What's the obsession with "dips" for every shab

↑ watergirl ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 9:10 am

amother OP wrote:

I feel like this all can go either way. No dips could a sign of a skimpy meal all around, or could be someone who is going all out with the rest of the meal and doesn't want their guests get stuffed on cheap bread and mayo dips. Lots of dips could be people wanting their guests to get stuffed on cheap bread and mayo dips so they can be skimpy with the rest of the meal, or it could be someone who goes all out with all the courses.

At a new family's house, you roll the dice. If there's a lot of dips, you never know to fill up on dips because there's not much else coming... or to save your appetite because there's a ton more coming.

Yeah, I have absolutely been a guest before when the host serves a ton of dips and challah, and then the main course is extremely sparse, for example, a small pot of cholent for the table and nothing else, and this has happened at multiple meals. It seems to be family preference bases and not community based.

There was even a strip in the kichels One week about bochrim In Israel, who visit different kinds of homes to have a full experience, and they go to a yerushalmi family with lots of dips and get very excited for the rest of the meal, only to find a single chicken leg for eight of them to share. Obviously, extremely exaggerated satire because it was a comic strip, but it’s funny because it’s happened too many people so we can relate.

The bottom line is, the safest bet is not to assume anything and always have back up food to eat at home after.

But man, if my meal was judged based on what I put out with my challah, that’s really frustrating.

amother

Indigo

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 9:31 am

amother OP wrote:

by obsessed, I mean that hosts seem to be obsessed with serving "dips" in the sense that it seems like there's a lot of peer pressure / keeping up with the rosens to do so.... and it's basically became a must at this point there a dip course is a mandatory customary part of the meal. and I feel like people spend a lot of time making dips that are barely eaten, which is sad.

not me. I didn't even see that last thread. link please?

Dunno, I do not do dips.
I like to serve salad with the fish because we don't all eat fish, this way people have what to eat, so I serve a few different types of marinated salads.

keym

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 9:39 am

Im not a fan of dips
Personally, I've never developed a taste for it, I try to not load up on too much challa, and my family has allergies.

40 years ago, Israelis would serve lots of dips with their (cheap) challa as a cost saver. 1 eggplant, some onions, garlic, 1 tomato and some oil can make a lot of different dips
(And ashkenazim used kugels and soup and cholent as a way to stretch the food.)

Americans had a lot of the mayo based salads- cole slaw, potato salad, pasta salad, egg salad, liver, chrain, mayonnaise, chrayonnaise.
This was really just based off the 70s American cooking model.
My very frum, very American grandmothers would base their Shabbos menu off "Better homes" with cole slaw, macaroni salad, and jello molds.
And Meal Mart in the 80s had a proliferation of "salads" which were all mayonnaise based, some without any vegetables.
Thats what everyone served as their main course together with the gefilte fish, or liver.

As travel became more prevalent and cultures merged, the cultures and cuisines mixed.

But someone who does dips isn't trying to "keep up with the Cohen's" unless they don't eat the dips and just think it's something that they need to have.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 9:42 am

amother Indigo wrote:

Dunno, I do not do dips.
I like to serve salad with the fish because we don't all eat fish, this way people have what to eat, so I serve a few different types of marinated salads.

I serve several types of salads as part of the "appetizer" course. usually one with greens, others with other other types of veggies or legumes, depending on the "theme."

I guess this is more akin to how a variety of salads are served in the "salatim" mix of an israeli / middle eastern meal.

the good thing about actual salads -- is that they can be eaten alongside bread for people who want a lot of bread, and they can be eaten without bread for people who want to limit bread.

I'm also never sure when people use the term "dips" if they're actually referring to things that can only be eaten dipped in bread that are unusual to eat themselves (eg tehnina) or are they generally referring to appetizers / salatim.

bigsis144

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 9:57 am

We don’t have guests very often. I’m definitely not showing off for anyone?

My family is very neurodivergent/ARFID/picky, so I gotta make sure everyone has at least one thing they’ll eat, and hopefully it’s somewhat nutritious…

2 of my kids barely eat challah, but another one only eats challah and literally nothing else at the table, so I gotta make plentiful challah.

DH likes his challah with hummus, matbucha, tomato-olive-oil dip, roasted balsamic bell peppers, pesto, etc. We don’t really do any mayo-based dips. Often DH is very happy to get mostly full on these - he eats leftover challah and dips throughout the week for vegetarian lunches that include lots of protein (hummus), vegetables (tomatoes, bell peppers), and healthy fats (olive oil).

No fish, unless I make a piece just for myself cuz no one else will eat it.

My kids who don’t eat challah OR fish eat chicken soup with boiled chicken. (DH doesn’t like boiled chicken.) So soup and hopefully the kids will get some vegetables and protein.

And by then everyone has wandered off, and I’m YOTZEI feeding my crew. Not impressing anybody but who cares.

—

TL;DR

My parents have served dips with challah since the 90’s, maybe cuz I grew up in Los Angeles where the Persian/sefardi influence was already pretty significant.

I serve dips because it wouldn’t be Shabbos for DH without ‘em, but they’re a genuine source of nutrition

amother

Cornsilk ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:06 am

amother Springgreen wrote:

No your hunch is completely off the wall. Even if I'd be alone on an island I'd want my dips because of their taste. So peer pressure it is not.

Anything in this material world runs on trends.
It's the way hashem created it.
That being said some people do their own thing while others feel that they are not balabuste enough without a variety of dips.

amother

↑ Cornsilk

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:09 am

amother OP wrote:

c'mon, I made very clear above--theme meaning a type of cuisine. plenty of people have ethnic cuisines for shabbat. nobody thought a themed shabbat means a star wars or harry potter shabbat.

Op, I also realized it has become an obsession by some.

amother

Latte

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:18 am

I am old enough to have grown up before dips were a thing.
I honestly believe they started to encourage people to fill up on challah and eat less meat and other expensive food. Dips used to be homemade and cheap.
But we live in a world of show and one-upmanship, so they became fancy and another keeping up with the Cohens.
How or why anyone thinks a course of bread with mayo and a little eggplant, or even tomato and olive oil, or olives squished with mayo, or garlic and mayo is a beneficial addition to their meal? But we know how society works.

I don’t serve a challah course. If I want to serve a multi course fancy meal, a serve a salad course with greens, not mayo.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:48 am

amother Latte wrote:

It's a little funny that the "dips" course, even today, is still both: 1) a way to be frugal and fill your guests up on cheap unhealthy stuff to save money on proper food; and 2) a way to be fancy (or to be forced to be fancy) and keep up with the cohens and spend quite a bunch of discretionary money on luxury products.

separately, I also think the "dips" trend is bolstered by the proliferation of instagram, whatsapp, etc. and the corresponding "dips businesses" that wouldnt have been able to market themselves in the way they did before social media.

amother

↑ Chartreuse ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:56 am

amother OP wrote:

We are all telling you that it's literally none of those reasons. but ok.
We have dips because we like them. End of story.

imanotmommy

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 10:58 am

amother OP wrote:

c'mon, I made very clear above--theme meaning a type of cuisine. plenty of people have ethnic cuisines for shabbat. nobody thought a themed shabbat means a star wars or harry potter shabbat.

Our theme is "foods we enjoy".
Sometimes that's a selection of dips, chinese style chicken, potato kugel, and garlic string beans.
I can't related to paying $6 for 6 oz of dip, but I do understand preparing and eating them. I haven't had your experience of people just taking and not eating.

ETA: Im going to amuse myself by assuming that I got a hug because someone feels so bad that we have such unthematic, non traditional Shabbos meals. Thank you for your sympathy! LOL

Last edited by imanotmommy on Mon, Sep 23 2024, 2:32 pm; edited 1 time in total

amother

Maroon ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:03 am

I didn't read the whole thread, but my dips take 10 mins and can freeze for a month or 2 worth of dips. Its not hard. I didn't grow up eating dips, but when I got married my dh loved dips so I made them occassionally for him. Then my kids loved dips. And every time we have dips with guests they get devoured. So I guess we don't run in the same circles. Also I have never heard of a "themed" shabbos meal. We have ashkanazi food every week! LOL

↑ Aurora ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:07 am

amother Maroon wrote:

Would you please post recipes for these dips that take 10 minutes?

Separately, I figure dips are like deli roll. They're tasty and popular, and will probably show up on tables for the next few years.

etky ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:13 am

Don't do dips. Never had them growing up and although here in Israel lots of people do, it's not our thing. Our guests have gotten used to a plated first course at our home.
I bake my own challah and it is sweet. It doesn't go with dips. People appreciate if for what it is and then proceed to the first course.
Personally I feel that a challah and dips course is just too much food. As it is our meal is three full courses and many people are challenged even by that much food. As a hostess I don't want people to fill up on the challah. It detracts from the enjoyment of the rest of the meal which I work hard to prepare.
Maybe it's a generational thing. I grew up in an era when a half grapefruit (with a candied cherry in the middle Wink

) or a small fruit cup was a perfectly acceptable first course. Gefilte fish or a scoop of liver or egg salad on a slice of tomato, often accompanied by cole slaw or potato salad was luxe.

amother

Eggplant

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:21 am

amother OP wrote:

Nothing to do with social media. It’s most popular in places without it.

Many People like to enhance the classic challah and fish course with more taste and excitement. Also Just eating a little doesn’t mean it’s a trend it means that the person doesnt see it as a full course it’s a dressing and a culinary experience.

amother

↑ OP ↓

Mon, Sep 23 2024, 11:22 am

amother Chartreuse wrote:

We are all telling you that it's literally none of those reasons. but ok.
We have dips because we like them. End of story.

you may be misreading my intent. 1) and 2) weren't exclusive of other reasons. I get that people just like them. And you can like dips AND get them to keep up with the cohens. (I don't see why there's anything wrong with wanting to be trendy, provided you like the food.). you also can like dips AND get them for frugality purposes (I also don't see why there's anything wrong with getting food that keeps your meals inexpensive, provided you like the food.)

also, it's just not true what "we are all telling you..." many people on here are saying people are serving dips for either frugality or to keep up with the cohens.