Eat and Be Satisfied: A Social History of Jewish Food

by John Cooper

Eat and Be Satisfied is the first comprehensive and critical history of Jewish food from biblical times until the present. John Cooper explores the traditional foods―the everyday diets as well as the specialties for the Sabbath and festivals―of both the Ashkenazic and Sephardic cuisines. He discusses the often debated question of what makes certain foods "Jewish" and details the evolution of such traditional dishes as cholent and gefilte fish.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Judaism, Food History

280 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 1993

About the author

There is more than one author with this name

Through extensive research in libraries in the United States, London, and Jerusalem, John Cooper has become a pioneer in the field of Jewish culinary history. He was a lecturer at the first Oxford Symposium on Jewish Food and at the Spiro Jewish Food Conference. Cooper studied history at Balliol College at Oxford University, where he received an M.A. He is an attorney in London, where he lives with his wife and two children.

Reviews

[Joel Haber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Top three in my Jewish Food book collection. Extremely well researched, which is why you will find it quoted and referenced incessantly by other Jewish Food texts. Slightly more academic in style, it might be boring to some more casual readers. But for those interested in the subject, it is a treasure trove of information. Unlike many others, the book is sourced in endnotes, which I very much appreciate. That being said, it is done in a slightly older style, where references cover everything in a paragraph, rather than specific sentences or lines. Very useful still, but a bit annoying. A few of the author's claims seems suspect, but those are few and far between, and since he sources his work, it is easier to check and evaluate.

[Lgordo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing isn't much, but he covers a great deal of ground with excessive enthusiasm.