I Eat With My Hands

I have always been intrigued by other cultures and how they revolve around food. While In India I first learned what it was like to eat with my hands. It was fascinating to be enveloped in a world where the every day normalcies of my life as I knew it no longer existed and I loved it! I dove right in as I was eager to attempt to learn this knew and intriguing method and while my fingers fumblingly attempted to adapt to this new practice.

During one meal a gentleman at the far end of the table announced, "I don't see why you use a fork for everything" and while raising his hands as if to display them to his guests exclaimed, "This is Fork and knife from God" and then while raising his fork said, "I don't know where this fork has been but I do know where this hand has been." We all laughed and then laughed some more.

Even though I was having an amazing time the food I was eating was having an impact on my body. I soon learned that I could no longer eat so many of the things that I had come to love because of my gluten intolerence and sensitivity to both corn and dairy. What I have learned though is that there are so many cultures who have such a variety of things that I can eat. From curries to sushi to Injera in Ethiopia. There are so many things that can be gluten free and taste amazing as well. The standard American diet is full of  wheat, corn, dairy, and various other glutenous breads. From Pizza to pasta to your everyday morning doughnut. We have to experiment in order to find some way of making gluten free flours into something that tastes like these things we could once eat. Granted it can be done and we can still enjoy our American food without gluten, corn, or even dairy but there's a whole world out there full of so many more things that we can eat.

While living in Ethiopia I came to love Injera (picture below). Injera is a spongy fermented flatbread made from Ethiopia's staple grain Teff and you eat it with your hands. It took me three months to learn that they were adding Barley to the mixture just before the fermentation period was over but in many places in Ethiopia it is only made with Teff. Imagine an entire country where almost everything is Gluten free and is amazing.

Everywhere you go you will still have to take precautions in order to stay healthy, but don't be afraid to venture into the Eastern world's vast amount of gluten free foods. There are so many cultures with mouthwatering food just waiting to be eaten. Check out your local markets within your cities international district to see what you can find. While eating gluten free, dairy free, corn free or all or any other allergens you are sure to either start cooking for the first time for yourself or start cooking more.

Have fun with it. Begin to explore what's out there. Currently I'm enjoying venturing into making pizza, sushi, curry, and soups. There's so much to explore. Just remember, don't be afraid to eat with your hands.