As Americans, we are blessed with food. We think about it, grow it, share it, cook it, spend a lot of money on it, gorge on it... you get the picture. So, how did we get here and what is this obsession doing to us? As a nation, we are fatter than ever (I speak only for myself), do less cooking than ever, rely on stores and packaged goods for convenience sake, and blindly consume what is in front of us. I know some fussy eaters, but fussy eaters these days may be the worst eaters of all. Instant mac and cheese has a place but does not make it as daily fare. And while we enjoy a easy access to a world of food products, somehow we do not seem to maximize the immense potential of our food opportunities.
In part, we are intimidated by the options out there. Will we measure up to Julia or even Julie? Rachael? Emeril? Of course not. They enjoy a rarified environment and all the tools that allow them to create magnificence, and they probably do not have to wash up afterwards. No, we can not compete there.
Then there is the time factor. I don't know about you but I cannot spend hours putting a meal on the table. Maybe that works once a month or so, but it won't happen even weekly, chez nous.. No Way.
Thirdly, let's think about money. In the US, we are calculated to spend less than 7% of our income on food. Canada is close behind us with about 9% of income going to the foodstore. Other countries as diverse as Kenya and the Ukraine spend between 40-50% of income to keep themselves fed. Now, we can consider income as a contributor to this disparity. Certainly, $1 bunch of bananas is a smaller percentage of the average US income than that same $1 bunch in the average Kenyan household. So there is some wiggle room there for us, if we want to rethink our consumption function. Once upon a time, I might have been able to discuss elasticity of demand in a coherent manner, but that time has passed and I will not attempt to address it. Let me stop with the notion that many of us could pay more if we had to.
Or..imagine.. we could eat less. In 1980, someone calculated that average caloric intake in the US was 2195 calories. By 2005, it had popped up to 2704 calories. The big bumps in consumption occurred in the categories of added fats, grains, and added sugars, with smaller increases in the protein group. While we think of grains as good, in fact, we have developed a monoculture around wheat and corn without examining the impact of these limitations or what is actually happening to them, thanks to science. Dairy, fruits, and vegetables enjoyed small ups and downs from year to year but no remarkable changes. If you want to check my source of information, go to http://civileats.com/2011/04/05. There is a ton of information there.
But I digress... I do not want to become a documenter of facts and factoids. I want to wander into the realm of re-thinking about food. I want to push away some of the habits, behaviors, and beliefs I have absorbed over the past many decades. I want to explore how other traditions relate to food, in many or most cases living "closer to the bone", without the added fat and sugar and gmo options that are epidemic in the US. I warn you now.... the French paradox is done and documented. This is not an international cooking blog. It is not recipes and techniques. It is ruminations on how the world eats and why...utensils vs fingers, communal vs plates, status vs non-status, homegrown vs store bought, and so on. In some instances, I will have been there and done that, meaning I have eaten at a table in a far away place. Sometimes, it will just be speculation, conjecture, or impressions. We will see. I hope the journey is sweet... and not too short.
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