Food and Culture Readings

The pieces by Ahn and Nicholson tell stories of seeking connection with lost parents.  It was somewhat heartbreaking but interesting to hear these men talk about their parents that had past away.  They both used the foods that their parents ate to try and reconnect with their childhoods and recall memories.  In Ahn’s piece, it is particularly prevalent that that Korean culture brings him back to growing up in his childhood home.  Nicholson addresses British foods and culture that remind him of his mother and father.  From the sound of it, it seems that Ahn has much more experience in cooking than Nicholson.  Due to this, the way he connects with his past is through cooking and creating food concoctions.  He says, “Latent Korean influences began to insinuate themselves into the food I prepared. I fried rectangles of tofu in vegetable oil. I tenderized flank steak in garlicky kalbi marinades. I slipped scallions into whatever dishes I could. Sesame oil found its way into my sauces” (Ahn 15).  The way he describes it, it seems as if he subconsciously brought out Korean influences in the dishes he was preparing.  Nicholson doesn’t describe cooking so much as finding the same foods at the store that his mother purchased.  He talks about buying the specific cheese from a cheese shop tailored towards British immigrants and a Wonder Bread like substance.  These pieces brought me back to my childhood.  My mom, being the food fanatic she is, constantly had me trying every type of food.  Ahn describes his parents as being lenient when he didn’t want to eat certain Korean foods.  My mother on the other hand would never let me get away with not trying something.  I grew up loving all kinds of foods.  The dishes Ahn describes in his writing sound amazing.