Sauces are one of the easiest ways to expand your Christmas repertoire and brighten up your Christmas without changing the core of your menu. Whether your table is seafood-focused, meat-heavy, vegetarian, or a mix of all three, a thoughtfully chosen sauce can bring freshness, complexity and colour.
Because one of the books I’ve written is Sicilian Seafood Cooking—and because my blog is called All Things Sicilian And More—many readers assume that my Christmas table must be strictly Sicilian. It’s a lovely assumption, but like most Italian traditions, the reality is far more regional, varied, and personal.
Buon Natale, and happy cooking!
What Do Italians Eat at Christmas? It Depends Where You Live
Italy has no single “national” Christmas menu.
Food traditions shift dramatically from region to region, and even from town to town.
When I lived in Trieste (in the north), Christmas Day always began with brodo—a clear, comforting broth that signalled the start of a long, leisurely lunch.
Years later, celebrating Christmas in Sicily, the menu was completely different. First courses would be gnucchiteddi (tiny hand-rolled gnocchi) or delicate ravioli di ricotta scented with cinnamon, sugar, and local cheese.
QUADRUCCI IN BRODO, Squares of home-made Pasta in Broth
BRODO DI GALLINA (Chicken Broth)
GNOCHETI DE GRIES (as called in Trieste), GNOCCHETTI DI SEMOLINO (Italian), SEMOLINA Small GNOCCHI
Even within Sicily—an island smaller than Tasmania—the diversity is astonishing.
Christmas in Ragusa always meant scacce: layered, folded pastries filled with vegetables, ricotta, sausage, tomato, or combinations of all three. They remain a staple of festival tables.
Would Sicilians in Australia be making scacce for Christmas? Perhaps some from Ragusa will—but most Sicilian-Australian menus are shaped by a mixture of regional traditions, personal favourites, and of course the Australian summer.
What I Cook at Christmas
People often ask what I’ll cook for Christmas Eve or Christmas Day. The honest answer: I rarely know until the last minute.
On Christmas Eve, I usually follow Italian custom and eat fish.
On Christmas Day, I like to cook something special that I haven’t made for a while—perhaps pasta with sea urchin (ricci), bottarga, squid ink, crayfish, or crab.
There are many posts on this blog that delve into Christmas dishes from Sicily and other regions of Italy—feel free to explore and adapt them for your own festive table.
But this post is not about planning an entire menu. Instead, it’s about something more universal – Sauces.
Whatever you’re serving this year—seafood salad, roast turkey, grilled vegetables, barbecued meat— a fresh, vibrant sauce can instantly transform a familiar dish into something festive.
Essential Sauces and Dressings for Christmas
Below are some of my favourite sauces—Italian, Sicilian, and beyond—that can brighten any Christmas spread.
Highlight sauces include:
- Salsa d’Agresto – medieval green grape and nut sauce for roasted meats
- Salsa Verde – Italian parsley, anchovy and caper sauce for vegetables, fish or cold meats
- Sicilian Sarsa di Chiappareddi – capers, anchovies and olive oil for grilled fish
- Bagna Cauda – warm garlic and anchovy dip for mixed vegetables
- Salmoriglio – Sicilian lemon and oregano dressing ideal for BBQ seafood
- Homemade Mayonnaise – classic, saffron or tuna versions for cold dishes
- Romesco Sauce – roasted peppers and almonds for fish and vegetables
- Salsa Saracina – sweet-and-savoury Sicilian sauce with olives, pine nuts and saffron
- Hot Mint Sauce – mint, cumin and vinegar for lamb or goat
Use these sauces to lift any Christmas meal—seafood salad, roast turkey, summer vegetables or a simple backyard BBQ. A fresh sauce can transform your festive table.
Salsa d’Agresto (Green Grape Sauce)
A medieval sauce that predates the widespread use of lemons. Traditionally, it relies on the tart juice of unripe grapes (agresto).
It dates pre-Renaissance time and went out of fashion because lemons became popular in cooking and superseded the use of green grape juice. The recipes suggested that the juice of the green grapes can be extracted by using a mouli or a juicer.
Walnuts and almonds are blanched to remove as much skin as possible. My sources indicated that there may have been more walnuts used than almonds in these sauces.
Today you can substitute: verjuice or dry white wine
Key ingredients:
- blanched walnuts and almonds
- onion, garlic, parsley
- breadcrumbs for body
- a touch of sugar
- enough agresto/verjuice to form a soft paste.
Onions, garlic and parsley and a few breadcrumbs are pounded together with the nuts. Add a bit of sugar, some chopped parsley and sufficient grape juice to make the amalgamated ingredients soft – like a paste.
Heat these ingredients and add a little broth as the sauce will thickened because the bread crumbs.
Warm gently and thin with broth as needed.
Perfect for roast meats, especially pork, chicken or turkey.
Salsa Verde – Italian Green Sauce
Salsa verde can be used to jazz anything up – vegetables, roasts, cold meats, smoked fish, crayfish etc. I sometimes use it to stuff hard boiled eggs (remove the yolk, mix with salsa verde and return it to the egg).
Parsley, anchovies, capers, green olives and good olive oil form the backbone of this lively sauce.
SALSA VERDE – ITALIAN GREEN SAUCE
Sarsa di Chiappareddi (Sicilian Caper and Anchovy Sauce)
There may be times when an accompanying sauce for fish cooked in various ways will bring you greater compliments.
The sauce is called sarsa di chiappareddi in Sicilian. Salsa con capperi in Italian.
A beautiful sauce for grilled, baked or fried fish.
What makes it special: high-quality extra virgin olive oil, capers and anchovies from Sicily a fresh, herbal perfume released the moment cold sauce meets hot fish.
Simple, quick, and always impressive.
Bagna Cauda – The Piedmontese “Hot Bath”
Bagna Cauda, translated as “hot bath,” is a dip for any combination of firm vegetables – cooked or uncooked.
A warm, deeply savoury dip from Piedmont. Traditionally served in a communal pot surrounded by:
- raw or cooked fennel
- carrots
- celery
- cauliflower
- peppers
Made from:
- garlic
- anchovies
- butter
- sometimes a little olive oil
It is a hot sauce and it is most essential to use quality, extra virgin, olive oil. This is especially important for cold sauces, – when the cold sauce hits the hot food, the fragrance of the oil will be strongly evident.
Salmurrigghiu / Salmoriglio – Sicilian Citrus-Herb Dressing
Such a simple Sicilian dressing and a Sicilian staple.
Just: extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, oregano and most times a touch of garlic.
It’s sublime on grilled fish, meat, or vegetables—especially anything coming off the BBQ.
SALAMURRIGGHIU – SALMORIGLIO (salmorigano)
Home-Made Mayonnaise – Classic, Saffron, or Tuna
A good mayonnaise can rescue almost any cold dish.
See:
MAYONNAISE and SAFFRON MAYONNAISE
INSALATA RUSSA
CHICKEN LAYERED WITH TUNA AND EGG MAYONNAISE
VITELLO TONNATO
Salsa Romesco – Spanish Almond and Pepper Sauce
Originally from Tarragona in Catalonia, though many mistakenly think it is Roman because of the name.
Excellent with:
This sauce is usually associated as a condiment for shellfish and fish. It is also good with eggs and grilled and roasted vegetables (especially cold, left over ones that need dressing up the next day).
Recently, I have been to two restaurants and this sauce was presented with cold asparagus.
Made from:
- roasted red peppers
- garlic
- almonds
- paprika
- olive oil
Smoky, sweet, and a crowd-pleaser.
Salsa Saracina (Saracen Sauce)
A unique Sicilian cold sauce that blends:
- green olives
- pine nuts
- sultanas
- saffron
Often used with fish, but versatile enough for grilled vegetables, cold meats, or even room-temperature salads.It is sweet-and-savoury in the most Sicilian way.
I use it for many hot or cold foods.
SALSA SARACINA (Saracen sauce)
Green Olive and Anchovy Sauce for Roast Duck
One of the times I roasted a duck I made this special sauce for it, and it tasted great.
- green anchovies
- parsley
- tender celery heart
- garlic
- stock and wine added to the roasting pan and reduced in the pan made an excellent gravy.
A rich, aromatic gravy that lifts any roast beautifully and while you are at it, it includes the recipe for cooking the duc
Hot Mint Sauce (Casa Moro)
This is a recipe from Sam and Sam Clark’s Casa Moro, The Second Cookbook. I first had this sauce at a friend’s house accompanying roast goat. I too had this book.
it is a Middle Eastern-inspired sauce that pairs beautifully with:
- roast goat
- lamb
- grilled meats
Made with:
- mint
- cumin
- garlic
- red wine vinegar or balsamic
Vibrant, earthy, and excellent for outdoor summer meals.
There are many other posts on this blog that delve into Christmas dishes from Sicily and other regions of Italy. Whether you live in a cold or hot country explore the content and adapt them for your own festive table.
