Hanukkah (Chanukah) Foods

What Do You Know About Hanukkah Food Traditions?

December 20, 2011

December isn't all about cookie swaps, tree trimmings, and Christmas dinners; at sundown tonight, Hanukkah, the eight-day Jewish Festival of Lights, begins. You may be familiar with menorahs and dreidels, but what do you know about the celebration's food traditions? Find out when you take our quiz.

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8 Comments

limelightqueen 3 years

If Brisket is a traditional dish for Hanukkah then dairy cannot be a key component. If dairy is a key component then brisket cannot be eaten. At least not among traditional jews. The laws of Kosher forbid the eating of meat and milk in the same meal. I'm an orthodox jew and I've never heard of either of these traditions.

3 years

Dairy (cheese) is eaten because Judith fed Cheese and Wine to intoxicate the enemy's head man (forget his name), then beheaded him, allowing the Jews to triump. Forget the specific enemy and battle

notinthemood 3 years

I know next-to nothing about Jewish customs... that kind of surprised me! I knew about the meat-dairy thing, but I was surprised by the "dairy is important" thing.

michlny 3 years

And yes, dairy and meat cannot be served or consumed together. In fact, you need to wait 6 hours between eating the two....

michlny 3 years

Never heard of the dairy thing? Interesting....

Vanonymous 3 years

i thought the dairy and meat just had to be on separate plates/not touching. i could be wrong though.

snarkypants 3 years

i also don't eat dairy with my hanukkah meal, because of the brisket. but maybe on one of the other days i'll cheese it up.

3 years

I’m certainly not an expert on Judaism (even though I’m married to a Jew). But, the dairy for a key ingredient seems strange to me. I know that brisket is very popular for Hanukkah dinner. To keep kosher (I believe), you do not mix “milk and meat”. So having dairy as a large part of a meal serving brisket seems off. Just my thoughts .. again, no expert here.

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8 Comments