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Short Summary
Main recommendation: Make a Israeli cowboy stew called "pa" (a slow-cooked, one-pot stew of beef and vegetables) and, if you can, spend a family day at the Golan Heights and a local cowboy ranch. The episode frames both as a way to pause the busy first year of "aliyah" (moving to Israel) and enjoy something special together.
Key Points
- The host describes the overwhelming early months of moving to Israel: driver's license, documents, taxes, utility bills, school enrollment, and helping kids with homework in Hebrew.
- The family adopts a monthly tradition of spending one day together doing something special to step away from the daily routine.
- The outing goes to the Golan Heights, where they see snow, mountains, and Israeli soldiers in white ski uniforms who patrol the borders.
- At a cowboy ranch, general manager Ari of the Golan restaurant (called "Cowboys" in Hebrew: "bkim") shows how to make the stew.
- The stew is flexible and forgiving, and the ingredients are sourced locally from the Golan, including beer and water (wine can be used instead of beer, not together).
- The ranch visit ends with a horseback ride with a guide named William, with views of Mount Hermon and the Syrian border.
Details Worth Noting
- Concrete instructions:
- Wash the red bliss potatoes and do not peel them. Peel the onions, cut them in half, and peel the garlic cloves.
- Cut the beef into large chunks, cutting between the bones. The cut is called "asado" in Hebrew but looks like flank steak.
- Add the sweet potatoes about 30 minutes to an hour before the stew is finished, because they cook faster than the other vegetables.
- Heat a little olive oil on the fire, then sauté the garlic and onions, then add the meat with salt, pepper, cinnamon, and paprika.
- Add the vegetables: parsley root, large carrot pieces, potatoes, and sweet potatoes.
- Add the liquid: one local beer plus water (a red wine can be used instead). Do not mix beer and wine together in the same pot.
- Set the pot on the fire and let it cook for a couple of hours without stirring ("set it and forget it").
- Ari says the stew is an African dish that is very flexible and can be made with many different ingredients.
- The ranch's costumed cowboy hats came from Ari's children, while William wears a real $600 cowboy hat.
- The host mentions that Hermon Mountain and the Syrian border are visible from the ride.
Bottom Line
A slow-cooked, one-pot stew paired with a family outing to the Golan makes a low-effort, memorable way to step away from the stress of settling into a new country.
