Dietary Restrictions for Judaism

    As reported by the students at Hinsdale Central, Quest food services does not provide enough food options to meet the dietary guidelines for Judaism.  Quest should be educated on these rules of a strict kosher diet.  Students who practice the Jewish religion can not mix dairy with meat and are not allowed to have pork or pork products and shellfish.  An option for Quest would be to supply food options and ingredients that don't include meat.  One common ingredient in many Jewish meals is Matzah Meal.  Matzah meal is unleavened bread that comes from Matzah bread.  If Quest couldn't find Matzah meal, they could substitute bread crumbs for it. By supplying less meat and trying to include ingredients from the Jewish culture, Quest 

could not only diversify the products they get but make the students at Hinsdale Central very happy.

    In the Jewish religion, there are a lot of unique food options to choose from.  The picture to the right is showing freshly baked challah bread.  Jews break it at the start of every meal and holiday like Passover.  Another popular dish in the Jewish religion is called Gefilte Fish.  According to this website, Gefilte Fish is a ball of chopped up fish that can be served warm or cold.  It is made with fish like carp or pike.  A knish is another type of food that Jews eat.  It is a potato and flour dumpling that can be stuffed with cheese, mashed potato, onion, chopped liver, and buckwheat.  In Jewish culture, they eat holishkes which are stuffed cabbage.  This is similar to what some people eat in America.  These can be stuffed with meatballs and glazed with a sweet and sour sauce.  Lastly, eaten in Jewish culture is a slowly cooked stew with beef, barley, and beans in it called Cholent.  This is a traditional meal that Jews eat for lunch or dinner.

    We need to understand the Jewish diet in our schools because we need to embrace diversity.  Students should be able to eat the foods that are allowed by their religion.   We shouldn't just allow chicken patties or pizza every day at lunch.  We need to expand all of our pallets and have a willingness to try some Jewish food!