Kosher Guru Gabriel Boxer is on a mission to spread the joy of kosher.
“My motto [is] bringing kosher to the masses in a fun-filled way,” Boxer told the Journal.
Boxer, a kosher industry food, travel and restaurant consultant, strives to educate the world on anything and everything kosher. This includes food, restaurants, supermarkets and chefs, as well as ingredients.
“Food really does bring people together,” he said.
From April 25 to May 4, the New York based Boxer traveled around Southern California, giving lectures on the origins of kosher foods. He spoke at the Chabads of Granada Hills, Playa Del Rey, North of Montana Avenue, Los Feliz, Pasadena, WeHo West, North Ranch, Ojai and the Beach Cities in Redondo Beach. “The feedback was amazing,” Boxer said. “Some people weren’t even Jewish, but wanted to learn about kosher food origins.”
One attendee, a woman who grew up in France during the Holocaust, saw people in her community being taken away. “She hid her Judaism to the extent she never even told her husband she was Jewish,” Boxer said. “She had to come and learn about her heritage, as she’s only now opening up to her Judaism.”
Last fall, Rabbi Zushi Rivkin from the Chabad of Pasadena reached out to Boxer, inviting him out to Los Angeles. “We agreed to an 11-course meal [made up of] dishes of different Ashkenazic and Sephardic foods,” Boxer said. They ranged from ghormeh sabzi and gefilte fish to kibbe and knishes. Other items included pita and hummus, matbucha and Moroccan carrot salad, soup and kneidlach, herring, borscht, plov and rugelach. They wanted to cover a variety of foods, since Jews come from different backgrounds, heritages and levels of observance.
“I love meeting so many different people,” he said. “They were people who were observant, not observant [or] not even Jewish. … It was really surprising to see the spectrum of people who showed up to the events, partook and enjoyed (themselves).”
One of the results of Boxer’s kosher food tour is that the Chabads want to book him for next year with different dishes. He also said synagogues, from Oregon to Memphis and Detroit to Florida, are reaching out to him.
An observant Jew who went to Jewish Day schools, Boxer keeps kosher and also believes kosher is about your Jewish lifestyle.
“God told us to be a light into the nations,” he said. “[I was brought up] to be a positive influence, and to always make what they call Kiddush Hashem, to be a good person.”
One of the benefits of living a good, positive life, Boxer said, is that others want to emulate you and bring good to the world.
One of the benefits of living a good, positive life, Boxer said, is that others want to emulate you and bring good to the world.
Kosher Guru has a huge Instagram following and YouTube channel, as well as an active Facebook group, called Kosher Guru’s Kosher Nation. “I have a lot of followers who aren’t even Jewish,” Boxer said. “They see me going to synagogue — every morning I show a picture — and some people reach out to me [and say], ‘Because of you. I’m going to start going to synagogue’ or ‘I’m going to start praying.’”
Those responses make Boxer happy.
“I”m just trying to influence the world in a positive way,” he said. “Whatever you take out of that positivity, whatever you take out of that lifestyle, it should be pure and good.”
Ghormeh Sabzi
“I got this dish from my sister-in-law, who married a Persian man,” Boxer said. “This stew has become a regular at our dining room table. I hope you enjoy it as much as our family does.”
1 onion, chopped
4 Tbsp oil
1 leek, chopped
½ cup red kidney beans, soaked overnight and drained, or 1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed (optional; if you don’t like beans, leave them out)
1 ½ lbs meat such as brisket or Chuck meat, cut in one-inch cubes
1 bunch parsley, finely chopped
1 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
4 dried lemons
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp salt
Pepper, to taste
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp fenugreek
1 ½ cups water, or more as needed
In a large, heavy saucepan over medium-high flame, add oil, chopped onion and leeks and saute until soft and caramelized. Add turmeric, salt and fenugreek.
Add cubed meat and brown on all sides. Add chopped parsley and cilantro, juice from the lemon, dried lemons, kidney beans (if using fresh) and water. If it looks too dry, add a little more water.
Allow to simmer, covered, over a low flame for about 1 ½ to 2 hours, until meat is soft and tender.
Adjust seasoning, such as more salt, if needed.
Note: If using canned kidney beans, add them after the stew has cooked for about an hour. Discard the dry lemons before serving.
Serve over white rice. Enjoy!
