Even More Interesting Pieces of Jewish Historical Trivia (Food Edition)

Food and history are irrevocably intertwined, and it is difficult to talk about the scope of one without the influence of the other. Accessibility to food has affected the march of empires, and cultural recipes are the conduits that connect a people with the traditions of the past. The very essence of kosher food is the fact that it follows laws written down long ago in history, and to keep kosher is an act of keeping one’s heritage alive - that one thing that enriches one’s kosher vacations is discovering the history of kosher food that originated from the places you’re visiting.

While we can’t freely travel to these places right now (because of the global pandemic), we can still read about them. Here are a few pieces of Jewish food trivia that might pique your interest.

The Kosher Sausage that Saved Jews from the Spanish Inquisition

Photo Credit: blog.education.nationalgeographic.org
Photograph by The Photographer, courtesy Wikimedia. CC-BY-SA-4.O

The Expulsion of Jews from Spain in1942 was a tragic event. Harsher still was the force of the Spanish Inquisition at time, a force that sought to persecute the non-Christians of Spain in horrific ways. Some Jews pretended to convert but kept their Jewish faith, and to keep themselves safe, they decided to trick the Inquisitors by hanging alheiras outside their houses. Alheiras are non pork sausages stuffed with beef, chicken, and breadcrumbs. These decoys were totally kosher, but the Inquisitors, assuming that the household ate pork, suspected nothing. This Portugese dish saved plenty of lives, and is quite delicious too.

The Contribution of Jews in Popularizing Chocolate in France

Photo Credit: blog.bayonne-tourisme.com/bayonne-chocolate-capital

The aforementioned Spanish expulsion led to some Jews fleeing to other parts of Europe, such as France.  Back in Spain, chocolate was a luxury of the nobility, but as the Jews spread out from Spain, some Sephardic Jews brought the secrets of chocolate-making with them, most notably the ones that migrated to Bayonne. They taught the people of Bayonne how to make chocolate, and were expert chocolatiers until the locals attempted to ban them from the chocolate industry (unjust, we know.) Thankfully this unfair ban was lifted, and Bayonne, now known as the chocolate capital of France, seeks to give honor to the Jews, who first brought the art of chocolate making to them. When this pandemic subsides, Bayonne might be a good place for a Jewish vacation.