There’s Something Fishy About These 4th of July ‘Gefilte-Dogs’

As someone who was raised in a Jewish household, Passover was a big deal. Not because of the family, friends, or parsley dipped in the tears of our ancestors, but because of the glorious fish meatballs suspended in jelly. Now you may be thinking, “Jessica, you must love your family more than mystery-meat fish balls,” and I do! But while I can hang out with my family all year round, Passover only comes once a year. And with it comes the one yearly occasion to eat the miraculously delicious, flavor-packed delicacy known as gefilte fish. But not anymore—at least if a tweet from a popular Kosher brand is to be believed.

Why is this year different from all other years? Well, Manischewitz, a leading brand in Kosher products, has announced an unprecedented 4th of July offering. The Gefilte Dog. Sure, Kosher hot dogs already exist (there’s even a brand called Hebrew National). But maybe Manischewitz wanted to outdo the other Jewish hot dog brands. Or maybe they just wanted to create a 4th of July dog offering that you can eat with other meat or milk products in accordance with Kosher guidelines. Or maybe, and most likely, this was all a joke (although it’s a few months late for April fools). 

It all seemingly started when @JewWhoHasItAll tweeted “hot dogs are Gefilte beef.” This didn’t sit well with Manischewitz, who replied, “Hot Dogs are nothing like Gefilte Fish. GFish is made of the highest quality, freshest fish….hot dogs? Who knows?” Then @piateski asked why Manischewitz was so “down on gefilte beef,” hypothesizing that maybe it’s because they don’t sell it themselves. Manischewitz then responded by tweeting a photo of a very fishy-looking “gefilte dog,” writing: “the R&D team hasn’t slept all week and now the factory will be cranking out these babies 24/6. Just in time for July 4th! An American tradition your Bubbie will love.”

You may be wondering: Is this real? And will we be getting Gefilte Dogs out of this? I personally hope so, as they seem like they would have a delightful fish stick-like quality to them. As a gefilte fish fan, I would 100% give them a try. But apparently others feel differently. The State of Israel’s actual Twitter account responded to Manischewitz’s Gefilte Dog post by asking, “Haven’t the Jewish people suffered enough?”

Only time will tell if this is just a social media stunt, or if the Manischewitz R&D team really is about to do me and Bubbies everywhere a solid and bring the magic of gefilte fish to a time of year which was previously (and tragically) gefilte-free.


About the Author

Jessica Block

Jessica Block is a freelance contributor to Sporked, a comedian, a baker, a food writer, and a firm believer that Trader Joe's may just be the happiest place on earth. She loves spicy snacks, Oreos, baking bread, teeny tiny avocados, and trying new foods whenever she can. Also, if you give her a bag of Takis she will be your best friend.

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