Knish

Guide Note

Knishes are fried or baked pockets of dough with a variety of fillings. They are a feature of Ashkenazi Jewish cuisine.

Fast Facts

1. Widely available in urban centers in the U.S.
2. Sold as street food in Israel
3. Generally baked or fried

Nearly every cuisine has some form of noodles, some form of sausage, and an item that equates to a pocket of dough with filling inside (the near-infinitude of which includes the arepa, the empanada, ravioli, the wonton, and so forth). Knishes are different from most in their thin, moderately flaky crust and selection of fillings, being something like a cross between Jamaica's entry in the dough-with-filling sweepstakes, the substantial and lightly crusty Jamaican beef patty, and Poland's entry, the pierogi). Like the pierogi, the most common fillings include mashed potatoes, sauerkraut, meat, and various vegetables including spinach. An innovation particular to the knish is kasha (or buckwheat groats) as a filling.