Shabbat in Algeria
Alger before 1962
Preparations for Shabbat dinner in Alger started as early as Wednesday. First, on Wednesday morning, women started shopping at the Market for fresh vegetables. In the afternoon, they would go to the butcher to buy some meat that they would keep in ice.
On Thursday morning women would minced the meat and onions with a knife to prepare some meatballs, or sometimes prepare some other meat another way. They would maybe peel some artichokes to prepare some artichokes barigoule or roast some peppers for the Chuchuka. All the cooking that took time were prepared on Thursdays.
On Friday mornings, it was time to prepare some challot. Moms would prepare the dough, and kids would bring the challot to the baker who would bake them (people rarely had ovens). Then it’s time to prepare the Couscous which they would eat every Shabbat dinner. Everything thing must be ready before lunch, because in the afternoon women would go to the Bain Maure (Moorish Bathhouse) to wash and scrub (people didn’t have any showers at home) , and then go to the hairdresser to look pretty for their husband.
Men would be in charge of bringing dessert for the shabbat meal (usually melon or watermelon), that they would take with them walking back home from the synagogue (merchants knew them, they would not pay on that day).
How far it is from what we know today!
On Thursday morning women would minced the meat and onions with a knife to prepare some meatballs, or sometimes prepare some other meat another way. They would maybe peel some artichokes to prepare some artichokes barigoule or roast some peppers for the Chuchuka. All the cooking that took time were prepared on Thursdays.
On Friday mornings, it was time to prepare some challot. Moms would prepare the dough, and kids would bring the challot to the baker who would bake them (people rarely had ovens). Then it’s time to prepare the Couscous which they would eat every Shabbat dinner. Everything thing must be ready before lunch, because in the afternoon women would go to the Bain Maure (Moorish Bathhouse) to wash and scrub (people didn’t have any showers at home) , and then go to the hairdresser to look pretty for their husband.
Men would be in charge of bringing dessert for the shabbat meal (usually melon or watermelon), that they would take with them walking back home from the synagogue (merchants knew them, they would not pay on that day).
How far it is from what we know today!