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The Best New Sufganiya Stuffing This Hannukah? Grilled Meat and Tahini.

Two iconic Jerusalem eateries come together to introduce a carnivorous delight this holiday season

by
Liel Leibovitz
December 05, 2017
Courtesy Angel Bakeries
Anatoly MichaelloCourtesy Angel Bakeries
Courtesy Angel Bakeries
Anatoly MichaelloCourtesy Angel Bakeries

What do you put in your sufganya? If you’re a traditionalist, some raspberry jam. If you’re a modernist, dulce de leche. If you’re a nihilist, some chocolate cream. But Hannukah’s greatest treat (that’s right, latke, you overrated waste of oil you) is about to get a major upgrade when a popular Israeli restaurant unleashes deep-fried armageddon by stuffing their sufganiyot with grilled meats.

This breakthrough in advanced culinary science is the result of a surprising collaboration between two legendary Jerusalem institutions: The Angel bakery, a 90-year-old staple and Israel’s largest purveyor of baked goods, and the Midnight Steakhouse, a popular eatery specializing in Meurav Yerushalmi, a dish featuring several grilled meats, including innards. Their new offering will replace the traditional pita bread with an oily sufganiya, fried to perfection, stuffed with chicken thighs, hearts, and livers and topped with traditional sauces like tahini and amba, a kind of pungent mango chutney, as well as a pickle and finely diced vegetable salad. It will be sold for NIS 20, which is about $5.75.

A restaurant critic for Haaretz, tasked with tasting the creation in advance of its limited-time release next week, approached his task with trepidation, but left with a hallelujah on his lips. “Not only does this work,” he wrote, “but it was genuinely delicious.” There’s no end to miracles.

Liel Leibovitz is editor-at-large for Tablet Magazine and a host of its weekly culture podcast Unorthodox and daily Talmud podcast Take One. He is the editor of Zionism: The Tablet Guide.