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Hummus Elite
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Sunday - Thursday: 11:30 AM - 10:00 PM /
Friday: 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM /
Saturday: Closed / 201.569.5600
4
stars - based on 77
reviews
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What
is Israeli Vegetable Salad?
Traditionally called "salat yerakot yisraeli",
this national dish of Israel is made of finely chopped
lettuce, unpeeled cucumbers, red or green peppers, parsley,
onions and tomatoes. Commonly used dressing ingredients
include black pepper, lemon juice and olive oil. Israeli
vegetable salad, or just Israeli salad, is famous for
using only the freshest of vegetables and chopping them
into the finest, tiniest pieces possible. Distinguished
kibbutz cooks are revered for their ability to chop
vegetables, especially the cucumbers and tomatoes, into
perfectly diced pieces.
Variations of this delectable salad involve mixing grated
carrots, sliced chives, sliced radishes, sliced fennel,
shredded cabbage and herbs such as sumac, mint or za'tar.
Israeli salad can be eaten by itself , served with other
dishes or placed into pita breads stuffed with shawarma
or falafel. Once an important aspect of traditional
Israeli morning meals, it has now been mostly replaced
by Western cereals but is still found in Israel hotels
serving breakfast buffets and also in many rural Israeli
homes.
People living on the kibbutzum popularized this salad
due to the easy-to-grow vegetables used in the recipe.
The Hebrew word "kibbutz" means "clustering
or gathering" and colloquially refers to an Israeli
collective community founded on agriculture. Originally,
the kibbutzim started as a sort of utopia combining
Zionist and socialist ideologies. However, a few kibbutzum
today have been privatized and supplanted with industrial
factories an technological enterprises. As of 2010,
approximately 260 kibbutzim still existed in Israel,
with their agricultural produce comprising nearly 40
percent of Israel's total food output.
Israeli salad is prepared differently by Jews living
in India and North African Jews. Indian Jews add finely
chopped green chili peppers and ginger while North African
Jews sometimes add cayenne pepper and preserved lemon
peel. Salads similar to Israeli salad are found in Iran,
where it is called Persian salad shirazi, and Turkey,
where locals eat choban salad.
Varieties of Israeli salad include augmenting the basic
four ingredients (lemon juice, tomatoes, cucumbers and
olive oil) with feta cheese, a recipe that is Sephardic
inspired. Traditionally produced in Greece, brined curd
feta cheese is a crumbly, slightly salty, aged cheese
created in blocks and exhibiting a mildly grainy texture.
Used in salads, pastries and an assorted baked dishes,
feta is actually regulated by the European Union. Only
cheese made from sheep milk or a blend of goat and sheep
milk may be labeled as true “feta” cheese.
Other Israeli salad types include festive (colorful)
Israeli salad and Israeli eggplant salad.
As one of Israel's most classically delicious foods,
Israeli salad is typically served with falafel or chicken
schnitzel for lunch and hummus, pita bread and olives
for dinner. |
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