Food Failure
Are you picky about what you eat? I know a lot of people who are.
My sister is one example. Unlike me, she has spent her initial years in Kolkata but never has a single soul succeeded in persuading her to try Bengali cuisine. Sure, she likes all the fast food they sell on the streets, like those fish chops which are covered with some powder and deep fried, but nothing homely has ever gone inside her mouth, which means no gourd or pointed gourd (potol in Bengali) or bitter gourd (karela in Hindi) or any kind of guard. Most importantly, no fish. If you're not Bengali, you have no idea how strange it is for a Bengali to hate fish as much as my sister does. She says it makes her puke. She actually cries every time we make her try some salmon stew. She does! I am not making that up. She has no problem eating Punjabi or Italian or South Indian or Moroccan cuisine, but Bengali food is a big no-no for her that she can go on having egg omlettes for dinner for, say, three months if we cook Bengali food in the house for that period of time.
My father is a whole different story. he is one of those rare individuals who don't actually crave food. Ever! Ninety per cent of the food out there he can't stomach. He's nearly sixty, extraordanarily fit (finishes Navi Mumbai marathon before me every year), has never been diagnosed with any disease and his sugar and pressure levels are always under control. But his stomach fails him every time. But he loves Bengali food, especially the light, homely food that my sister hates so much. Its impossible to satisfy both of them on the dinner table.
Then there's my mother. She's raised us on healthy food. Throuighout my childhood, I thought Maggi noodles were a delicacy because while other mothers were okay with their kids having it, my mother would never allow us. She started our family custom of having bananas and almonds in the morning. She insisted upon a heavy breakfast and light dinners. But this doesn't mean she can resist chocolates and samosas. In fact, out of all of us, she's the one who is the most drawn to junk food.
And then there's me. Thankfully, God made me a combination of all my family members. I enjoy all cuisines, including Bengali, and I can actually stomach all of them. I take care of my diet and its not as big a struggle for me as it is for some teenagers. I mean, I am okay with buying a fruit during lunch hour instead of whatever they're selling in the canteen. But at the same time, I occasionally give myself the pleasure of all those things which are rich in trans fats and promise to give you heart disease one day. But that doesn't mean I have no problems with food. I have issues in one department and that is quantity. I care about how much food is on my plate. I like heavy breakfast, medium lunches and light dinners. I like to eat every now and then instead of having three very big meals. I hate it when someone force feeds me.
After coming to Kolkata I have realized that how and what we eat is a big determinant of how we live our lives. The lady whose house I live in with my roommates only serves typical Bengali food and she gives salmon twice a day. if my sister were in my place, she would surely have hung herself. A lot of students in my college who've rented places here have to order 'dabbas', that is, get their meals themselves from some supplier.Given the quality of food my oil in these dabbas, my father would surely have ended up in the hospital. College canteens don't exactly sere healthy food either. Plus, there is the temptation of chaat, momos, chocolates, sweets and so on at every street corner of Kolkata. What would my mother have done? And lastly, my landlady likes to dump on our plates about a thousand kilos of rice for every meal. You can't imagine how I'm dealing with that. I've tried complaining, throwing a fit, pretending to be sick, lying about having eaten outside and so on, but everyday the same mountain of rice is served to me on the plate.
Thinking about food has made me realize on thing. We're not cows. We don't eat the same green grass everyday. We're not tigers. We don't eat the same raw flesh for every meal. We're human beings, with the capability and creativity to adopt, create and even mix and match cuisines.We have a form of entertainment that we always choose to ignore and that is food. And also, we've done enough studies to know what food is good for us and how to stay healthy. So go ahead and try to eat whatever is served to you without making a fuss. Try to keep it healthy most of the time so when you're at a place where there's a lot of mouth-wateringly delicious food, you don't feel guilty about hogging it. And most importantly, learn to adjust. You never know where you'll be going and what food you'll get there. So welcome whatever food you get and you'll be happy.
My sister is one example. Unlike me, she has spent her initial years in Kolkata but never has a single soul succeeded in persuading her to try Bengali cuisine. Sure, she likes all the fast food they sell on the streets, like those fish chops which are covered with some powder and deep fried, but nothing homely has ever gone inside her mouth, which means no gourd or pointed gourd (potol in Bengali) or bitter gourd (karela in Hindi) or any kind of guard. Most importantly, no fish. If you're not Bengali, you have no idea how strange it is for a Bengali to hate fish as much as my sister does. She says it makes her puke. She actually cries every time we make her try some salmon stew. She does! I am not making that up. She has no problem eating Punjabi or Italian or South Indian or Moroccan cuisine, but Bengali food is a big no-no for her that she can go on having egg omlettes for dinner for, say, three months if we cook Bengali food in the house for that period of time.
My father is a whole different story. he is one of those rare individuals who don't actually crave food. Ever! Ninety per cent of the food out there he can't stomach. He's nearly sixty, extraordanarily fit (finishes Navi Mumbai marathon before me every year), has never been diagnosed with any disease and his sugar and pressure levels are always under control. But his stomach fails him every time. But he loves Bengali food, especially the light, homely food that my sister hates so much. Its impossible to satisfy both of them on the dinner table.
Then there's my mother. She's raised us on healthy food. Throuighout my childhood, I thought Maggi noodles were a delicacy because while other mothers were okay with their kids having it, my mother would never allow us. She started our family custom of having bananas and almonds in the morning. She insisted upon a heavy breakfast and light dinners. But this doesn't mean she can resist chocolates and samosas. In fact, out of all of us, she's the one who is the most drawn to junk food.
And then there's me. Thankfully, God made me a combination of all my family members. I enjoy all cuisines, including Bengali, and I can actually stomach all of them. I take care of my diet and its not as big a struggle for me as it is for some teenagers. I mean, I am okay with buying a fruit during lunch hour instead of whatever they're selling in the canteen. But at the same time, I occasionally give myself the pleasure of all those things which are rich in trans fats and promise to give you heart disease one day. But that doesn't mean I have no problems with food. I have issues in one department and that is quantity. I care about how much food is on my plate. I like heavy breakfast, medium lunches and light dinners. I like to eat every now and then instead of having three very big meals. I hate it when someone force feeds me.
After coming to Kolkata I have realized that how and what we eat is a big determinant of how we live our lives. The lady whose house I live in with my roommates only serves typical Bengali food and she gives salmon twice a day. if my sister were in my place, she would surely have hung herself. A lot of students in my college who've rented places here have to order 'dabbas', that is, get their meals themselves from some supplier.Given the quality of food my oil in these dabbas, my father would surely have ended up in the hospital. College canteens don't exactly sere healthy food either. Plus, there is the temptation of chaat, momos, chocolates, sweets and so on at every street corner of Kolkata. What would my mother have done? And lastly, my landlady likes to dump on our plates about a thousand kilos of rice for every meal. You can't imagine how I'm dealing with that. I've tried complaining, throwing a fit, pretending to be sick, lying about having eaten outside and so on, but everyday the same mountain of rice is served to me on the plate.
Thinking about food has made me realize on thing. We're not cows. We don't eat the same green grass everyday. We're not tigers. We don't eat the same raw flesh for every meal. We're human beings, with the capability and creativity to adopt, create and even mix and match cuisines.We have a form of entertainment that we always choose to ignore and that is food. And also, we've done enough studies to know what food is good for us and how to stay healthy. So go ahead and try to eat whatever is served to you without making a fuss. Try to keep it healthy most of the time so when you're at a place where there's a lot of mouth-wateringly delicious food, you don't feel guilty about hogging it. And most importantly, learn to adjust. You never know where you'll be going and what food you'll get there. So welcome whatever food you get and you'll be happy.
I hate it when I get served a bucket of rice with dinner, too! I usually just stare at it, because there's no way I can eat that much. I would be sick.
ReplyDeleteYour description of food has my mouth watering! It's so different from what's common over here. I grew up eating A LOT of chicken, and very little fish (my mom made chicken with almost every meal). Usually, we'd have some chicken with macaroni and cheese, or maybe a potato on the side.
Of course, no matter what I eat, I'm always sure to leave some room for dessert :)