| |
Israel Food, the Unspoken
Reason for Your Travel
Mmmm…I got you interested now didn’t I?
While traveling in Israel food quickly becomes an important part of the trip. It is simply delicious! Israeli food could probably be the subject of an entire web site.
The food in Israel is extremely varied but with a strong orientation to other Mediterranean food. Very fresh. A lot of salads, fruits and vegetables, dairy products, meat and fish.
Hummus
By far the most popular salad dish in israel is Hummus. This is a chick pea dip that you eat by wiping it using pita bread. Done right with tahini/tahina souce, spices and some pickles on the side, the Hummus is an unbeatable appetizer.
The hummus can appear in many variations. Notable additions including broad beans named ful, mushrooms, pine nuts and meat. Most Israelis will swear by their hummus bar/stand/restaurant, and will argue endlessly to prove why and what makes this hummus the best.
Try this awesome hummus recipe.
Here you can find an easy tahini recipe.
To enjoy the hummus fully you will need a few pieces of pita bread. Try this simple pita bread recipe.
Falafel and Shawarma
In the Israel food arena there are many popular dishes to choose from, but in the street food in Israel there are two kings that rule: The falafel and its meaty cousin the shawarma.
The falafel, like the hummus, is basically chick peas that are made into balls and deep fried.
Usually the falafel is served in a pita bread with a bunch of salads that you can stuff together.
Here is a great falafel recipe.
The Shawarma is a famous dish throughout the middle east and Israel is no exception. It is made out of cut lamb or beef but more usually turkey. In Israel it is served in pita bread or Lafa – a big pita similar in size to a burrito. The falafel and shawarma are often sold at the same stand or restaurant.
I do not recommend you to try to cook the shawarma at home but if you do want to try – I added this page with a video recipe that will show you how.
Other popular salads that go well with Falafel or Shawarma are the babaganush eggplant dip, and the Israeli salad which is mixed vegetables chopped really small.
Here is a picture of a few salads...
Israeli Salad
The Israeli vegetable salad goes very well with all the above dishes or just by itself. The main secret is just to chop the vegetables as small as humanly possible – ok maybe not that small but you get the idea…
My family is using this recipe for a delicious Israeli salad.A somewhat similar dish is the extremely popular tabouli salad. 
Baba Ghanoush - eggplant salad with tahini
Baba Ghanoush or Babaghanoush is an eggplant dip that is similar in texture to hummus – in a lot of restaurants those two are served side by side. However if you order Baba Ghanoush in a restaurant in Israel the likely response would be Baba What?!? You see in Israel it is simply called eggplant salad (in tahini). This salad comes in Israel most often in its original form mixed with tahini, however you can also find it in a mayonnaise form – meaning the eggplants are mixed in mayo. Both tastes great if well prepared.
Here is a terrific Baba Ghanoush recipe.
Baba Ghanoush (I admit to buying it...) - the greatest eggplant salad!
Shakshuka
This funny name refers to an Israeli egg/tomato dish. It simply means "all mixed up". It is very easy to make and takes very little time. Done right the taste is awesome!!! Usually you eat that dish with pita bread or white fresh bread that you kind of dip into the shakshuka sauce.
The Shakshuka is the type of dish that many people cook at home usually, however you can see it from time to time in restaurants too, and there is even a restaurant in Jaffa called Dr. Shakshuka.
You will love this shakshuka recipe .
Here is a picture of a shakshuka dish I made:
Cholent or Hamin
The Cholent is the ultimate Jewish dish. It is composed of beans, potatoes, beef/chicken, eggs and a few other ingredients that are cooked for quite some time – overnight actually. It tastes soooo good when prepared the right way.
Ashkenazy Jews (came from Europe) call that dish Cholent and the Sephardic Jews (came from North Africa) refer to it as Hamin. Hamin is derived from the word Ham which simply means hot in Hebrew.
The purpose of the Cholent was to solve a Jewish problem – since you cannot work on Sabbath and cooking is considered work – how can you eat a hot meal on Sabbath?!? The Jews came up with the brilliant solution of preparing the dish on Friday and letting it cook overnight on Saturday. The tradition still holds today and most people eat the Cholent/Hamin on Saturday for lunch usually.
If you have patience and time follow my Cholent/Hamin recipe – it pays off in taste.
Note: Cholent might give you some gas…
Picture of the Cholent by Lior Bakalu.
Jews from North Africa brought with them to Israel a few awesome Couscous Recipes.
By the way if you want some good advice on how to LOOSE weight check out this video!
Limonana - the Israeli Lemonade
Limonana is the Israeli version of lemonade. By far it is the most tasteful and refreshing lemonade you will come across. For real!
Check out my Israeli lemonade recipe.
Shnitzel or schnitzel - chicken made easy
Shnitzel is a key item in Israel – especially for kids but you will find it pretty much in every kitchen. What is it? It is fried chicken breast covered with bread crumbs. Done right it really is delicious.
Try my awesome shnitzel recipe.
Beef Kabobs
Kabobs or kababs are the Israeli burger... sort of.
Made out of grounded beef and grilled they are soft and tasty.
Check out my beef kabob recipe.
A few beef kabobs I made at home. You can do it too...Something SweetTry this wonderful Baklava recipe.
Israeli Breakfast
You are going to love this one. For people who visited the country already the food of Israel experience is most notably remembered through the huge breakfast buffet that is served in most hotels. To make it even better this breakfast is Included in the price of your hotel room.
Usually based on many dairy products (my favorite is the awesome cold cucumber soup), all sorts of eggs, fish, fruits and pretty much whatever you desire. This breakfast will get you going. Don’t get up too late or you will miss it.
Wine from Israel
Do you like good wine? Wine from Israel is gaining recognition and winning taste competitions around the world. While traveling in Israel you can stop at one of the many wineries to learn more about wine producing and to enjoy great Israeli wine.
Different kinds of wine from Israel
This Page has info about the best snacks in the country
Israeli Recipes - quick links page
Return from Israel food back to the Home Page
|
