Food is not just a need, not just an art, and not just a pleasure. Food is a divulgence into one's culture. In American Express Travel’s 2023 Global Travel Trends, it was reported that 81% of people say that when traveling, trying other cultures' food is a priority and something they look forward to. Cuisine is an authentic way of getting to know another culture, the land they live on, and their customs.

On Friday nights worldwide, candles are lit, prayers are said, and food is served. While the dishes may be different, some spicy, some hot, and some cold, they all have deep cultural roots and serve as the centerpiece on the Shabbat dinner table.

Something in common about all the Shabbat dinners is the prayers: the blessing over the candles, the Kiddush, and of course the Hamotzi. The Hamotzi says “lechem min haaretz,” thanking God for bread. A special difference in Jewish communities worldwide is the type of lechem used for the Hamotzi. Challah, arguably one of the most well-known Jewish dishes, stems from Ashkenazi culture and is easily identifiable from the braided design on it. In other communities like Sephardic or Mizrahi, the type of lechem ranges from pita and flatbread to challah filled with seeds and flavor.

The qualifications for a kosher challah are that it must be made from at least one of the five biblical grains (wheat, barley, oats, spelt, and rye), and a bracha must be said over it. The Torah commands hafrashat challah, the separating of a piece and saying a bracha over it, one of the greatest mitzvot a woman can fulfill.

This shared tradition over the prayers and lechem is just one of the many examples of what unites the Jewish people as a whole. This Global Shabbat, December 12–13, more than 60 countries filled with BBGs and AZAs will be celebrating Shabbos together and taking part in Jewish tradition that goes back thousands of years, and a BBYO one that goes back 97 years. Cuisine is able to serve as a distinction of one's culture and allow us to share what a globe filled with Jewish culture and cooking tastes like.