Friday, July 23, 2010

My Culture and Food!

What does this picture say about my culture?
picture taken 6/10

Last night my anthropology professor ask us to question the type of foods we grew up eating. I started to think about my culture and the foods that I love.

I have southern roots so most of my food picks included everything fried and smothered in gravy. As a child that was my way of eating and it worked for me. My entire family and friends ate that way. There was nothing wrong with it until....I moved to California.

When I moved to California it was hard to accept the west coast culture because every dish was healthy. I was embarrassed to fry around my friends because they did not cook that way. I had no idea that my cooking style was bad for my health. It was a true wake-up call.

So last night the professor ask the class to question everything we eat this weekend and decide if it is culture driven. She want us to figure out who introduced the foods to us and if it is healthy for us. This is going to be an interesting weekend.

I have struggled for years to keep my cultural foods. It has to be all or none when it comes to eating healthy. Now it is time for me to design my own food culture. I can see the list clearly and it does not include fried chicken, gravy, carbs, sweets, non-organic and processed foods. It include fresh veggies, fruits and lean organic proteins. Can I live with it? Yes, I can!

Thank you Professor R. for opening my eyes to my cultural foods.

Question: Has your culture (food) increased your waistline?

3 comments:

  1. Girl, fried deer steak and gravy are a once a month spurge around here. I can't help it! Sometimes we do the deer meat in a "tips" form so that it's not fried, just browned just a little.

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  2. I think tradition increased my waist line. I don't necessarily know if my culture has.

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  3. I, too, grew up eating Southern Fried everything and damn it was good. I make a mean biscuit and am capable of drowning it in some really good gravy!! So, my heartfelt sympathies. In addition, I grew up on the border and I love, love, love Mexican food. When I was little, my friends mom made home made tortillas. Huge ones, delicious ones! And, of course, she only used the best of LARD! Damn, so good. I miss that stuff, but know its not gonna get me to my goals. So, I just consider the good memories and let it go at that.

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