Israeli-Style Matbucha is an easy recipe for savory cooked tomato and pepper salad popular in Israeli food culture.
While this delicious side salad originated in Moroccan cuisine, it was brought to Israel by Moroccan Jews and adapted into one of the “Israeli salads” (salatim).
It is frequently used as a dip for pita and can be found at pretty much any table where you’ll find pita, hummus, and tehina.
Some people even use it as a base for their homemade shakshuka.
It’s also a popular vegan appetizer salad in many Israeli restaurants.
Have it mild or spicy!
Israelis love their salads (salatim) and have adapted several from other countries in the Middle East into their food culture.
Israeli-style matbucha is an easy (the longest part is the cooking) salad that is normally eaten with pita along with other side salads, such as hummus and tehini.
Of course, you can eat it any way you like. My daughter likes to mix it in with plain pasta and some people use it as their sauce base for shakshuka.
Like other Middle Eastern foods, the traditional recipes often call for quite a bit of oil. Personally, I cook with as little oil as possible, so this recipe contains less than most traditional matbucha recipes.
Also, while traditional recipes call for fresh tomatoes, I use canned tomatoes because it saves time and effort.
In addition to the fact that Israeli-style matbucha is delicious, the ingredients have nutritional benefits.
Such as tomatoes.
And peppers.
A little information about bell peppers
Bell peppers come in different colors, such as green, red, orange, yellow (the most common)…and, believe it or not, white brown, striped, and purple.
Peppers are commonly used in foods, salads, as side dishes, toppings or – if you are like my son – a snack.
Peppers are native to Mexico, Central America, and South America. Spanish explorers brought pepper seeds back to Spain with them in 1943. From Spain, peppers spread from there to Europe and Asia.
Red peppers are actually ripened green peppers and because they do so gradually, you may see peppers that are both green and red at the same time.
Red peppers sweeter in flavor than the green, which are more acidic and a little bitter. Red peppers can be used in the production of paprika.
“Permagreen” don’t turn red, but rather stay green even after they ripen.
Orange and Yellow peppers are their own varieties and have a gentle, sweet taste.
Bell peppers contain almost no protein at all and are almost entirely made of water, with a small percentage of carbohydrates.
They are rich in vitamins C, B6, K, A, and E as well as some minerals and antioxidants. The different colored peppers contain different vitamins and nutrients, and they are all very low in fat.
Bell peppers generally have a long life, especially if kept in refrigeration.
What are the different oils used in cooking?
“High-heat” oils have neutral flavors and have been processed in order to handle high temperatures and are good for sautéing, searing, and frying. These include canola oil, vegetable oil, avocado oil, and grapeseed oil, each with its own “best for” with chefs.
Some oils have their own flavor and are good for sautéing and roasting and add a little extra to the dish. These include extra virgin olive oil, coconut oil, and peanut oil. Extra virgin olive oil works well with roasting or sautéing, but not for deep frying.
Coconut oil is good in dishes where a slightly coconut flavor enhances the dish, and peanut oil is good for deep frying and will add a subtle nutty taste and smell. Many Asian dishes call for peanut oil in the ingredients.
Then there are oils that are not used with heat but rather for dressing up foods, such as sesame oil, flaxseed oil, and walnut oil, among others.
What does it mean when recipes say “to taste” about an ingredient?
When recipes say “to taste,” it means that you can put in as little or as much as you like to your own taste. Some recipes have many ingredients that a cook can adjust to their own taste when cooking (not so much when baking though).
The best way to calculate what your taste is with a recipe that you are not yet familiar with is to first taste the dish and then add the “to taste” ingredient GRADUALLY, a little at a time—a splash of this or a pinch of that—until the dish is just the way you like it.
Make sure to stir the ingredient after each time you add it so that the flavor will distribute evenly and become part of the dish. Then taste again. Repeat until you reach your personal preference.
Note: If you plan on using the recipe again, it is highly recommended to make a note of what and how much you added so that you can refer to it next time.
What does it mean when a recipe says that an ingredient is “optional”?
If an ingredient is “optional,” it means that you can add it in or not based on your own preference. An optional ingredient can be flavor related (i.e., salty, sweet, spicy, etc.), appearance related (garnish), or even something like nuts or chocolate chips in baking.
What does “savory” mean?
“Savory” refers to foods that are not sweet, such as foods that taste salty, spicy, or herbal.
A little about Israeli cuisine
Some people complain about cultural appropriation in cuisine when food from one country is attributed to another country.
However, national cuisine in itself is often a mingling of food from a variety of cultures, often due to a change of ruling countries and a shifting of borders.
When people move from country to country, they will take their cultures with them, and their descendants may adapt their traditional cuisine with that of their new home, and if they don’t, others might.
When one lives in a melting pot, such as the US or Israel, it is just unrealistic to expect that food from a particular culture won’t mingle with that of other cultures.
That being said, “Israeli cuisine” is basically Middle Eastern (as opposed to Eastern European food) that was brought to Israel by Jews when they fled or were expelled from Muslim countries and moved to Israel mostly after the declaration of the State of Israel (collectively known as Mizrahi Jews).
Recipes were passed from generation to generation, and although decades have passed, the foods are still known by the culture they came from, and everyone seems to have their own way of making them.
That said, there are many variations of pretty much any “Israeli” recipe because of background, custom, or even just taste. When choosing a recipe, one has to know what actually constitutes a main ingredient—what makes the dish what it is—and what is left up to individual taste.
So, find the recipes you like with the ingredients you prefer, add your own twists, and בתאבון (pronounced: b’te’ah’vone, literally translated, “with appetite”)!
Like Moroccan Israeli food? Try these!
Moroccan-Israel Meatballs with Olives
Morccan-Israeli Fish
Moroccan Jews in Israel
The majority of Moroccan Jews in Israel are the descendants of Jews that immigrated to Israel from Morocco.
Before the establishment of the State of Israel, the British put a quota on the amount of Jews that could immigrate to Israel, so most of the immigration was considered “illegal.” However, many Jews risked their lives to flee their countries of origin, including Arab and Muslim countries, such as Morocco.
Because the Muslims were against the establishment of the State of Israel, after the declaration of the state and the civil war that followed, life became more difficult for the Jews of Morocco, because the Muslims would attack Jews as a result. This brought about a wave of immigrants to Israel from Morocco, as did every Arab-Israeli war that followed.
So, during the 1950s and for decades afterward, waves of Moroccan Jews immigrated to Israel.
Morocco was once the home of the largest Jewish community in the Muslim world. However, by the time of the Yom Kippur war, the majority of Morocco’s Jews had immigrated to Israel, and they brought their delicious cuisine with them.
Easy Israeli-Style Matbucha
Israeli-style Moroccan cooked tomato and pepper salad. And it's vegan!
Ingredients
- 2 - 28 ounces of peeled tomatoes, diced small
- 2 red peppers, diced small
- 2 medium jalapeno peppers, diced small
- 2 tablespoons paprika, per taste
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 1/2 tablespoons granulated garlic
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 teaspoon cumin, optional
- 1 teaspoon chili pepper flakes or to taste (optional, if you want spicy)
- 1/3 - 1/2 cup oil
- 2/3 cup water
Instructions
- Cover the bottom of a large sauce pan or skillet with the oil.
- Lightly fry the diced red peppers and jalapeno pepper on medium heat.
- Mix in the paprika, sugar, garlic, cumin, salt, and chili pepper flakes if desired.
- Add tomatoes and water.
- Cook on medium low for 1/2 - 1 hour, while mixing occasionally so that the mixture does not stick to the bottom (add more water, a little at a time, if needed) and mashing occasionally with a fork or potato masher, until the liquid has mostly evaporated and you are left with a thick sauce.
- Let cool.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
12Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 69Total Fat: 4gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 3gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 362mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 2gSugar: 6gProtein: 2g