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The
roots of Jewish
cooking, however, are
in the Middle East, where
the Jews came from, and
it was heavily influenced
by the cuisine of Ancient
Egypt and the Byzantine
Empire. It has been suggested,
for example, that the major
role played by garlic, leek
and onions in Jewish cooking
is due to these influences.
Arab and Moorish cooking
had an equal influence on
the Jewish cuisine.
At the same time, aspects
of Jewish
cooking were often adopted
by the cultures in which
they lived. The rose jam
which is typical of Russian
and Galician cookery, for
example, may have originally
been imported by Jews during
the golden age of Jewish
culture in Spain.
As other Semitic peoples,
the Jews have dietary laws;
the basic laws of kashrut
are in the Biblical book
of Leviticus. Food not in
accord with Jewish law is
termed treifah or treif
(טרפה)
("torn"); according
to Orthodox and Conservative
Judaism, Jews are only allowed
to eat
kosher. |
