Izzeldin Bukhari (Arabic: عزالدين البخاري) is a Palestinian chef from Jerusalem. In 2017, he founded Sacred Cuisine, which organizes food tours, supper clubs, cooking classes, and other events to promote vegetarian Palestinian cuisine.
Izzeldin Bukhari | |
|---|---|
| عزالدين البخاري | |
| Born | 1984 or 1985 (age 38–39)[1] Jerusalem |
| Occupation |
|
| Known for | founding Sacred Cuisine |
| Website | https://sacred-cuisine.com |
Early Life and Family
editIn 1616, Bukhari's ancestors immigrated to the Old City of Jerusalem from Bukhara, Uzbekistan to open a zawiya. Several of his family members, including his father, were Sufi sheikhs.[2][3][4] One of his ancestors is Imam Muhammad Ismail al-Bukhari.[5]
Bukhari was born around 1985.[1][6] He grew up in Jerusalem with 3 sisters, interacting with people from various backgrounds and countries who had come to visit his family's zawiya. In 2010, Bukhari's father died.[5]
Bukhari is based in Jerusalem but has family members living in the Gaza Strip, including his sister.[7][8] By the end of October 2023, 31 of his family members had been killed and others had been injured by Israeli airstrikes in the Israel-Hamas War.[8][6] He has spoken with news media about the difficulty of maintaining contact with his family in Gaza and worrying for their safety.[8][6]
Career
editBukhari is a self-taught chef.[4][5] In 2009, he moved to Arizona in the United States.[2] Away from home, he missed Palestinian food and began cooking it with spices mailed to him by his family.[2][5]
In 2015, Bukhari returned to Jerusalem.[5] Two years later, he founded Sacred Cuisine, a company that organizes food tours, supper clubs, cooking classes, and other events centered on vegetarian Palestinian cuisine.[5][2][3] One of his most popular tours explores the Old City of Jerusalem and features foods like hummus, kras beid, freekeh, za'atar, mutabbaq, and halva.[5][3][9][2] Past tour participants include Jamie Oliver.[10][2]
Through Sacred Cuisine, Bukhari promotes Somi or vegetarian Palestinian food.[11][5] According to Bukhari, traditional Palestinian cuisine is primarily vegetarian.[2][5][12] He creates vegetarian versions of dishes; for example, he replaces the meat in mahashi with cauliflower, walnuts, and mushrooms and replaces the chicken in mussakhan with eggplant and mushrooms.[13][10] Bukhari studies the history of Palestinian food[1][12] and disseminates his knowledge about Palestinian food history, culture, and produce through Sacred Cuisine.[13][3][10]
In 2020, Bukhari was featured in "Colonising the Tastebuds", a short documentary created by Mondoweiss and Baladi – Rooted Resistance.[14] The film shows him talking about struggling to access food grown by Palestinian farmers due to the Israeli occupation. Additionally, he discusses food as a key part of his identity as a Palestinian: “Just talking about food can really reflect [...] the history of the Palestinian in this land. They [Israel] are trying to teach us to give up on being Palestinian. And we are saying ‘I can’t.’"[15][2]
Around 2024, Bukhari began hosting Sacred Cuisine events in Europe.[11]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c Khan, Aina J. (2022-10-19). "Preserving a Palestinian Identity in the Kitchen". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2022-10-21.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Austin, Alice (2022-12-08). "The tour guide serving up Palestinian history through food". +972 Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ a b c d Rose, Emily (2022-12-21). "Jerusalem chef gives tourists a Palestinian taste of life in the Old City". Reuters.
- ^ a b "Israel-Hamas war: in the Holy Land, people are mourning during Christmas". La croix international. 2023-12-26. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Aghazarian, Arda (2022-10-23). "In Sufism, Food Is a Divine Gift—Izzeldin Bukhari Offers It to Celebrate the Heritage of His People and His City". Jerusalem Story.
- ^ a b c Spencer, Richard (2023-10-30). "Palestinians across the world despair as entire families die". The Times. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ "The war in Gaza reshapes Ramadan into a somber ritual in Jerusalem's Old City". Los Angeles Times. 2024-04-09. Archived from the original on 2024-04-10. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ a b c Krämer, Tania (2023-10-28). "Gaza: No way out, even for dual citizens". DW. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ Missawa, Tatiana Yuri; Gouveia, Thiago Ruotolo (2022). "ONE YEAR LATER (2018)". Palestine: voices of resistance and traveler's memoirs. São Paulo: Sundermann. ISBN 978-65-87957-16-6.
- ^ a b c "Sacred Cuisine and the vegetarian roots of Palestinian dishes". SkatePal. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ a b Bukhari, Allia (2024-03-15). "Izzeldin Bukhari: Meet the Palestinian chef feeding sacred veganism to Europe". New Arab.
- ^ a b Zaher, Yasmin (2020-08-07). "The Evolution of Palestinian Cuisine". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 2022-06-05.
- ^ a b Fox, Tessa (2019-05-20). "Meet the chefs reinventing Palestinian cuisine". BBC. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ "Colonising the Tastebuds". Baladi – Rooted Resistance. 2020-08-18. Retrieved 2024-09-27.
- ^ "Watch: Jerusalem chef resists Israeli occupation by celebrating Palestinian food culture". Mondoweiss. 2020-08-18. Retrieved 2024-09-27.