Forgotten Foods

What is Food? According to Wikipedia “Food is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for an organism”. But I would like to look at this a little differently. I believe that “Food is something that unites us”. Food is a language, a language that helps one to communicate without the use of words. A lot can happen over a plate laden with food and tons of memories are created. I believe that all of us should have at least some such food in our life that unlocks a memory every time we eat it. Sharing food brings strangers together. It helps overcome barriers of communities, countries, ethnicity, or gender. Food unites – irrespective of whether you eat to live or live to eat.

Food symbolizes cultural identity. And how does it do that? A quick search on the internet explains that “On an individual level, we grow up eating the food of our cultures. It also operates as an expression of cultural identity. Immigrants bring the food of their countries with them wherever they go and cooking traditional food is a way of preserving their culture when they move to new places.”

If food is so important and endemic to cultural expression, then what is the reason a lot of foods are forgotten in today's world? The answer to this is very simple really. A change in the cultural habits and modernization of food systems led to a change in the pattern of consumption for various types of foods. Foods have moved over from little homely kitchens to being mass-produced in factories with the help of machines. Nuclear families and those with both parents working have brought about a sea change in the way food is made and consumed today. A lot of things that were consumed years back are virtually non-existent unless you go to rural areas or areas untouched by civilization. I had a very interesting conversation about this with my Dad and his understanding of this was deep and pretty amazing to listen to.

I asked my dad “How are food consumption habits different now in comparison to how it was in your childhood?” He started the story by saying “Well son let me tell you how things were in our time.” It was truly a Bollywood moment. He mentioned in older days Climate had a major role to play. Certain foods were typically eaten depending on the season. Also, food was produced locally and consumed locally. Now with improvements and speed of transportation, this practice has slowly died down as the food available off the supermarket shelves is basically “Food for all seasons”. Consumption of food based on climate and geographical area is extremely scientific. He also mentioned how although science has advanced now, the quality of food that one eats has deteriorated tremendously, which is honestly very ironic when you think about it! There was also a shift from fresh foods to semi-cooked/ready to eat which takes the health aspect out. Even refrigeration of food has a lot of issues associated with it. Honestly, a lot of health issues would disappear if we just consumed food that our elders used to eat. That too without resorting to refrigeration!! In older days food used to be simple, easy to digest, nutritious and healthy! Today’s food items contain an overdose of preservatives, chemicals and toxins for enhanced shelf life, taste and colours for catching the eye of the consumer. But that will prove to be very harmful in the long run!! A bowl of traditional north Indian Khichdi is way better long-term than a bowl of pasta or burger. The Indian cooking system is one of the best in the world and the healthiest. The world is only slowly waking up to this reality.

Being a Gujarati living in Kerala, I know a bit about both North and South eating habits. For instance in Kerala when “Karkidaka Masam” or the beginning of monsoon starts, a lot of foods are consumed that are good for detox and immunity. This is to protect one from waterborne diseases. A special concoction called Karkida Kanni is made and consumed. Also, foods containing drumstick leaves are used widely. Same way in North India, food containing high energy like “Kardant”, a dry fruit and ghee-rich dish is eaten during winters. This helps in preserving energy and providing insulation to the body to see you through the winters.

So moving on, I am going to discuss how certain food items have been forgotten in my family with the passing away of older generations. It is a topic that is close to my heart as it was my grandmom’s death anniversary recently and she was the one person who used to cook for me since I was a child. A selfless woman who believed if you want to win someone’s heart, you do it through their stomach. Her kitchen was her life, a place she loved going for peace. She used to learn new recipes just to keep us happy, and a lot of food items, especially traditional ones that are deeply enriched in the Gujarati Culture are not made anymore, as they passed with time. Although whenever I go to my older relatives houses and have a traditional item, it unlocks a memory and that is the true beauty of food. So a tradition, which has passed since my grandmom left us, was the tradition of making sweets at home. In today’s fast-moving world who has the time to make sweets? People just buy commercial sweets and give them as gifts, and so slowly the love that goes into cooking is slowly lost. I mean in no way I can compare, a Kaju Katli made by my grandma with something made by a machine. Food is just a mix of ingredients unless there is love and emotion added to it.

A lot of Diwali sweets are no longer made in my household. Earlier during Diwali, there used to be a wide variety of sweets, but now over time it all has just dissipated, and   I am worried that it will be virtually non-existent for the generations that come after me. When I spoke to my grandaunt, she said that a dish that was made a lot in our family which isn’t made anymore is “The millet Khakhra”. It is a dish indigenous to the state of Gujarat and is nutrient-rich. Same with sweets made from jaggery, they have just disappeared. Before my grandmom passed away, I used to look forward to the Morning of Diwali, A clean house, varieties of sweets, and the air of festivity. Nowadays we just end up ordering sweets! These are not the only things that were forgotten. My grandmom used to make a lot of snacks for us, these are foods that my dad, his cousins, and I have grown up eating! Every time I eat something that used to be made by my grandmom specially and is no longer made, it makes me feel close to home. The smell of Banana chips, tapioca, and fried snacks made the traditional way is just too beautiful and for a second makes me miss home.

I believe that we need to be connected to our roots as our culture is what defines us. And the food is an important ingredient that defines our culture. If we forget our roots, we will move ahead in life but lose a lot in the process. Our culture, our background is our identity. If we let these things pass by, soon the practices left by our ancestors will disappear. Let us protect these beautiful memories and create more for the generations to come.