Celebrate All Saints’ Day with Fiambre!
Fiambre is a Guatemalan salad traditionally served once a year on a holiday called el Día de Todos los Santos (All Saints’ Day). All Saints’ Day is celebrated on November 1, followed by el Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead). In Guatemala, All Saints’ Day honors those who have passed away and symbolically reunites them with the living. Every year, Guatemalans celebrate BIG by flying huge kites and making giant salads.
The hearty fiambre salad is probably the largest you’ll ever have—it can include up to 50 ingredients! The giant salad’s origins begin with All Saints’ Day. To honor their departed loved ones, family members would bring different foods to their family graves. Eventually, families began mixing the different dishes together. Fiambre was born!
What makes this dish so special is that no two fiambre recipes are the same. Every family has its own unique recipe which they pass down from generation to generation. There are two main versions of fiambre, fiambre rojo (made with beets) and fiambre blanco (made without beets). Most fiambre recipes include the same ingredients, with variations from family to family. Below you’ll see a list of common ingredients across various salads. They might not be common to you, but we kept them in so you can learn more about Guatemalan food! Start a new family tradition as you create your own unique family recipe!
Fiambre Ingredients
Vegetables
- 3 cups chopped green beans
- 6 medium beets
- 1 medium cauliflower
- 1 cup peas
- 3 cups cheese
- 6 pacaya flowers, chopped
- 3 cups chopped carrots
- 1 cup celery
- 1 medium cabbage, chopped
- 4 oz mozzarella cheese
- 4 hard-boiled eggs
- 1 chamborote chili
- 2 ears of corn
- 4 oz olives
- 2 oz capers
- 4 oz asparagus
- 1 red pepper
- 1 jar pickled onions
- lettuce, for garnish
Sausages
- 4 black sausages
- 4 red sausages
- 4 butifarra sausages (made with anise and other spices)
- 4 longaniza sausages (made with mint and chili peppers)
- 4 German sausages
- 3 smoked sausages
Meats
- 2 lbs chicken
- 1 lb beef
- ½ lb roast beef
- 4 oz ham
- 4 oz salami
- 1 can sardines
- 1 can mussels
Dressing
- 1 cup chicken broth
- 1 sprig thyme
- 1 sprig oregano
- 2 cups vinegar
- 1 cup olive oil
- 3 tablespoons mustard
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- salt (to taste)
How to Make Fiambre
Note: begin preparations 1-3 days in advance.
Step 1: Cook the vegetables separately, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste.
Step 2: Cook the meats separately, seasoning with parsley, salt, and pepper to taste. Cut into small pieces.
Step 3: In a pan, cook all the sausages. Cut into slices and combine with the rest of the meats in a bowl. Mix well and store in the refrigerator overnight.
Step 4: To make the dressing, combine the chicken broth, thyme, oregano, vinegar, olive oil, mustard, sugar, black pepper, and salt. Simmer for a few minutes, then let cool. Combine with cooked vegetables and store in the refrigerator overnight.
Step 5: The day before serving, mix the meats, sausages, and vegetables together in a large container. Mix several times and store in the refrigerator overnight.
Step 6: On serving day, serve chilled. Decorate each plate with lettuce, cheese, egg, and parsley. Enjoy!
Recipe from: Antigüeña Spanish Academy
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