Food & Drinks

The Complete Guide to Jewish Food, and What on Earth That Means

In her sumptuous King Solomon’s Table, Joan Nathan dares to define it, then takes us on a 3,000-year journey around the world.
Photographer: Gabriela Herman

All too often, and to the dismay of everyone who knows better, Jewish food gets boiled down to bagels, matzo balls, and brisket.

These are staples, to be sure, but they all hail from the same part of the world—Eastern Europe—while Jews have, at one point or another, populated almost every corner of the earth. Thanks to their historic roles as both merchants and, often, refugees, Jewish cuisine encompasses flavors from Tunisia to Toronto, India to Israel, Babylonia to Brooklyn.