Reading cookbooks : Israeli food and the international relations of the every day.

Abstract

To explore the foods of another country, people or region is one way to visit other parts of the world, to discover different tastes and customs, and perhaps in the search for key ingredients, to meet new people with ties to these lands. Yet embarking on this local form of culinary tourism also involves a reflexive experience where the pursuit for authentic flavors impels us to ask why authenticity matters, and what we assume to be authentic in any case. Moreover, the types of food we serve can say a lot about who we are. For example, to serve “Israeli” food such as hummus at a Synagogue event is a reaffirmation of the Israelization of Diaspora Jewish identity. Yet, within the field of International Relations, to examine the politics of food is rarely if ever done in these ways. This is a shame. Food has a lot to tell us about the world we inhabit.