how to celebrate rosh hashanah

Discover more about Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, with tips and advice from food writer Victoria Prever, who shares what you should serve for a celebratory feast

- Victoria Prever

Rosh Hashanah (which translates from Hebrew as ‘head of the year’) is a festival that celebrates the anniversary of the creation of the world. It happens in the autumn any time between 5 September and 5 October, as the date moves according to the Jewish calendar’s lunar year.

The festivities begin at nightfall the day before, when families enjoy a dinner together. They’ll visit the synagogue the next day to pray and hear the sound of the shofar (a musical instrument traditionally made from a ram’s horn) being blown. They then tuck into lunch with family and friends. In Israel, that’s it, but the diaspora – Jewish people living around the word – do it all again for a second day, with another dinner and lunch. This year, Rosh Hashanah will begin on the evening of Monday, 6 September and end in the evening of Wednesday, 8 September.

Victoria Prever is the food editor at The Jewish Chronicle, having left a legal career to train as a chef at Leiths School of Food & Wine. She’s also a food writer, cookery teacher and food consultant, and has appeared on Channel 4’s Sunday Brunch, BBC One’s Sunday Morning

WHAT TO EAT FOR ROSH HASHANAH

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