The History Behind Jewish Cuisine

Growing up I was not introduced to many ethnic or religious cuisines other than the tradition American diet. When I entered college in 2007 I met my best friend Kara. She loves all types of food and is always trying to encourage me to try something new. Kara was raised in a traditional Jewish household and every time I go up to her family’s home in Orange County, CA they always have a plethora of Jewish food. Because I am not familiar with any of the cuisine I always steer clear of the Jewish dishes and choose foods that I am familiar with. So, I thought this would be a great chance to make Kara and her family proud and explore the Jewish religion and their cuisine.

Judaism is a western religion that was established about 4000 years ago. Originally this was a nation but after Jerusalem fell in 70 C.E. Judaism remained without a home until the birth of Israel in While this religion was without a home Jews remained scattered all over the world. Two sects arose, Ashkenazi and Sephardim. Ashkenazi: Have a diet similar to the people of Germany and Eastern Europe. Sephardim: Have diet similar to people of the Middle East and Southern Europe. Jews follow the Hebrew Bible. The Pentateuch, the book on Moses and the Torah all refer to the same book, which includes Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Number, and Deuteronomy. Within this book is where it state how one should live their life. Most importantly to us, this is where the laws of how food should be prepared are found.

Kashrut refers to the Jewish dietary laws. These laws rule which foods are permitted or prohibited, and they also state the specific foods that should be prepared in a specific manner.

1. Which animals are permitted for food or not Permitted animals are: Clean: cattle, deer, goat, oxen, sheep, chicken, duck, geese and turkey Prohibited animals are: Swine, carnivorous animals, rabbit, and birds of prey 2. Method of slaughtering animals The life of a clean animal must be taken in a specific way. 3. Examination of the slaughtered animal The animal is examined by the Shohet 4. Parts of animal that are forbidden Blood Heleb

5. Meat preparation The blood, vessels and sciatic nerve must be removed. Soak meat with in 72 hours of slaughtering Covered in kosher salt for 1 hour and then rinsed 6. Law of meat & milk Meat and dairy must not be eaten together A person must wait 6 hour to eat dairy after eating meat A person much wait 1 hour to eat meat after eating dairy Pareve- these are foods that can be eaten with either dairy or meat and they include: eggs, fruit, vegetables and grains. 7. Forbidden animals The exception is that honey is fit for consumption because it does not contain a part of the bee. 8. Examination for insects & worms Fruits, vegetables and grains must be washed twice and inspected before eating to ensure they do not have insects with in them.

For this project I have chosen to make the popular Jewish dish Kugel which, is a baked Ashkenazi casserole. This is normally served as a side dish on the holidays of Shabbat and Yom Tov.

Ingredients 1/2 pound wide kosher for Passover egg noodles 1/2 stick butter, melted 1 pound cottage cheese 2 cups sour cream 1/2 cup sugar 6 eggs 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1/2 cup raisins Directions Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Boil the noodles in salted water for about 4 minutes. Strain noodles from water. In a large mixing bowl, combine noodles with remaining ingredients and pour into a greased, approximately 9-by- 13-inch baking dish. Bake until custard is set and top is golden brown, about 30 to 45 minutes.

I purchased all my ingredients at the local grocery store. (Albertsons) I noticed there was a specific section where all the Kosher baking items were located and this is were I found my Kosher Egg Noodles.

It is important that the eggs noodle be Kosher to ensure that they are following the dietary laws of the Jewish people.

After preparing and trying Kugel I would have to say it was a little bland for my liking and I would have preferred the dish to have a little more substance. The taste and texture of the custard reminded me of a Cheese Danish. Both my fiancé and I enjoyed trying something new although neither one of us would care to have it again.

Kittler, Pamela Goyan, Kathryn Sucher, and Marcia Nelms. Food and Culture. Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth, Print. Lieberman, David. "Noodle Kugel." Recipe : Dave Lieberman : Recipes : Food Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec Trayed, Rich R. "Judaism 101: Jewish Cooking." Judaism 1 01: Jewish Cooking. N.p., n.d. Web. 01 Dec