So the other day I was asked by a
friend about my felafel recipe “why would you boldly name is
Palestinian, wouldn't people associate it with politics and not want
to try it,” well, though I feel there would be a few people who may
go that route, I think that in properly naming and introducing people
to cuisines from nations will spark people's interest in those
cuisines and their cultures. Anthony Bourdaine always says that no
matter which country he goes to, sharing in a meal, he finds is one
of the best ways to really get locals to relate to you. Everyone has
to eat and everyone has foods they prefer,when sharing a meal, you
focus on what you have in common with the locals, not the negative
differences. Sharing my experiences with a certain culture and their
cuisine with other people, helps people look past the politics of a
nation and see that their government does not make the culture or the
individual people.
People nowadays feel, when introducing
a dish from the Middle East, that they must sugar coat the title
because of the negative associations people may have with the middle
east. There are many semi misleading terms like “Mediterranean”
that people use when introducing a middle eastern dish which though
geographically correct when referring North African, Lebanese, Syrian
and Israeli cuisines do not truly reflect the culture that created
the dish. In addition, there are certain dishes that are general in
the entire cuisine of Arabic culture like hummus a prime example,
that goes beyond the nations touching the Mediterranean. Lastly, in
the United States, many people do not at all associate the
Mediterranean with the Middle East, they associate it with southern
Europe, specifically Italy or Greece. In the case of Middle Eastern
cuisine, I feel it is only right to give credit where credit is due
regardless of people's perception.
I have been seeing a disgustingly large
amount of people either living in the United States on an
international visa for school or as naturalized citizens complain and
generalize Americans as being very ignorant toward their culture. In
general, people tend to have the wrong attitude when being asked an
out there question regarding their culture that it is ignorant,
ignorance implies a lack of knowledge in a topic that is widespread
in their environment, the better way to look at it is the person in
uninformed and has not had the opportunity to learn about said
culture. There is an extent to that, in modern time an American
thinking “all Muslims are terrorists,” would be a a thought out
of ignorance, however, an American thinking that most of the Islamic
faith in contained within the Arab would would be mainly because a
large population of Muslims in the United States are in fact Arab and
therefore assumptions would be made out of simply not being informed.
I as an American who has lived in overseas have experienced the same
scenarios, often with assumptions being more blunt and hurtful and
have had to remember the differences between ignorance and being
uninformed.
A final note before I resume to talking
about food,when addressing cultural differences, everyone has
preconceived notions, whether bold or underlying about a culture,
this is where I have experienced people assuming I am racist because
of the fact that I am a white American. Here is where it gets
complex, people of other cultures have preconceived notions as to
what the preconceived notions of a person will be based on their
culture, so while im thinking “I wonder if this person feel that I
am racist,” the other person is thinking “I wonder if this person
thinks that I am a violent natured person because of my religion,”
neither preconceived notion feels good when you think of them.
All of what I just said about human
nature and culture above applies to how people perceive food. My
favorite example is when I talk about Puerto Rican or Cuban cuisine
and 4/5 times I will hear “so like isn't it the same as Mexican
food.” My initial thoughts when I hear that is to react out at the
person as if their response is out of ignorance. I take a second,
Puerto Rican and Cuban food aren't supper mainstream in the United
States in comparison to Mexican food it is almost nonexistent, unless
you are in an area supper populated with Puerto Ricans and Cubans.
Many people just havnt experienced this cuisine and culture, so they
would just assume it is close to Mexican food. The same can apply
when I hear people firmly say felafel is Greek, but I already posted
about that ordeal. The solution to solving this misconception would
be to either make Puerto Rican food for your uninformed friend or
find some source to obtain it.
A simpler assumption I have heard “I
don't think I would like Indian or Thai food, because of her third
worldie it is, I feel like it wouldn't taste good, because of how
poor they are, they eat for survival, not pleasure.” I can tell you
first hand that those are two of the most flavorful and delicious
cuisines in the world.
Here is where politics, food and
culture all come together now, after tasting how different a cuisine
is to a preconceived notion, their assumptions toward their culture
may change, now, by just introducing a single dish of food to a
person, you have sparked an interest in learning of a new country and
culture. Even if there aren't any preconceived notions made about the
cuisine, by a person tasting the food from another nation, by tasting
food and seeing how amazing it is, assumptions about relatively poor
cultures will change. People will look at what other foods are made
and how these cultures utalize ingredients. Yes, though many people
in India and Thailand are pretty poor, they are human beings and just
like in the western world, they like flavorful food too.
So if you followed this entire post, I
hope this provides a better outlook on culture and cuisine, how
assumptions can be very wrong and can limit your experiences and hold
you from some of the better ones. Looking past politics, racism and
all of these things that separate cultures, we are all human beings
and all have to eat, why not share your experiences with other,
because food is one of the only things every human can relate to,
regardless of religion, culture or political views.
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