Sabich

Sabich is the sandwich that quietly rivals falafel for the title of Israel's greatest street food. Originating from the Iraqi Jewish community, sabich consists of fried eggplant, hard-boiled egg, hummus, tahini, Israeli salad, and amba (pickled mango sauce), all stuffed into a pita. The combination is an explosion of flavors and textures that leaves the uninitiated wondering how they lived without it. The dish takes its name from Sabich Tsvi Halabi, an Iraqi-born Israeli who first sold the sandwich from a small stand in Ramat Gan in the 1960s. Iraqi Jews traditionally ate a version of this dish for Shabbat morning breakfast — the eggs and eggplant were prepared before Shabbat and eaten cold. Sabich transformed it into a hot street food, and the rest is Israeli culinary history. Sabich represents the Mizrachi (Middle Eastern Jewish) contribution to Israeli food culture. While Ashkenazi foods like gefilte fish and matzo ball soup get more international attention, it is Mizrachi dishes like sabich, kubbeh, and jachnun that dominate Israeli street food. Sabich's rise to prominence mirrors the broader cultural assertion of Mizrachi identity in Israeli society. The key to great sabich is the quality of each component: the eggplant must be sliced thick and fried until deeply golden, the eggs should be slightly creamy, and the amba must have that distinctive tangy-spicy punch. A proper sabich is gloriously messy, and eating one without staining your shirt is considered an achievement.