Imagine a warmly lit kitchen with sizzling sounds from the stove blending in with loud conversations and laughter. A dozen platters loaded with different foods line the countertops, and the aroma of sautéed onions, garlic and countless other spices waft through the rooms until even the neighbors outside are sniffing the air and hearing their stomachs grumble. This is how I grew up, surrounded by dishes and spices native to India and with the firm conviction that a kitchen is the heart of a home.
My family immigrated from India to the United States, the “melting pot” of cultures, in 2000. Being so young when I arrived to the U.S., I didn’t fully comprehend that my family now lived in a different country. I first became aware of these differences when I started school and encountered the cafeteria lunches. Sloppy Joes? No, thank you. Smucker’s Uncrustables? I’ll pass. Tomato soup and grilled cheese? I don’t trust that combination. Bringing rice and curry to school prompted a multitude of questions and curious looks, and that feeling of being “different” was only appreciated once I grew older and less anxious about what others might think. Food became my primary method of analyzing differences between myself and my peers, between my native background and appropriated culture. Even now there are moments when I’m amazed by how different my family prepares and perceives food than most American families. My family rarely eats out, choosing instead to cook every day. Each summer we cultivate a large garden and grow Indian vegetables and spices that are carefully frozen and used year round. Sure, we eat foods like spaghetti and tacos, but they’re always made with an Indian twist. Just the way I like it.
Fast forward and now I’m in college, where all freshmen are required to purchase the unlimited meal plan. From the onset I knew that this would be a waste of both money and food; I went to the dining hall perhaps twice a day and always left feeling bloated and tired of the repetitive options. My wonderful mother, more concerned about if I was eating than my grades, prepared homemade meals individually packed in containers and drove up to Charlottesville to stock up my fridge. This, in addition to regular exercise, helped me to avoid the freshman fifteen. Even so, there’s nothing like a freshly cooked homemade meal still hot from the stove. One of the best things about going back home for the summer is undoubtedly the availability of foods that satisfy both my appetite and taste buds. Almost every week my parents and I went to the market to buy fresh fish which we gutted and cleaned then marinated and fried. With steamed brown rice and an assortment of vegetables picked straight from our garden, I felt healthier and happier overall. Having grown up with parents who are excellent cooks, I pay attention to what I eat and how my body feels. I’m sure that one day I’ll be preparing the same dishes my mom makes for me for my own children. The kitchen will be filled with familiar scents and sounds, reflecting the happiness of a home and family strengthened through food.
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Gulab Jamun, an Indian dessert Photo: jsn.2k11; reprocessed by Off-shell, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
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Don’t be afraid to try something new! To make a simple and sweet Indian dessert, make gulab jamun, fried balls of dough soaked in a sugar syrup. The dough mix can be easily purchased from any oriental store and just needs water added to it. The dough should be formed into small balls and then fried, and the sugar syrup will be made separately by following the instructions for mixing together the appropriate amounts of hot water and sugar. Let the fried jamuns cool, then add them to the syrup and allow it to refrigerate for a day so that they’re thoroughly soaked in the syrup. Add ice cream on top and enjoy!
Doreen Devasia is a sophomore at the University of Virginia and is currently studying Art History and Foreign Affairs. During the summer of 2016 she worked as an intern for Community Engagement at WHRO where she focused on supporting the station's work with veterans and the Wall of Faces initiative.