Israeli Couscous: Jewish Food! Shashlik: Russian Food! A Great Combination For Dinner

Have you ever had shashlik? What? You have never had shashlik? Have you ever had Israeli couscous? What? You haven't had Israeli couscous? You are missing out! This week I am making shashlik which is Russian food and Israeli couscous which is Jewish food! The two of these cuisines makes an excellent combination and an excellent meal to make your entire family very happy. Shashlik is claimed by so many countries and cultures that in my research I could not really find out who made shashlik first. All I know is that I have eaten it twice this week and it was delicious!

In Russia Shashlik or Shashlyk as it's pronounced  is a barbequed skewered meat dish that is served in Russia and althrough the eastern block of Europe as well as in other parts of the world such as Israel, Pakistan, India, Mongolia, Morocco and central Asia. The word Shashlyk means skewered meat.y BBQ the shashlik on a grill called a "mangal" which is a square fire pit filled with charcoal or wood or a combination of both. Shashlik can be made out of any type of meat you like such as chicken, pork, beef, veal or lamb. Depending on where you are in the world and what the cultural or religious beliefs are in place will dictate which meat will be used in the shashlik. Shashlik traditionally is marinated in a highly acidic marinade overnight and this acidity helps to break down the proteins in the meat and also makes for really tender meat. As with any dish from any country in the world there are a million and one ways to make a dish. This particular shashlik recipe is a cross between the Uzbek, Russian, Georgian and Israeli recipes as I find it to be one of the more simpler and delicious shashlik recipes out there. Everyone has their own way of making shashlik and I am sure they are all DELICIOUS!

Shashlik is a kabob style of Russian food but shashlik is not a shish kabob although many people do confuse the two.  As I stated shashlik comes from many parts of the world from Russia, Bulgaria to Israel and more. With shashlik recipes all the recipes are interchangeable. All of the meats can be used to make this dish, beef, chicken, veal, lamb. When making shashlik you can separate the chunks of meat with a vegetable like onion or a tomato or even a piece of fat or just about any kind of vegetable will work.

Shashlik is not a shish kabob although many people do confuse the two. The difference is the preparation of the shashlik which is the making of a highly acidic marinade along with herbs and spices that help to break down the proteins in the meat being used and hence keep the meat nice and tender. There are any number of ways to make the marinade acidic such as vinegar, wine, or citric acid from lemons or limes.

Shashlik is probably the best known skewered meat dish that is prepared all over the world and everyone claims to have created it.  It can be served with warm flat bread or rolls and an assortment of salads, it is a delicious way to become familiar with a true international dish! The version of shashlik that I am making is a bit of a cross from the Uzbek, Estonian, Russian and Georgian and Israeli  versions of this dish as they are all very close.  I will be making a side dish of Israeli couscous with sun dried tomatoes and kalamata olives. This two dishes from two cultures truly compliment each other. Enjoy the video and make this recipe your own!



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Jewish Food: Kasha? Kasha Recipes? Kupecheskaya!

 Hi everyone! This week I am making Jewish food. That's right! Jewish food. I know this is a basic departure from the usual Asian or Italian cuisine that I love so much but I am doing it. I am making a traditional Jewish food called Kasha or Kasha Varniskes. I am actually going to make one of the more popular kasha recipes called "Kupecheskaya." This kasha version is the traditional Russian Jewish kasha. I have been taking requests on my Youtube channel for a long time and one of my viewer sent me an email and asked my to make some Jewish food.

I don't have much experience with Jewish food, I mean I have had chopped liver and matzo ball soup but I have never really delved into Jewish food. So to me this was more than just a request, this was a bit of a challenge. I sat on my kaboose for about a week doing research into Jewish food and I found kasha! There are a few kasha recipes out there and they are all basically the same as kasha is a basic type of dish of buckwheat or groats and either egg noodle bowtie pasta or semolina farfalle pasta and some other small variations to the ingredients of the dish.

Kasha recipes are a very basic dish to make and can be made as either a vegetarian or vegan dish if you like by using some form of cooking oil like vegetable or olive oil. The traditional kasha recipes call for either rendered chicken fat or cooking oil. I am going the traditional route today and I will be using rendered chicken fat in my kasha.

Kasha is as I said buckwheat groats and the word "Varnishkes" is the Yiddish/Jewish term for the bowtie pasta used in kasha recipes. The Russian also use ground up buckwheat in their blini pancakes which the Russians eat with caviar. Buckwheat groats are also used in Japan and other countries to make soba noodles for dishes like Korean japchea. In eastern Europe kasha  and kasha recipes are a crowd pleasing comfort food that is delicious and good for you.

So this week I picked my favorite of the kasha recipes that I found and I will be making Russian kasha varnishkes or "Kupecheskaya" which is the kasha made with sauteed onions, garlic, mushrooms and scrambled eggs. Sometimes the scrambled eggs are omitted and hard boiled eggs are used instead. Kasha is either served as a main course or as a side dish to beef brisket or anything else you would like to serve it with. Go ahead and make some kasha and various kasha recipes I know you will love it as much as I do now. Enjoy the video and I hope to hear some good comments.



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