Why do Jews Eat Chinese Food on Christmas?

It's been a tradition, or better said, a common practice, for Jews to eat Chinese food on Christmas day, either by going to Chinese restaurants or buying Chinese takeout food for dinner at home.

Supreme Court justice Elena Kagan made it sort of official when she was asked during her confirmation hearing where she was on Christmas day. Here's what she said:

 

The reasons most cited for the affinity between Jews and Chinese food are that Chinese restaurants are generally open on Christmas day, most of their menu items do not include dairy, and that their non-kosher meats are chopped up and hidden inside of dumplings or wrappers.

 

Today it's not so easy to find a kosher Chinese restaurant in many cities, but you'll likely have a selection to choose from if you live in the New York-New Jersey area, or in other states with large Jewish communities like South Florida, Los Angeles, or in Israel.

Dani Klein is doing a great service to the kosher Jewish community by providing an updated list of kosher restaurants worldwide at www.yeahthatskosher.com. To find a certified restaurant in your area, his website is worth checking out. 

Also be sure to check out the smartphone apps Kosher Near Me and Kosher GPS.

Jewish Foodie Ori Laizerouvich Visits Lower East Side and Coney Island Restaurants

In its latest effort to strengthen the bond between Israel and American Jewry, the Ruderman Family Foundation this month launched a 10-part original video series, “Jewish Foodie.” 

The series aims to encourage Israelis to deepen their knowledge about U.S. Jewish communities, and Jewish Americans to become better acquainted with their rich and diverse heritage and culture, all accomplished through a rich and fascinating culinary journey of Jewish food across the U.S.

As reported in The Jewish Link,

Hosted by the well-known Israeli actor and comedian Ori Laizerouvich, “Jewish Foodie” takes viewers on a journey of the broad diversity of American Jewry as a whole and its communities in particular through the innovative vehicle of food.

Focusing on the personal stories and cultural influences associated with Jewish food in four American regions, the series explores the Northeast, with its bagels and lox, knishes, delis, hot dogs, Chinese food and vegan fare; the Southeast, including barbecue, bourbon and baked goods; the Southwest, featuring tacos, Jewish-style burgers with latkes (“Jew Boy Burger”), huevos rancheros and rodeo food; and the Midwest, with pastrami sandwiches, bison burgers and Canukah gelt-making.

Viewers not only discover American Jewish communities’ food stories, but also the broader character of the communities themselves and their members, including communities whose Jewish presence may be surprising.

Actor and comedian Laizerouvich is a familiar face to fans of the Chai Flicks streaming series Shababnikim (The New Black) where he plays the role of Gedaliah, a very religious and very serious Yeshiva student.

In this second episode of the series, Laizerouvich visits Nathan's Famous in Coney Island, Buddha Bodai One in Chinatown, and the vegan Orchard Grocer on Manhattan's Lower East Side.

 (A note to our readers: While all of the food establishments visited by Laizerouvich specialize in Jewish food, only a few of them have kosher certification. In this New York video, only Buddha Bodai One is certified kosher.)

Be sure to subscribe to Jewish Humor Central. Just enter your email address in the box at the upper left of our home page for your automatic free subscription. Or enter www.jewishhumorcentral.com into your browser each day. We'll be sharing the next nine episodes of this series with you each Sunday. Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

Throwback Thursday Comedy Special: Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca in "Chinese Dinner"

It's Throwback Thursday again and today we get another chance to go back to the 1950s and another episode of The Hickenloopers on Your Show of Shows.

Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca starred in many episodes of the hilarious marital tribulations of Doris and Charlie Hickenlooper. In this sketch, Sid Caesar plays a husband who picks up a Chinese dinner on the way home from work, unaware that his wife has spent the whole day in the kitchen cooking a steak dinner for them.

Carl Reiner joins in the fun as their neighbor, who performs some impressive sleight-of-mouth with Chinese food. 

No date is available for this sketch, which has only been released on very rare out of print VHS/Betamax tapes. We're grateful to a Sid Caesar super fan who found these tapes, had them transferred digitally, and shared them with a poster who made them available on YouTube.

Enjoy!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

  

#Throwback Thursday    #TBT

Throwback Thursday Chanukah Special: Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan's Response at Confirmation Hearing

When Supreme Court Justice Elana Kagan was going through her confirmation hearings in 2010, it was Senator Lindsey Graham's turn, and the subject was the Christmas Day bomber. Senator Graham asked her where she was on Christmas day.

After Kagan asked for a clarification, Graham persisted and said that he only asked where she was on Christmas. Kagan's response was priceless.

"You know, like all Jews, I was probably at a Chinese restaurant."

Enjoy, and Happy Chanukah!

A SPECIAL NOTE FOR NEW EMAIL SUBSCRIBERS:  THE VIDEO MAY NOT BE VIEWABLE DIRECTLY FROM THE EMAIL THAT YOU GET EACH DAY ON SOME COMPUTERS AND TABLETS.  YOU MUST CLICK ON THE TITLE AT THE TOP OF THE EMAIL TO REACH THE JEWISH HUMOR CENTRAL WEBSITE, FROM WHICH YOU CLICK ON THE PLAY BUTTON IN THE VIDEO IMAGE TO START THE VIDEO.

#Throwback Thursday   #TBT