Let me start of by saying that Indian Food is one of my favorite types of cuisine. I love the aromatic smells and the savory rich spices. I really enjoy doing research on how to cook new dishes as well as finding authentic recipes. Among my favorite’s dishes are Red Sweet Potato Masala and Tom Ka Gai, which is a coconut soup. As of lately, I have been searching out different Indian spices online so that I may capture more authentic flavors when cooking at home. I feel like I really connect with Indian food, not only because of its flavors but also the spiritual connections it has to both Buddhism and Hinduism. As often as possible I try to connect with the origins of the food I consume. I try to imagine the sun that shined on the vegetables and the rain that fell from the sky. Especially important are the hands that picked and cultivated what I am consuming.
To what extent do you honor the culture and heritage of your favorite foods? The United States is a melting pot of many different cultures. If you live in a major city most likely you have been exposed to different types of ethnic food. Indian food is popular all over the world and has very strong roots in places like the UK. This transplantation of curry into English cuisine is largely due to British colonization of India. Many feel that creation of British curry powder was a way for England to “ingest” the culinary culture of India and remake it in their own image. This is similar to the process of colonization of that time.
Narayan, U. (2019). Eating Cultures: Incorporation, Identity and Indian Food. In 931962708 729869972 C. Counihan, 931962709 729869972 P. V. Esterik, & 931962710 729869972 A. P. Julier (Authors), Food and culture: A reader (pp. 67-85). New York, NY: Routledge.
Sun Hugs 