What makes food "Israeli"? Is it the flavors, the products, or maybe the chef's identity? Three leading Israeli chefs – Assaf Granit, Raz Rahav, and Naifa Mulla – came together to discuss this complex question with our Impact Collections members. The event took place at Asif, an institute that set its goal to research and promote Israeli culinary, and was accompanied by Asif's public programs manager Michal Levit. Leading the conversation, Granit offered terroir and local produce as possible answers to the question of Israeli food. Levit noted that Israel is a melting pot, and ever-changing food culture is embedded in its identity. "Israeli food is a state of mind," says OCD Chef Raz Rahav, "it's about Chutzpah. We like to change things up and not stick to well-established traditions."
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One hot topic was that of cultural appropriation, where politics meets food. "I am an Israel-born Druz," says Mulla. "My identity is a fusion. I cook my memories, traditional food, that shares origins with Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. But it is Israeli – because of the products, because of how I see food," she shared. "Israeli chefs are often criticized for the origins of their dishes. This would never happen with French or Italian food, for instance," argues Granit. "My way to tackle this is by always stating these origins. I choose to represent a culture that's not my own and I develop it, respect, and acknowledge it". "Many Druz chefs don't want to cook their traditional food, they prefer European cuisines. I believe that Israeli chefs that take on our traditions and advance them give our cuisine and culture great respect". – Naifa Mulla
Another issue on the (metaphorical and physical) table was that of women chefs. Granit noted that even a decade ago, professional kitchens were a hostile environment to women cooks. Mulla, who Granit sees as one of the chefs advancing the field, agreed with the complexities women face when choosing a cook's lifestyle. "I've heard 'you'll never get there' before, but I worked extremely hard to get to where I am." As the conversation continued, Granit focused on individuality. And indeed, food is both personal and public, emotional and political. Especially in Israel. Israeli food is all about balance – between tradition and innovation, between the local and the universal.
