitable for them. At their Domain (what covered most area of southern Bohemia) they let to build a lot of large fishponds, and started mass-production of the carps in our country.
Therefore we Czechs cannot imagine Christmas Dinner without a carp, today.
http://casradio.cz/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/v%C3%BDlov3.jpg
http://img.ihned.cz/attachment.php/890/42913890/Rnbo9uWacGlzsM0v2LxgO1jfJFKmkyQU/80.jpg
http://zuzanadouchova.cz/blog/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/kapr-01.jpg

[Marusya]

Christmas traditions in other countries fascinate me. I bet Czechia at Christmas is beautiful to experience. :)

I have a Ukrainian ancestor who was named Karp. I used to think he was named after the fish. :p I thought, "Who would name their child after a fish?!" :shocked: Now I know he was named after St. Polycarp.

[Bezprym]

Question is why too choose carp - there are a lot another and more tasteful fish kinds in our country.

Same here. There are plenty of fish on the table, but carp is the one I don't like. Actually, because of the lack of meat I always had problems with eating something in that day.

[blogen]

This Christmas situation is similar in the Hungarian bathtubs:
http://img.reblog.hu/blogs/5929/cicahal2344.gif?w=560&full=1

But the fate of the carp is not, because we bake it in whole or we make a fish soup:
http://pinkdomina.hu/wp-content/uploads/egybensult-fokhagymas-ponty.jpg
http://csalogato.hu/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/halaszle_rendeles_karacsony.jpg

[Mikula]

There are several recipes how to prepare carp. But in the most of Czech Christmas tables is the carp served fried

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RLj6-0Naqm8
with potato salad:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xXvaxKgHJ0Y