Israel and India: A Shared Cuisine

When one thinks of Israel's and India's cuisine, similarities between the two are not necessarily the first thing that come to mind. The reality, however, is that there is an impressive shared culinary history between the two regions and more commonalities and overlap between the two cuisines than one might think.

The Incense and Spice Route

Israel's and India's shared food history goes back at least to the famed incense and spice routes dating back to the beginning of the first millennium C.E. Spices, grown and processed in India were sent over various routes on their way to their main market in Europe. One of the most popular routes was through the Arabian peninsula and the Nabataean empire that extended into what is now Israel on its way to the ancient Gaza port where they were shipped by boat to Europe. Today only the ruins of cities such as Petra, Avdat, Shivta and Mamshit (amongst others) bear testament to the once impressive trade that provided much of the western world with the spices for their food.

More than history, there is shared food between the two countries. Sabich, considered to be one of the most "Israeli" foods, owes part of its origin to India. Sabich is a dish considered by most of Iraqi origin, consisting of fried eggplant, hardboiled egg and various vegetables in a pita bread. Sabich cannot be complete without its signature amba sauce. Amba, a spicy mango sauce, is of Indian origin and was introduced to Iraqis and Iraqi Jews via India. Hummus/Chickpea/Garbanzo is a staple of both Israel and India and there is no shortage of dishes with this ingredient in the two countries.

 Sabich (www.herbavacious.com)

Finally, since the creation of the state of Israel there have been thousands of Jewish-Indian immigrants contributing their culinary cultures to the foods that comprise Israeli cuisine. There are dozens of wonderful Israeli restaurants everywhere there are Indian communities from Shaked in the North to Tel Aviv and Ramle in the central region and Moshav Nevatim in the Negev.

LeadEarth

Israel and India: A Shared Cuisine

Israel and Oil Spills?

As the world watches the disaster that is taking place in the Gulf of Mexico, there are a few events happening closer to Israel that are worth taking note of.

In the last week its been reported that there has been an oil spill in the Egyptian Red Sea that was not as contained as the Egyptian authorities initially claimed. While the spill does now appear to have been stopped, the Egyptian government has most likely not been entirely honest about the amount of oil spilled in the pristine coral reefs and marine areas of the Red Sea. With such close proximity to Israel this is an issue that should be of more concern to Israelis.

In recent years Israel has found enormous gas deposits in its northern waters. While a potential economic boon to the economy, I would hope that the Gulf and Red Sea spills would serve as a warning to the government about the potential ecological disasters that can happen. There needs to be strong safety regulations in place so that we don't have to read similar headlines in Israeli papers to those all over the US for the past few months since the Gulf spill began.

LeadEarth

Israel and Oil Spills?

Sustainable agriculture is big business and What's on the roof?

This blog focuses on the phenomenon of solar panels to heat water in Israel and the increasing interest from venture capital firms in sustainable argiculture...

Its nice to see Israel get some credit worldwide for its technological innovations, let alone environmentally friendly ones as well. This interesting article points out how South Africa can adopt Israel's use of solar panel technology to heat water to save on energy costs. The "dud" or solar panel driven water heaters is becoming something of an iconic image for Israel. Almost every building is littered with solar panels and water tanks on the roof, and its a source of pride for the country.

The state of almost every roof in Israel

How can Israel help export the adoption of solar panel heated water heaters elsewhere in the world, especially places that are not connected to electricity grids or are not sufficiently connected to the grid? Its a project LeadEarth can potentially invest in the Sadhanna Forest location in Tamil Nadu, India.

“Sustainable agriculture is a space that looks as big or bigger than clean tech"

That's quite a statement, yet that's what one venture capitalist thinks and many are starting to take notice. The New York Times profiled one such venture that is is linking those in the sustainable agriculture field to venture capitalists. NewSeed Advisors is scouring the market trying to help those with ideas for products to advance sustainable agriculture find the funding they need.

Israel is actually a pioneeer in sustainable agriculture technologies with companies such as Netafim creating some of the first irrigation systems and fertilizer propogration systems that enable proper irrigation and enable the farmer to save water in the process. These technologies, that are relatively inexpensive, can have a huge impact on developing world farmers and agriculture. Another thing for the LeadEarth participants to think about when they build their projects.

A Netafim irrigation tube helps this vineyard properly get water and save water at the same time

Finally, remember check out the new Masa LeadEarth website!

Sustainable agriculture is big business and What's on the roof?

India-Israel Cooperation

Israel and India have very strong relations today. This blog will explore different aspects of the cooperation and relationship between the different countries in a variety of sectors. As environmental and agricultural awareness and education is a key element of the LeadEarth program we will examine the environmental and agricultural cooperation between the countries in today's post.

While olives are most closely associated with the Mediterranean region, an Israeli initiative is hoping to make India a major player in the olive industry. Israel is credited with making their Negev desert bloom, and now Israelis are trying to "green" the desert region of Rajasthan in Northern India. Through a combination of irrigation, wastewater treatment, and agricultural technologies the aim is to make India an exporter of olive oil by 2011. 

Can Israeli technologies make the desert bloom again?

  

Israel and India recently signed an agreement to promote increased scientific cooperation and development between the two countries. Not surprisingly, renewable energy initiatives was one of the main focuses of the initiative. Israel is now one of the world's leading developers of renewable energy technologies through a large variety of companies, and India is just one of many markets that can benefit from these technologies. 

Although not related to the environment or agriculture, this fun blog posts relates on tourists experience with Israeli cuisine...in India and is worth checking out!

LeadEarth

India-Israel Cooperation