israel eats

Mr. Sazy Rock and I travel to research different cuisines of the world. Along the way, we've been lucky to meet amazing people who are passionate about their country's food offerings. Thus, our trip to Israel has revealed to us so many amazing dishes. Some familiar, others not so much. This is by no means a complete list. Not even close. But, these dishes definitely made us go mmmmmmmm.

One of the new friends we met in Israel, Inbal from Delicious Israel, offered to show us around the shuk (or market) in Tel Aviv as well as her other favorite spots around town. An expat from New York, she now runs a company that provides food tours in Israel. She was not only friendly and generous, she was also very informative. She explained that Israeli food was mostly borrowed from different cultures -- that is, immigrants brought their food into the country and made it their own. She further said that arguably, the only "true" Israeli food is the Sabich (more on that later) because it was composed in Israel.

Whatever their provenance, the food we tasted in Israel rocked. Below are my highlights:

• Hummus - hummus is a dish made from pureed garbanzo beans with tahini, garlic, lemon juice and other spices. Israelis love their hummus. There are plenty of arguments about where to find the best hummus (*cough* Abu Hasan in Tel Aviv *cough*). Either way, when in Israel, you have to have some hummus. 
• Hummus Ful - Ful is made of fava beans, garlic, onions, olive oil and other spices. Ful added to hummus makes for a filling meal. 

Hummus with Ful from Abu Hassan.

• Hummus with Hard Boiled Egg and Ful - We tried this version at Shlomo and Doron, in the Yemenite Quarter near the HaCarmel Shuk in Tel Aviv.

Hummus with Ful and Hard Boiled Eggs from Shlomo and Doron.

• Labneh - This is a yogurt based dish that goes well with meats or by itself.

Labneh from Abu Hassan.

• Sabich - As I mentioned above, Inbal mentioned that Sabich is a truly Israeli dish. She explained that immigrants from Iraq brought their salad (eggplant, beets, pepper, tomatoes and other vegetables) to Israel and Israelis put it into a pita and topped it with shug (a spicy sauce from Yemen). And thus, Sabich was born. Inbal gave us our first taste of this incredibly delicious dish at Sabich Tchernichovsky, a shop near the HaCarmel market in Tel Aviv.

Sabich from Sabich Tchernichovsky.

• Malabi - a dessert dish made of corn starch, milk and syrup (rose water pomegranate), and topped with caramelized peanuts, this is a fun snack to have while hanging out at Malabia, also near the HaCarmel market in Tel Aviv. 

Malabi from Malabia.

• Shakshuka - This is a garlicky tomato stew with a soft egg poached in it. We found this heart warming dish everywhere but I particularly loved the version at a sports bar (of all places) called Muza in a town called Arad (near the Dead Sea). 

Shakshuka from Rothschild Hotel.

• Shakshummus - This combimnation of Shakshuka and hummus was a rich, fantastic dish, which we tried at Shlomo and Doron in the Yemenite Quarter in Tel Aviv.

Hummus with Shakshuka from Shlomo and Doron.

• Israeli Breakfast - This is basically a selection of tahini, labneh, hummus, tapenade, tomatoes, olives, jam, eggplant, feta and other dairy with bread. We tried a fancy version at the Rothschild Hotel in Tel Aviv.

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  Israeli Breakfast from Rothschild Hotel.

   Kanafeh - I had a post on this delicious pastry.

Kanafeh from Al Moktar.

What is your favorite Israeli food?