Thursday, June 15, 2017
Elder of Ziyon
From a BBC article on Israeli cuisine:
In reality, Israeli cuisine has long been more closely associated with its immediate environment, a fusion of Mediterranean and Middle Eastern traditions and ingredients. The early Zionists eagerly adopted Palestinian dishes, such as falafel, hummus, and shawarma, while in recent years Israelis have developed a more diversified palate.There were never any "Palestinian dishes".
Falafel is generally considered to have originated in Egypt, perhaps created by Copts. The falafel sandwich actually originated in Israel by Yemeni Jews.
Hummus seems also to be Egyptian, with it mentioned in 13th century Egyptian literature.
Shawarama, roasted on a vertical spit, is from 19th century Turkey.
All of these foods are Levantine or Mediterranean or Middle Eastern. It is not at all accurate to call these foods in the days of pre-state Israel "Palestinian."
While this isn't the point of the article, that sentence just shows again that even BBC food writers subscribe to the lie of the Jews coming and co-opting "Palestine."
(The article is mainly about why such traditional "Jewish" foods like bagels and lox, or deli, or kugels, are not a staple of Israeli cuisine. But the premise is silly too: those "Jewish" foods all came from other cultures as well and became associated with Jews. Similarly, today falafel is associated with Israel because Israelis have gone crazy over falafel. I looked at 19th century books about cuisine in the Levant and no one mentioned falafel or hummus, instead elaborating on various lamb-based dishes, or roasted corn, or yogurt-based dishes. No doubt the dishes were there but I would argue that it was Israelis who popularized those dishes worldwide.)
