There are two phenomena that you will find wherever you travel in the world, that people love to snack and each country has their own snacking preferences. On YouTube there are a number of short movies showing people trying snacks from another country for the first time. Israel of course has been featured, and by featured, I mean numerous times.
Trying to come up with a short list of Israeli snacks is not easy but here is just a taste of some of the things people snack on in Israel:
Pretzels – These baked dough snacks come in a range of shapes and sizes with an assortment of different toppings from salt to sesame seeds. A meeting in Israel is not a meeting without them! Companies such as Meir Bagel have been modernizing this snack and they have even created a protein pretzel!
Peanut Puffs – Light, silky smooth and very peanutty. This is literally one of the first snacks a baby is weaned on and research suggests it is the reason why peanut allergies are rare in Israel. Companies such as Cheeky Monkey have started to export them around the world.
Bissli – Literally means a bite for me in Hebrew but people still share it! A crunchy wheat snack that comes in a variety of flavours such as grilled, pizza, onion and barbeque. Great for people who like to take their snacks slowly and crunch one at a time!
Crembo – Many people see this as a seasonal product that comes in when ice cream goes out. People debate exactly what it is! It has a biscuit base, a splodge of marshmallow cream, encased in chocolate and then wrapped in a piece of foil. Kids love them and adults eat them when they feel like going back to their childhood.
Chocolate Covered Wafers – Wafers are very popular in Israel and the chocolate covered wafer is a natural progression. There are two kinds of them, ones with a thin layer of often synthetic chocolate and those which have much better quality, thicker chocolate which are sold as chocolate bars.
Sunflower Seeds – A real traditional Israeli snack. Break the shell with your mouth and suck out the seed. Probably one of the few foods that consumes more energy trying to eat it than you produce from digesting it. There are whole shops based round seeds, dried fruits and nuts in Israel and they can be found in every town and city.
Snacking in Israel is quite unique. Israel being a melting pot of immigrants has greatly influenced the food available as has Israeli wish to innovate. Enjoy!