Breaded chicken cutlets (think Wienerschnitzel, but chicken rather than veal). They're popular in Israel. I'd eat fries on the side in Israel, but in Singapore this changed to white rice. Pita bread, which to my recollection was invariably white and not whole wheat; sandwiches could be with either kind. Fresh, raw, unpeeled vegetables - bell peppers and olives, and when I lived in Israel also cucumbers (in Singapore the cucumbers aren't as good). My love affair with arugula only began later, in grad school - at the time I didn't really eat leafy vegetables. A lot of cottage cheese, which is a staple food in Israel since the commonly available sliced cheese is shitty gouda and is what poor people eat when they can't afford meat.
We'd eat out a fair bit. Indian takeout - I wasn't really into Chinese food when I lived in Singapore, but we all liked the Indian food, and at the time we were in Israel there was a good restaurant in Tel Aviv, which is how I found out what nan and tandoori chicken were. Pizza delivery, but much less after we moved to Singapore. Sometimes fast food burgers - there was a local burger chain, and in my last few years in Israel also McDonald's and Burger King; I ate that a lot less in Singapore and soon swore it off and ate Subway instead.
What I eat now is more dependent on what the supermarkets have in the city I live in. For example, last city didn't have any decent cottage cheese. This time there is, and there are also good salad bars. It depends heavily on what restaurants exist, too - here I have a very few staple places that serve good food for under $12 (there's even pizza for $10), which is not much more than what it'd cost to buy an equivalent amount of non-terrible calories at the supermarket.
It's so interesting to hear about the food culture of folks who grew up internationally -- sounds like what you were eating was still a bit healthier, even your junk food. Odd about the cheese -- gouda would have been considered fancy for my grandmother's income level. (Really, anything not processed).
I actually never had Indian food until I went to college! Perhaps this is why I've never tired of it. Still don't think there's any place to get that cuisine in my home town.
We'd eat out a fair bit. Indian takeout - I wasn't really into Chinese food when I lived in Singapore, but we all liked the Indian food, and at the time we were in Israel there was a good restaurant in Tel Aviv, which is how I found out what nan and tandoori chicken were. Pizza delivery, but much less after we moved to Singapore. Sometimes fast food burgers - there was a local burger chain, and in my last few years in Israel also McDonald's and Burger King; I ate that a lot less in Singapore and soon swore it off and ate Subway instead.
What I eat now is more dependent on what the supermarkets have in the city I live in. For example, last city didn't have any decent cottage cheese. This time there is, and there are also good salad bars. It depends heavily on what restaurants exist, too - here I have a very few staple places that serve good food for under $12 (there's even pizza for $10), which is not much more than what it'd cost to buy an equivalent amount of non-terrible calories at the supermarket.
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I actually never had Indian food until I went to college! Perhaps this is why I've never tired of it. Still don't think there's any place to get that cuisine in my home town.
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