On Good Food
I feel like I’m starting too many of these posts by stating a character flaw or deficiency I think I possess. Anyway, I have a terrible taste in food. Of course, that is far from an objective statement, and I’ll get into that later, but my main point right now is how un-fancy (and unhealthy, usually) food needs to be to impress me. That fact, coupled with my general reluctance to try new foods (and new things in general), and my diet starts looking repetitive and uninteresting. On that note, though, trying to figure out why I developed this undeniably picky taste is something I don’t think I’ve ever tried to do.
So let’s think about it now. Growing up in Morocco, I was fairly fine eating whatever, as far as I remember. That includes the local food, Indian food my mum made, and any other Western-style things that she and my dad picked up. The one things I distinctly remember refusing to eat were bananas and raw tomatoes, and that is generally something I maintain today, so it’s good to know that I am at the very least consistent. And while I didn’t seek ever seek them out, I don’t think I actually took much issue with other vegetables. This may seem like a far too in-depth monologue about my taste in food over the years, but it serves as more than that to me. Here’s why noting the patterns is helpful.
The change I notice in my attitudes to food aren’t related to any foodstuffs in particular, but more to my willingness to broaden my culinary horizons. I feel as though at this point in time I have a solid understanding of what I do and don’t like to eat, and the only times I can think of breaking those preferences has been at times when politeness or courtesy necessitated it. Other than those instances, I have been more than content sticking to my guns and the food I know I’ll like. I’ve known about myself for a while now that I am no fan of surprises, and so this attachment to comfort and security (albeit with food) could be a conceivable extension of that fact.
A quick note on my use of the word ‘terrible’ in describing my taste in food: I don’t typically gravitate towards healthier options, but I am of the mind that, within reason, little good comes of making such blanket statements about others’ tastes – I was just making an asinine point.
Anyway, what brought this whole subject to mind was that I was proven right today, in a way. A dangerous precedent to set, but I’ll explain a bit first. I’ve been travelling with friends in Italy for the past week, and today has been the first time a dish has truly wowed me, and it was one of my old reliables – pasta with a Bolognese sauce, by far the best I’ve ever had. I suppose, then, that there is a silver lining to my stubbornness in food taste. That is, I’m bound to find and enjoy the best versions of dishes I’ve already loved for ages – a worthy price to pay for now, at least.