http://nabsites.net/demo/prefer-pakistani-to-indian-food/
My Indian friend Ram
Narayan writes,
MAGAZINE of May 2012 has an article titled, “Six Rules for Dining
Out” by Tyler Cowen, Economics professor at George Mason University, which
carries the following totally biased and erroneous view titled, “Prefer
Pakistani to Indian (Food).”
perspective – I have a deep affinity for Idli Sambar- Uddin Vada. Even though I
enjoy Steak and a whole lot of other foods like Chinese, Thai, Mexican, Korean,
German, American and Desi foods, the Idli Sambar- Uddin Vada made by people
from Bangalore is distinct and the aroma of it drives me crazy. I will fall for
it any time.
IDLI- SAMBAR by a Bangalorean is certainly not any different or better than the
one made by a Chennailian, Mumbaiker, Hyderabadich or Trivandarumull, but my
taste bud is conditioned to Bangalore food, it is home to me when I eat that
food.
I am sure you can relatewith me on this, when I was in High School, my mother packed the food in the Tiffin
carrier – and my friends jumped on the food, they liked it so much. So, I
thought there is no comparison to my Mother’s food, she knew it like no one
else. Then as I started eating at my friends homes, darn it, their mothers also
cooked great food.
Finally, I worked at Food Craft Institute in Bangalore (1974-77) where we
trained Chefs, Receptionist, Bakers, Canners and Housekeepers for the
burgeoning five star hospitality industries.
There we were served delicious lunches – 250 different food items per
year from Philippines to South America, from America to Japan and every major cuisine
that you can imagine.
Yasmeen, my wife. She does the fish, kacche gosht ki Biryani, baigan ka bhurta,
Chicken Korma… yes, I crave for her food. I found my food-home in her food. She is amazing, but very calorie and cholesterol conscious, you can see me from two years ago, I have lost 20+ pounds. Thanks to her, I can climb the office stairs with ease without panting. Indeed, when I am on phone with her, I go up and down and down and up, she has got me trained.
On our wedding Anniversary she took
me to an Indian Restaurant in Louisville, man, the Chef was from Bangalore, and
the Idli Sambar was perfect. Yasmeen was watching me devour the Idli Sambar.
conditioned to be pluralistic –i.e., respecting every which food and accepting the
uniqueness of each one of the food. Thank God, I have enjoyed just about every food out there. God has been good to me, magar, phir bhi dil hai Hindustani, the
Idli-Vada beats it all. Thanks to my friends Lata and Sante, who fixed the Idli-Sambar
and without any embarrassment, I ate 6 Idlis.
friend and ordered the steak? You may have the best medium rare while the other
had well done – you said to yourselves Ayyo, how do they eat that! Without thinking what the
person would say about your bloody steak.
This Sunday, my friend Vatsa has invited me to a special TV Chef Show from
Bangalore called Bombat Bhojana and I am looking forward to it.
food, and believe you me, no food is superior or inferior. When my Pakistani
friend and I go for lunch, it is a push and pull. I do enjoy the Pakistani
food, which is not that different than Indian food, but it has lesser appeal to
my buds, as the Indian version of the same food has lesser appeal to him. So,
we take turns. Neither food can be classified as good or bad, it is what your
conditioning is that makes you enjoy the food. Who would have thought we would enjoy hot dogs in India, but we do now, especially the ones made in Chicago and New York Street corners. Oon oon ooonh!
On average, Pakistani food in the United States is better than Indian food in
the United States, and yet a lot of the core dishes do not greatly differ.
Northwestern-Indian cuisine is predominant in the U.S., so you find substantial
overlap on most Indian and Pakistani menus.
food turn out better? I think it has to do with cultural associations. When
Americans hear Pakistan, many of them think of bin Laden, drone attacks,
terrorism, Daniel Pearl, and the sale of nuclear secrets. When Americans hear
India, they likely think of Gandhi, or brightly colored Bollywood movies with
lots of happy dancing. Whether or not these portraits are fair or
representative doesn’t matter. Common images of Pakistan nudge away uncommitted
customers. Many Pakistani restaurants also serve no alcohol, limiting their
American audience and making them turn more to Pakistani customers. That’s
another plus.
Pakistani restaurants than to Indian restaurants. Often, as you search out a
good meal, the quality of the customers matters more than the quality of the
chef. I doubt that Indian chefs are less talented than their Pakistani
counterparts, but they are typically more constrained in what they can produce.
The blandness of Indian restaurants, like that of Thai restaurants, is a direct
result of their ability to market the food to a mass audience.
and of course they aren’t comprehensive, but they illustrate a way of thinking.
Food is a product of supply and demand. Whenever you’re searching for
restaurants, try to figure out where the supplies are fresh, the suppliers are
creative, and the demanders are informed. That’s the precept underlying all
these rules. Follow it, and I guarantee you’ll find better food and better
value when you eat out.
at
http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/05/six-rules-for-dining-out/8929/2/
The essay is adapted from his book An Economist Gets Lunch: New Rules for
Everyday Foodies, out this month.
– – – – –
Mike
Ghouse is committed to building a Cohesive
America and offers pluralistic solutions on issues of the day. He is
a professional speaker, thinker and a writer on pluralism, politics, civic
affairs, Islam, India,
Israel, peace and justice. Mike is a frequent
guest on Sean Hannity show on Fox TV, and a commentator on
national radio networks, he writes weekly at Dallas Morning News and regularly at Huffington
post,and several other periodicals. www.TheGhousediary.com
is Mike’s daily blog.