Leek patties made by my late Salonikan grandmother, Esther — with both the green and white parts of the leek but no meat — are the most delicious food on earth (for me, at least). Many Israelis would say the same about the patties and meatballs they grew up with; here, these dishes are deeply personal (even emotional).
First, let me explain something. In Hebrew, the word for “patties” is “ktzitzot,” which also means “bullets.” It’s a broad term used to encompass what many outside of the country would call patties, kefta, or even meatballs.
The history of these foods is as ambiguous as their definition. Some claim the Romans were the first to form a meatball as a way of using leftover meat. In a Roman cookbook from the 5th century C.E. (or earlier), breadcrumbs, herbs, and spices are blended into the meat, just like in our modern-day patties. The birth of the patty in the area of the Persian Empire happened almost simultaneously; this beef- or lamb-based patty later became the Middle Eastern and Turkish kefta. This is also where the onion appears as a companion to breadcrumbs, egg, and herbs (primarily parsley), which will become the sacred triad of many patties.
Israel’s various Diaspora cuisines offer a wide variety of ktzitzot. The wonderful Tunisian boulettes, served in tomato sauce between two layers of potatoes, remind us of the mafrum of their neighbors from Tripoli. The Ashkenazi klops, with a hard-boiled egg inside, is a delicacy reserved to connoisseurs of old Yiddish cooking. The Ashkenazi knish, too, is really a potato-wrapped patty. And we haven’t even mentioned chicken meatballs with peas, or Moroccan fish patties.
“Meatballs and patties exist everywhere, but the Israeli melting pot, combined with the tzena [austerity period around the founding of the state], made them into a national dish. They fit us like a glove,” says chef Yair Yosefi, who was the head of Brut, an avant-garde wine bistro that served entrecôte ktzitzot on its menu before closing. “Historically, it was a dish that you can bulk up by adding large quantities of bread and onion. And you can adjust them to anyone’s taste. You can make them spicy or mild, cook them in sauce or fry them, serve them on a plate or in a sandwich. What is more Israeli than minced meat tucked inside bread? And I don’t mean it negatively — not at all.”
The motivation, he says, is mainly economical: One can use inexpensive meat and compensate for shortages with other ingredients. “You don’t need a lot of meat, and you can use whatever you got. You add plenty of onion and something green, not necessarily parsley; it can also be zucchini or leftover rice or old bread.” But another reason for the popularity of patties is the possibility of using them as a canvas for a variety of flavors; they can adjust to any kitchen. Yosefi explains, “Moroccans eat ktzitzot with couscous and a spicy sauce, while Romanians feast on them with mamaliga. This is the perfect Israeli food, just like asking who an Israeli is. Together, we’ll eat ktzitzot and win.”
So how did diners react to the fact that Brut, which closed this year, charged 88 NIS (about $24) for its ktzitzot? “You’d be surprised,” Yosefi replies. “The price wasn’t an issue. The only problem was that although these were entrecôte ktzitzot slow-cooked in tomato sauce, the guests sometimes found the dish too simple. They expected fireworks, and all they got was meatballs. In some places, the solution is using fancy names and sides and micro-this and micro-that, so customers don’t realize they’re eating a meatball, which is a wonderful food that doesn’t need any decorations. But I guess some people only want to eat them at home, and when they’re eating in a gourmet restaurant, they need a story, not just ktzitzot.”
Anthropologist Nir Avieli, however, challenges the definition of ktzitzot as the national food, a title he believes should be reserved for schnitzel in a pita. “When we talk about nationality and want to define a certain dish as ‘the national dish,’ we enter the territory of myths. To me, what’s more important here is that patties are considered home food, which is currently associated with Mizrahi identity. The ktzitzot served in restaurants are cooked in sauce, and that’s the Sephardic version, unlike Ashkenazi ktzitzot, which are simply fried. And if you serve them with a spicy sauce, it’s considered authentic, and then it’s a short road to associations with home and nationality.” Whether they are the official national dish, he says, is less important.