Gross Food

The article "Waiter, there's a cloven hoof on my plate," reminded me of a Food Network show. In my life I've never consumed anything that would be considered "gross," by others, in fact the grossest thing I've ever eaten is meatloaf, followed closely by sushi. I believe in America a major "don't" when it comes to eating "gross" food is intestines. Although common, I believe that things such as livers, hearts, kidneys, and especially testicles are eaten with hesitation. I'm not sure why this is, maybe it's because people think more about what their eating and where it came from when its not a solid slab of meat.

The article discusses the consumption of guinea pig, veal testicles, beef penis, tongue, pig's feet, kidneys, and chicken assholes. Reading each of these accounts made my stomach uneasy. Thinking about it however I shouldn't be so bothered. I'm not a vegetarian, but taking on a vegetarians perspective (one the refrains from eating meat for respect of the animal) eating these parts of the animal should be looked upon with no disgust. My reason behind this is that in America when a animal is slaughtered the two parts that are used mainly are the meat and hide to turn into leather. But in other societies it seems as though they have enough respect for the animal they killed to not waste any part. I could be wrong however, and they just enjoy the taste of these parts, which I still think is pretty gross.

1) "Taboo | Gross Food | National Geographic Channel." National Geographic Channel - Animals, Science, Exploration Television Shows. Web. 12 Apr. 2010. .

2) Mitchell, Nina. "Gross Me Out! | Away.com." Away.com: Travel Guides, Advice from Experts. Web. 12 Apr. 2010. .

Culture Is Food

"A World of Food" made me think about my own culture, though mostly about food. The film seemed to divide food and culture, commenting on the nature of foreign food and of American food. But when I think of food and how I've consumed it most of my life, I remember the explorations into the food of other countries and cultures. My family has always been adventurous with food and we've always been open to trying new things. With "A World of Food," there seemed only to be cultures eating their own food and American's scared of trying anything else.

My grandmother, on my mother's side, was Japanese, which was perhaps the biggest influence on my consumption of food outside the "normal." Sushi was a staple, and was never really an issue, as far as strange foods go. Rice was eaten multiple times a week, though never instant rice or anything outside Japanese white rice for the most part. So when I discovered this kind of food was considered strange, I embraced the difference, knowing that I was eating something delicious they were missing out on. And because my parents appreciated all kinds of food, I was introduced to many great dishes from many different cultures.

As I grew older, I found myself wanting to try more and more foods, the stranger the better. If any other culture considers it food, you can be sure I'll try it. There is nothing that scares me and no food will likely ever be "too out there." Now I can only hope to try all the foods I can possibly consume, because it is just one way to connect to another culture, that understanding what they eat can tell you what they, as a people, are like.

Counihan, Carole, and Penny Van Esterik. Food and Culture. New York City, NY: Routledge, 1997. Print.

Ishige, Naomichi. The History and Culture of Japanese Food. New York City, NY: Kegan Paul, 2001. Print.

Lost in Translation

My stepdad is from Mexico City and when I was about seven he promised me som Mexican chocolate for dinner, I thought I had the coolest dad on the planet!! For the first time I was actually looking forward to dinner and when we sat down to eat I was completely....confused. Why would my Mexican chocolate be mixed with chicken?!? Chicken and chocolate, that was just too weird so I moved the sauce off of the chicken and took in a huge spoonful.....YUCK!! Whatever this brown sauce was it certainly was NOT chocolate. My dad explained to me Mole IS Mexican chocolate and it is a bitter spicy sauce that is made with chocolate but not sweetened and definately not what I was used to. That was my first lesson in cultural differences in food, but not that last.
I grew up in Los Angeles, California where living so close to the U.S/Mexican border clearly has an influence on the So Cal culture. You can see influence everywhere from art and music to architectural designs and restaurants. The restaurants vary in degrees of authenticity from the restaurants using the Mexican culture as a gimmick (El Pollo Loco and Baja Fresh) to the restaurants that can boast of real Mexican salsas and guacomole made in front of you (El Presidente). On a recent trip to Mexico with my boyfriend I learned that even the most "authentic" Mexican restaurant here in the states may lack certain...delicacies' reserved for south of the border.
Some friends my boyfriend grew up with in Mexico took us out to a restaurant and insisted on ordering for us. We declined and the guys settled on ordering the appetizer but refused to tell us what it was. Figuring it was something I wouldn't eat regularly I passed, but with a little teasing my boyfriend gave in and had a few peices of the strange looking meat. His friends burst out laughing and finally revealed the mystery meat to be bull's penis, which they eat often as a fancy appetizer but knowing out culture differences thought it would be funny to get us to do the same.
As an adult I find it hard to go an entire week without at least one Mexican meal,and have even come to love Mole, knowing what to expect helped with that. Although I am a huge fan of Mexican foods, there are some that I am no willing to even attempt to eat. I found two books in the library that reflect some of the ways food influences society...one that reflects the importance of flavors to sell food and another that focuses more specifically on how food is viewed by both Mexican and Mexican American women.

Abarca, Meredith E. Voices in the Kitchen: Views of Food and the World from Working-Class Mexican and Mexican American Women. College Station; Texas A&M University Press,
2006. Print

Belasco, Warren., & Scranton, Philip., ed. Food Nations: Selling Taste in Consumer Societies. New York: Routledge, 2002.

Culture & Food

The film we viewed in class, "A World of Food" opened my eyes to the foods various cultures include in their diet. I've heard that some cultures around the world eat dog as a basic meat product, but it was horrifying to see the roasted dog carcasses hanging from their necks. Although I must take into consideration this disgust I felt over seeing the dogs is felt by millions around the world when they see a cheeseburger being consumed.

Growing up I believed my diet to be pretty mainstream in American society, in so far as it consisted of a large variety of cultural representations, in their Americanized versions. Spaghetti noodles with tomato sauce, beef and cheese tacos, steak and potatoes, a stir fry with peas, water chestnuts and broccoli, and always a glass of milk. I say these dishes seem Americanized because of the lack of deviance from local grocery store produce sections, and lack of spices. In other words, they were rather bland. Four years ago when I first started college my eating habits were forced to change. Freshman year I ate in the dining hall which catered to our large Hawaiian population, potatoes were replaced with rice at every meal, and there was a large influence of Asian foods and spices in most dinner choices. I also moved in with roommates who loved to cook dishes that still seemed foreign to me, such as really spicy noodles as well as spam (which I still refuse to eat).

Anderson, Eugene N. Everyone Eats: Understanding Food and Culture. New York: New York UP, 2005. Print.

Harris, Marvin. The Sacred Cow and the Abominable Pig: Riddles of Food and Culture. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1987. Print.

Culture & Food

The film "A World of Food" gave me new insight on food preferences of people in cultures outside of my own. I found it interesting that other cultures don't understand the huge proportions at American Restaurants. It's hard for me to understand why someone wouldn't want leftovers of a delicious restaurant meal. Personally, I eat them consecutively for every single meal until they're gone. There's not much better than reheated Thai leftovers for breakfast! In fact, that's what I ate this morning.

I was raised in a pretty typical American household. We are regular American-style foods, everything from lasagna to meatloaf. There was nothing out of the ordinary about our diet except for my mom's insistence upon cutting fat from out meals. Everything we ate was labeled "98% fat free" or "nonfat," simply "low fat" wasn't an option. I can actually remember the first time I had real cream cheese, the taste was unbelievable! We never had butter, and for a few years my mom wouldn't even buy margarine. Trying to choke down a piece of toast with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter! Lite Spray just didn't cut it for me; to be honest, it was disgusting. My friends didn't like eating at my house either, and frankly, I preferred eating at their houses because I could eat what I pleased. If you were to scan through my parents' fridge when I was growing up, there wasn't a single item that wasn't at least reduced fat.

My lack of fat consumption as a child had quite an impact on my food choices, once I was allowed to make them for myself. As soon as I began buying my own foods, I instantly went for fat, fat, fat! This probably explains my unquenchable craving for desserts of all kinds. Today, while I try to eat somewhat healthier, there are some things that I still refuse to buy the lite version of, like mayonnaise, for example. While I know it's unhealthy to eat the regular version of everything, sometimes it's so worth the calories...

Here are my recommendations for books found in the library, neither of which I can truly recommend, having not read them myself.

Gremillion, Joseph. "Food/Energy and the Major Faiths." Mayrknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 1978.

Subject: food supply.

Lanner, Ronald M. "The Pinon Pine: A Natural and Cultural History." Reno, NV: University of Nevada Press, 1981.

Subject: Indians of North America

hahahahaha food