Shuk It Up Baby

Sunday, April 21, 2013

By: Rebecca

One of the best things about Israel is the availability of fresh fruits and vegetables year-round. Nearly everything is grown here so nothing travels too far to get to our plates. There are vegetable stands all over the place, but for the best variety and prices, we go to the shuk (market). The market is outdoors, but most vendors have permanent stalls. 

Haifa has two shuks - the main one, Shuk Talpiot, is about a mile walk from our apartment - open everyday except Saturday. There are fruit and vegetable stands, bakeries, dried fruit and nuts, fish mongers, butcheries, and olive vendors. The variety of produce is amazing - so colorful. Many things are familiar, but others are new. Every week different fruits and vegetables appear - this week it was peaches and nectarines. The market is always busy and often chaotic. I try to avoid going on Friday afternoons because there are so many people and you can barely move.

The other shuk is in the Christian-Arab quarter known as Wadi Nisnas. This market is about half as far as Shuk Talpiot and much more laid back. There are less people, less noise, and street is wide and shaded. I feel much more relaxed and actually take time to wander around and see new things to try. There is a little less variety, but there are some things that I never see at Shuk Talpiot. Many more greens and herbs especially.

I think the prices are better at the shuk in Wadi Nisnas. Many of the vendors don't display their prices so it is a little hard to tell, but I have one produce stand that I go to all the time and I always expect to pay more than I do. This weekend, Jason and I bought enough vegetables for at least a week - probably more - and a kilo of dates. Here's a picture of what we got for our 64 shekels (about $18). 

Our haul from the shuk

The vendor knows me by now and threw in bunches of mint and cilantro and a head of lettuce for free. Not sure what I'm going to make with the sour cherries, but I'm sure it'll be something delicious!

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