Cholent or Schalet (Yiddish: טשאָלנט, romanized: tsholnt) is a traditional slow-simmering Sabbath stew in Jewish cuisine that was developed by Ashkenazi Jews first in France and later Germany,[1] and is first mentioned in the 12th century.

[2] It is related to and is thought to have been derived from hamin, a similar Sabbath stew that emerged in Spain among Sephardic Jews and made its way to France by way of Provence.

[1] Over the centuries various Jewish diaspora communities created their own variations of the dish based on local food resources and neighborhood influence.

In traditional Ashkenazi, Sephardi, and Mizrahi families, stew is the hot main course of the midday Shabbat meal served on Saturdays typically after the morning synagogue services for practicing Jews.

[2] The origins of cholent date back to the 11th century, when the Christian Reconquista of Al-Andalus or Islamic Spain, when culinary techniques from the Moorish period spread northwards into Europe through Provence.

[1] The most accessible foods to Jews living in Israel before the destruction of the Second Temple are likely to have been the Mediterranean triad: grain, oil and wine, which were available at low cost and vast amounts.

Lambs and goats would have been popular as they grazed in arid climates and provided supplementary products like wool and milk while cattle were more expensive to maintain and priced as sacrificial.

[15] Gentile "olla podrida" rose in popularity in the 13th century featuring a porridge with vegetables, spices, and meat, usually cattle.

This led to chicken replacing cattle as livestock and resulted in mass recipe changes to accommodate access of resources in Iberia and Northern Africa.

The blech covers a fire or modern stovetops to prevent cooking while allowing heat to transfer from one item to another indirectly as a warm source without "kindling".

[31] Historians have little proof other than modern economic trends; these recipes were not well-documented at the time, and the decomposition of vegetables makes it difficult to find conclusive archaeological evidence of their presence in any given period.

Slow cooking crushed wheat, tomatoes, and harissa created a spicy sauce that added new flavors to classic rice dishes.

[35] Sephardim in Tel Aviv originated "sofrito" made of beef, potatoes, and various spices eaten at Friday night shabbat dinners and added to the main meal the next day.

[36] In Germany, the Netherlands, and other western European countries the special hot dish for the Shabbat lunch is known as schalet, shalent, or shalet.

[39] In Italy, pasta is a common substitute for beans or rice in shabbat stews[5] and is called "hamin macaron" when sampled in Iberia.

"[45] In the shtetls of Europe, religious neighborhoods in Jerusalem, and other cities in the Land of Israel before the advent of electricity and cooking gas, a pot with the assembled but uncooked ingredients was brought to the local baker before sunset on Fridays.

[37] Jewish stews were characterized by flour paste used to seal pots to prevent cooking and tampering which could cause the meal to become treif.