Seafood Salad Marinated for Christmas Eve!

Seafood Salad Marinated for Christmas Eve. Seafood Salad, marinated days before being served, has been our holiday tradition as the first course on Christmas Eve. For as long as we can remember, Mom has spent days in the kitchen preparing her menu for Christmas Eve dinner. But we made a simple version of her salad, which is divine!

The Story of Seafood Salad for Christmas Eve

Italian seafood salad is a traditional dish served on Christmas Eve along the coastal southern regions of Italy. It was commonly known as a peasant dish because all the ingredients were inexpensive. And, our mom would always make the traditional seafood salad which consisted of five (and sometimes even seven) different types of fish. It was and still is today, so amazingly delicious!

Today, we’re excited to show you how to make a “simpler version” of her seafood salad, and it is made with a medley of two types of fish; squid (also known as calamari) and shrimp. The fish is then marinated with green olives, parsley, garlic, and celery in a lemon vinaigrette. This seafood salad is also commonly known as “Frutta di Mare.” …If you are a Seafood LOVER… you’ll love this one!

Serving Seafood Salad On Christmas Eve

Marinated Seafood Salad is always served as our first course during our Christmas Eve dinner, known as the Feast of Seven Fishes!

This has been and still is today, a southern Italian Christmas tradition, where we spend weeks of preparation and set the stage for “La Vigilia,” Christmas Eve, celebrating the birth of Jesus!  The tradition of “La Vigilia” is all about the “feast of seven fishes,” serving seven types of seafood. 

In Italy, it is common to make seven fish dishes because they represent the seven sacraments according to the Roman Catholic church, whereas in other traditions, the seven courses represent the last week of Advent.

Our mom’s seafood salad is packed with flavors, it is very light, high in protein, and low in calories, and fat!  It is the ultimate seafood salad EVER! ….and oh so flavorful!  

When it comes to the holidays, you could say we are hopeless sentimentalists.

The Original Recipe

Although our mom would not approve of reducing her recipe, shh… we prefer not to tell her.  She makes this holiday traditional “Frutta di mare” every year on Christmas Eve consisting of squid, shrimp, octopus, scungilli, and scallops. Mom’s salad is special and AMAZING! But it is a lot of work because she has to cook each fish separately before assembling them.  This is a seafood dish she would normally prepare three days before serving. 

And, this Seafood Salad Marinated is the first and one of the seven seafood dishes we always serve on Christmas Eve.  And it’s the most favorite!

What fish are needed for this recipe?

We only wanted to make this seafood salad not only easier but economically too. For this seafood salad recipe, you will only need two types of seafood:

1. Calamari – you will need about 2 -3 pounds of small squid bodies (calamari) – already cleaned and sliced into thin rings (see our notes and photos below).
2. Shrimp – and you will need about 1 pound of shrimp – already cleaned and deveined.

Additional Ingredients Needed:

*Our full recipe card is located at the bottom of this page. For our seafood salad dressing, the ingredients needed are as follows:

• Juice 2 to 3 lemons, or more to taste
• 5 ounces pimento martini olives-rinsed, chopped
• 1/4 cup (up to 1/2 cup) fresh parsley – finely chopped
• 4 garlic cloves – thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 Tbsp. white balsamic vinegar
• 3  stalks of celery – sliced
• a pinch (up to 1/8 tsp.) of crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp. sea salt
• ground black pepper to taste

 

Directions To Make This Seafood Salad:

1.  First, PREPARE THE DRESSING: In a shallow bowl, combine all the dressing ingredients.  Mix well and set aside.

2.  Next, RINSE THE FISHES: Rinse the squid thoroughly in cold water.  Remove and discard any plastic-like spine bone from the inside.  Cut the bodies into 1/4 to 1/2-inch rings.  Drain and set aside.

Then, rinse the shrimp under running cool water for a few minutes, to clean and remove most of the iodine. Then drain the shrimp in a colander.

3.  In a large saucepan, bring 4 cups of water to a boil.  Add some salt to the water.  Add the shrimp and boil until they turn pink about 1 to 2 minutes.  Shrimp cook up quickly.

4.  Using a slotted spoon, remove the shrimp and transfer them to a colander.  Drain well and allow to cool.  Cut each shrimp in half and transfer to a large mixing bowl.  Set aside.

5.  Meantime, using the same pot with salted boiling water, add the squid rings to the boiling water and boil until tender, about 5 minutes, or less.   NOTE: You must try one to tell if they are fully cooked and ready or not.  The squid should be tender to the bite, not chewy.  Remove and drain well.

6.  Transfer the cooked squid into the bowl with the shrimp, add the lemon vinaigrette dressing, and toss together until well combined.  Taste and season with some fresh cracked pepper, to taste.

7.  Cover and allow it to marinate overnight in the refrigerator, turning the mixture occasionally. Seafood salad will stay freshly refrigerated for up to 3 days.

8.  Before serving, allow the salad to come to room temperature.  Transfer the seafood salad to a large serving platter and serve.  Squeeze additional fresh lemon juice over the salad before serving to give it additional flavor. And, garnish with some fresh parsley on the side.

Serves 6 to 8

Storing

You can store seafood salad in a air-tight container and kept chilled in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh for up to 4 to 5 days, as long it sits in the marinade. If you made this salad two days before serving, then we recommend, you have it for lunch or dinner within the next 3 days.

Serve and Enjoy

If you plan, this is a wonderful seafood salad to make.  It is such a delicious dish, and one of your family and friends will love you for it!  

ENJOY!

More Italian Seafood Recipes

• Easy Italian Shrimp Salad
• 12 Easy Seafood Recipes
• Easy Shrimp Spaghetti
• Mixed Seafood Stew
• Baked Salmon with Dijon Basil Pesto
• Easy Baked Shrimp Scampi Dinner
• Zesty Lemon Shrimp and Mango Salad
• Calamari Fra Diavolo

Are you cooking with us?  If you make this delicious seafood salad marinated for Christmas, let us know and leave a comment with a star rating below!  Snap a photo and hashtag it on  Pinterest; be sure to tag us @2sistersrecipes. We’d love to see what you cook!

Happy and Healthy Cooking!  🙂

Thanks for stopping by!

xo anna and liz