Not to make anyone feel bad...

southernbubby

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 3:54 am

We ate in an amazing restaurant in Kiryat Motzkin called Shelah because we were visiting my sister in law in Haifa.
I haven't spent lots of time in grocery stores here in EY but I don't see certain foods that are common in America. I may simply be looking in the wrong places.
My sister in law says that almost everything sold in America is available here.

chanchy123 ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 3:55 am

Zehava wrote:

I hate Israeli food. Breakfast (that ubiquitous salad...) lunch (Ewww falafel) and dinner (spicy dry shawarma anyone?) and yes I know they do the shawarma for lunch.

Clearly you are not very familiar with Israeli cuisine.
I'm actually having breakfast with DH at a branch of a large coffeshop chain in Jersaluem. They serve "international" breakfast dishes. DH ordered a Balkan breakfast I got an American one. We joked that my "American" breakfast was so un-American. My omlette came with herbs and mushrooms, a plate of roasted veggies, kalamata olives, tahini, a sliced zesty Israeli salad (have you ever had Israeli salad in Israel? It's anything but bland - unlike iceberg and mayo American salds). And cream cheese and lox and bp&j to represent America.
Israeli food is good because we use actual vegetables, herbs and spices. Not a bunch of cans, frozen products, mixes, and premade sauces.
I know that's not how all Americans cook but that's pretty typical.
Of course we have bad cooks here too and bad restaurants, but the standard is pretty great.

↑ chanchy123

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 3:59 am

amother [ Olive ] wrote:

Israeli produce doesn't look the best but tastes amazing.
I'm always surprised when visiting the US how shiny and beautiful the produce looks but how bland and tasteless it actually is...

To me most American produce tastes and looks like plastic.

gold2 ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 7:43 am

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

Isreali vegetables taste like earth. And all chicken is so dry and tastes weird.
I do like the bakery stuff though.

It's loshon hora talk like that about vegetables from EY thank you. I've had bad vegetables here in Israel and also out of Israel, good ones here and good ones outside.

Simple1

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 8:12 am

So much stereotyping on this thread on all sides. You can get good American produce if you shop at the right places like farmer's markets. I don't follow influencers, but I would guess that some are catering to the demand for quick easy recipes that fit into our busy lifestyles.

SuperWify

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 8:18 am

amother [ OP ] wrote:

But Israelis are much better cooks than Americans. It's actually quite comical how these American "food influencers" get 10s of thousands of people to make their recipes, and when I compare it to the Israeli influencers, they don't come close to deliciousness ... Just putting this out there, no specific reason...

There are great American cooks and great Israeli cooks as well.

Their are terrible American cooks and terrible Israeli cooks as well...

I really don’t see the point of your post which can be quite hurtful to some.

avrahamama

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 8:19 am

I can easily gain 10-15 pounds in Israel. Forget about the excellent quality of food. The air itself makes me hungry! And everything tastes better! Even if I brought a bag of chips with me from the states int tastes better in Israel. Hashem please help me be brave and strong enough and rich enough to make the move already!

↑ gold2

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 8:44 am

amother [ Pearl ] wrote:

I’m all for that.

But we are not talking about Eretz Yisroel, we are talking about certain cooks that happen to live in Israel.

Actually someone mentioned something derogatory about the actual food.

The cucumbers here are delicious and have so much flavor! There is a really good quality (expensive) greengrocers' near my husband's kollel and we sometimes splurge for shabbos. Delicious produce!!

FranticFrummie ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 8:57 am

Being a good cook is not a matter of nationality. It has everything to do with skill, and somewhat to do with what you have on hand. A good cook can make something yummy out of a bag of lentils and a carrot. A bad cook could ruin truffles and caviar.

Israel is a melting pot, just like America. It's fair for you to say "I don't care for Mediterranean food", but there are so many more influences in cuisine here. You just have to look around.

I'm constantly amazed at how delicious the fruits and vegetables are here. You have to shop in the right store though. Yesh veggies are often the bottom of the barrel, but Osher Ad veggies are always very nice. The Thursday/Friday produce markets have the freshest of the fresh. A tad more expensive, but if you want to get something special for Shabbos you'll always be happy with what you get there.

I am still mourning the loss of Gush Katif strawberries. The whole situation was a national disaster, but those strawberries were literally the best thing I have ever tasted in my whole life.

Now all you haters better run when Jewishfoodie shows up!

amother

↑ Chocolate ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:00 am

gold2 wrote:

You and other Israelis said that if you want good vegetables you have to splurge and that not all stores sell good veggies. So I guess the regular vegetables aren't so good & the good one's are expensive.

HonesttoGod

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:01 am

Let’s throw Australian into the mix. Or British?
How about French? Because French cuisine is amazing!

It’s so totally a matter of taste and also where you live. Trying American recipes in Israel will get you different results than they do here and vv.
Not to mention I have family members who are Israelis and I cook better than them.... no questions. So your claim is a bit too general

Rappel ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:05 am

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

You and other Israelis said that if you want good vegetables you have to splurge. So I guess the regular vegetables aren't so good & the good one's are expensive.

I buy in the normal supermarket, or at our local high school's green house. In Israel I love salads of all kinds, and spices taste fresh and unique. When I visited the States recently, I couldnt eat a salad. I could barely buy produce. And it's not that America can't grow good food - is just that that's not what makes it to the grocery store there. There is a huge difference between imported and local, seasonal food, and the flavour and feeling reflect that.

Last edited by Rappel on Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:10 am; edited 1 time in total

Mommyg8

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:07 am

amother [ Olive ] wrote:

Israeli produce doesn't look the best but tastes amazing.
I'm always surprised when visiting the US how shiny and beautiful the produce looks but how bland and tasteless it actually is...

Yes, this! The vegetables in Israel taste amazing but the vegetables here in America are pretty bland.

↑ Rappel

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:17 am

amother [ Olive ] wrote:

Israeli produce doesn't look the best but tastes amazing.
I'm always surprised when visiting the US how shiny and beautiful the produce looks but how bland and tasteless it actually is...

There's a reason for that Smile

One of Israel's primary exports is agriculture. We sell all the big, beautiful ones to Europe for a high price, and the small or funny-shaped ones locally. The taste is good though. I was surprised once when I was sharing out fruit at the park, and some little kids declined the big pretty apple I was cutting up and picked a little, squashed one - they said the one I was cutting was imported, and wouldn't taste right. And they were right!

↑ FranticFrummie

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:20 am

amother [ Chocolate ] wrote:

IME, the bad veggies were pretty specific to Yesh. The store is extremely low price, and popular with charedi people who have very large families. You can feed a lot of people with limp cucumbers and half green tomatoes. If nobody knows the difference, then it's not a big deal to them. Food is food.

To be fair, they also have a program with cash cards, that are given out through local charities. Each card is worth 100 shekels, and families get extra cards before the holidays. They do a great community service for people who would otherwise not have what to eat.

The produce at Arab owned stores is absolutely stunning. Hof haDekel always has good produce (which killed me during shmittah because it was so pretty, and the kosher veggies looked like last year's rejects.)

Faisal has the most beautiful produce of all, and the widest selection. The one time I went to a Faisal just outside Nahariya, I couldn't believe the variety and freshness. Not only that, but the staff was extremely friendly and respectful. If they saw you looking at something that didn't have a heksher, they'd run over and say "No, no, not for you! Not kosher!". Same thing at the checkout, they would not let you buy something you shouldn't. I'm not sure, but I think the store is run by Arab Christians. I was there in December, and there were decorated trees next to the Halal deli! LOL

amother

↑ Chocolate ↓

Fri, Feb 14 2020, 9:24 am

FranticFrummie wrote:

I guess we just ate at the wrong places then.
The fruit on the other hand is so beautiful, delicious, flavorful, and so juicy.