The holiday season is almost upon us and, with that, comes all of the family holiday traditions.
On Christmas Eve, everyone gathers at my aunt’s house for a not-so-formal dinner as we count down to midnight.
Some family members pile up in the living room, others around the kitchen counter and even more play Euchre or another game at the dining table.
Of course, there is a spread of food ranging from roasted ham to meatballs to all kinds of homemade dips and things to be dipped.
We cap the meal at midnight when we light candles on a birthday cake and everyone sings “Happy Birthday” to Jesus.
Birthday cake and ice cream might not be the traditional Christmas meal, but in my family it’s totally normal.
The other day in the newsroom, my coworker Mac found the prime example of how what’s considered “traditional” varies widely from place to place.
He stumbled upon the fact that, every year, around 3.6 million Japanese families celebrate Christmas with a meal from Kentucky Fried Chicken.
According to a CNN Travel article, KFC Japan does roughly five to ten times the business it normally does on December 24, with lines out the door beginning the day before. Diners who don’t reserve a bucket often have to wait for hours.
It all began following World War II, when Japan’s economy began strengthening at the same time Western culture was becoming more popular worldwide.
In the 70s, a number of U.S. franchises opened in Japan, including the very first Kentucky Fried Chicken.
According to CNN Travel and the BBC, Japan, which has a very small Christian population, still celebrates Christmas widely as a secular holiday.
Although the holiday is celebrated widely, at that time many Japanese families did not have established Christmas traditions – until KFC launched the “Kentucky for Christmas” campaign in 1974.
The brilliant marketing is attributed to Takeshi Okawara, the manager of the country’s first KFC and later CEO of KFC Japan, but there is debate as to the true origin of the idea.
Some say Okawara marketed fried chicken as a traditional American Christmas food to boost sales.
Others claim Okawara went to a Christmas party dressed as Santa and left with a marketing idea when he realized how much children love Jolly Old Saint Nick.
Still others believe it started with a customer at the original KFC in Tokyo who lamented that they couldn’t get turkey in Japan, so they had to settle for Kentucky Fried Chicken on Christmas. That inspired employees to launch the marketing campaign.
No matter where it began, the advertising strategy was a huge success.
Along with commercials that depicted families enjoying KFC as a luxurious, American Christmas dinner, a number of articles said it capitalized on Japanese dining culture.
While any “Kentucky Fried” food feels very American, the CNN Travel article notes that it is actually similar to “karaage,” which is a traditional Japanese dish of panko-breaded, deep fried meats.
Beyond that, sharing food is a common practice in Japan, so sharing a “party bucket” of chicken fits right into that culture.
Honestly, I find it really interesting that nothing similar has caught on in America. Even though the KFC Japan campaign wasn’t totally truthful, it 100% seems like fast food fried chicken would fit right into holiday celebrations in the U.S.
Maybe this year I’ll have to ask my family if we can add KFC to our holiday spread.
It would definitely cut down on cooking, and anything goes with cake and ice cream, right?
–Kayleen Petrovia is a reporter at the Journal-Tribune.