Background on the food ritual–

Passover commemorates the story of the exodus mentioned in the holy books. It is celebrated when God saved the Israelites from slavery in Egypt. The celebration of this holiday is prescribed in the holy books of Judaism. The holiday is celebrated for eight days in all parts of the world. In Israel, it is celebrated for seven days. It is celebrated in spring. It honors Jewish history and is dedicated to social justice and freedom. It also recognizes those who are oppressed in today’s world. The exodus which is motioned in the holy books is a mystery for many historians and archaeologists. The incident is mentioned in the first five books of the Torah. The Passover occurs in the spring month of the Hebrew calendar in the month of Nissan. It is celebrated from the fourteenth day of the month in the evening to the twenty-first day of the month. The Hebrew calendar is different from the Georgian calendar; hence the date of Passover changes every year. The date of all the Jewish holidays changes every year. The Jewish book Haggadah tells the story of Passover (Ryan,2022).

Foods aspects–

The Seder is the traditional meal for the Jewish holiday Passover. It includes telling stories, drinking four cups of wine, eating special food items, and singing. It is celebrated in the wake of the freedom of Jews from Egyptian slavery 3000 years ago. During the meal, the Jewish people have four cups of wine. Apart from that, it contains a festive meal consisting of classic favorites like gefilte fish and chicken soup. It also contains dry bread called matzah which is flat in shape. Veggies that are dipped in saltwater are also served in the Seder. Bitter herbs and lattice dipped into the paste of nuts apple pears and wine etc are also served along with the previous delicacies. These ceremonial foods are served and arranged on a traditional platter called Ka’arah. The entire procedure of serving the traditional food is mentioned in the holy book Haggadah. Although it is written in Hebrew, translations of the same book are also available and permissible.

The meal process starts with Kadesh the benediction. The four cups of wine symbolize expressions of freedom. It is followed by eating the matzah. After that comes Urchatz the washing. It symbolizes washing hands before the meal. Next is Karpas the appetizer. It requires certain foods to be dipped in salt water before consumption. After that comes Yachatz the breaking of matzah. Next is Maggid the Haggadah. After that Rachtzah, the washing of hands before the second cup of wine. Then Motzi matzah- eating the matzah. Then the Moror- the bitter herbs are dipped in charoset and eaten. After that Korech- the Hillel sandwich. And then comes Shulchan orech – the feast. It is here the feast is served. Then the tsafun- out of hiding where the desert is eaten. After that comes Berach which is a blessing after the meal. Then Hallel- that is the songs of praise. And at the end Nirtzah – the acceptance. This summarizes the Seder meal (Hatch et al., 2014).

Nutrition aspects–

Horseradish devil eggs are one of the Seder delicacies

Key nutrients

Nutrition	Quantity
Protein	36g
Carbohydrate	40g
Fats	30g
Fiber	5g
Vitamins and minerals	Nil

The top three nutritional contents this meal provides are Protein, carbohydrates, and fats.

The eggs contained in Horseradish devil eggs are an excellent source of protein. As we all know that proteins are the building blocks of the body. The protein contained in this recipe is very good for maintaining and building new muscles (Aronson et al., 2019).

Modern Cultural, Sociological, OR Psychological impact–

The Passover meal holds a deep socio-cultural and psychological impact on the Jewish people. The holy tradition is followed as per the Hebrew calendar. It is a time to celebrate Jewish resilience and freedom. The people across the Jewish community view it as a cultural event of their historical struggle for existence. The celebration of this holiday is prescribed in the holy books of Judaism. The holiday is celebrated for eight days in all parts of the world. In Israel, it is celebrated for seven days. It is celebrated in spring. It honors Jewish history and is dedicated to social justice and freedom. Even though this is celebrated once a year, the food delicacies consumed are fairly healthy for the body. However, overconsumption could lead to ill health. The food items should be consumed in a proportionate manner keeping in mind the prescribed way that is mentioned in the holy books. The meal celebrates the spirit of freedom and hence has an immense psychological impact on the Jewish people and other people around the world. The feast of the meal is consumed from the fourteenth day of the month in the evening to the twenty-first day of the month in the evening of the Hebrew Calendar(Ryan,2022).

References

Ryan, M. (2022). Christians and the Jewish Passover seder: Christian educational responses to a Jewish celebration. Journal of Religious Education, 1-13.

Hatch, T., Alghafli, Z., & Marks, L. D. (2014). Passover.

Aronson, J. K., Saxe, L., Kadushin, C., Boxer, M., & Brookner, M. A. (2019). A new approach to understanding contemporary Jewish engagement. Contemporary Jewry, 39(1), 91-113.