. You realize something's worth only when it is not around . A very cliched beginning to this post , you might say. But , yes a very appropriate one at this point of time . I still remember the last meal i ate in India. Vendakkai Sambar , my favourite Aloo Roast , Milagu Rasam and Semiya Payasam . I would give a leg to eat something which tastes as brilliant as that now. I miss my mom , who dished out that amazing meal . I miss a lot more . But thats not the point of this post. Before , i start getting sentimental and emotional , let me gather myself up and move on.
. FOOD ??????????? Thats probably the biggest question mark that hangs over every Indian's head when he/she goes abroad. And it becomes a even more painful issue when u realize that you dint know a kitchen existed in your house . Thankfully , i took my mothers advise and charted my own path of wisdom towards culinary exploration . People who follow my blog , will know about my escapades such as the CORNFLAKES DOSAI and , through such learning experiences, i was all confident and pumped up ,that i was ready to bear the brunt of the storm. Little did i know ,that i was heavily misinformed.
. The rude awakening started off with the long flight journey. A few dumplings of rice and meat ,served with horse food (read : Lettuce , Cucumber , Spinach Leaves ) does not really fill your stomach . You tend to argue with the wisdom of the cabin crew , especially when they serve breakfast and lunch when its 2 AM and 5 AM IST . Realization slowly dawns on you that , this is the beginning of the so called "FILL IT UP YOURSELF " Shock Period. I would rather term mine as Culinary Shock .
. More grave situations lay in waiting . With my stomach grumbling and protesting , i set foot upon USA . Not the way i had expected . Even though my mind was excited and my heart was pumping ,my stomach was waging a battle of its own. I was exploring JFK ,the whole morning for options and finally spotted a familiar sight in a McD in Terminal 7. With hopes high , i raced ahead . It dint take a long time for them though, to go into free fall. All i could see was pork, beef and red meat everywhere. I am no vegan , but this was still difficult to digest. Finally , i had to settle down for a chicken sandwich and coffee . And no , i swear that i am not going to talk about the cost or how much it is when converted into rupees.
. Lunch was substituted by Coke and Pepsi ,and finally we reached Gainesville. Two seniors were kind enough to buy us pizza from Papa Johns. Yes, its high time you get used to the several outlets that serve you "American" Food.
.The next two days were almost an exercise in despair . It took us that much time to set up everything and start cooking on our own. We knew that this was the only way out of this hole. One , you minimize your expenses and two, you get a chance to eat proper ( or whatever you cook ) Indian food. Rice and vegetables , were never an issue ,as saviours such as Walmart and Publix are stacked with the above. Armed with an army of pickles , pastes from home and a whole gamut of cooking vessels ,we set about cooking .
. Breakfast mainly tends to be either noodles or flakes with milk and honey or omelette or fruit and off late oatmeal . Though hardly filling , it keeps your stomach from ringing the alarm bell. I have spent most of the days so far in the University. In that case you have three options . One , eat at places like Taco Bell ( serves rolled up chappathis with horse food inside ) , Subway ( bread with horse food inside ) , Starbucks ( serves coffee at exorbitant prices ) , Panda Bowl ( The Chinese even have a restaurant of their own ) . Second option , pack your lunch . This is only possible if you wake up at 7 in the morning , rummage around the kitchen , take initiative and cook both breakfast and lunch for 4 people !!! Naangala 830 class ku 835 ku enthirikara case , so this option goes for a toss. Third option, skip lunch. I have been sticking to the third option so far . I would not recommend it and i too am searching for other viable solutions.
Ofcourse , when i do not hit the road on weekdays , we generally cook ( appadina sollika vendiyathaan ) . My kitchen resume is ever growing and becoming longer and longer with an ever increasing impressive list of dishes . The highlights cover a broad spectrum right from hot water to chicken curry. Somewhere in that list you will also find carrot poriyal , fried rice ,bindi masala , mashed potatoes and so forth . Of course there have been mild side effects. But , yes MILD !!! Some accidents have occured on the way. Mostly we forget the salt , and sometimes the tamarind in the sambhar . But , believe me when i say , there is nothing as satisfying as eating the food you cooked. I do not know whether in two years , i will be a graduate , but i would have definitely taken a few steps in the direction of being the Gainesville version of our own Sanjeev Kapoor.
Weekends . Hmmm !!! Mostly we dine out . There's this amazing Pakistani restaurant on Western University Avenue - Kabab House. Strings attached -- It tends to leave a hole in your packet . But ,the food is worth the price tag it bears. I would especially recommend paying a visit to them during their Happy Hours : 3-5 PM on all days . There is also the ISKCON 's Hare Rama Hare Krishna Trust on the same road , which serves dinner on 7 PM Fridays . They say its free ,but you need to pay a meagre donation of 3 $ . I am not even sure whether its one time or not .
And of course, there are GatorNights ,every Friday !!! Friday dinner or Saturday breakfast is never an issue .UF for nothing is ranked in the top 10 Party Schools of USA . To start off , the movie comes with popcorn and drink . And to top everything off , there is the midnight breakfast . Bread , sausage , scrambled eggs , oatmeal and chocolate milk . The best part is everything is free !!! There are more options to look out for , if you are on the hunt for "OC Saapadu " . Other than the GatorNights , there are also the different sessions of student organizations and the Fraternities !!! We just dined on the IGSA 's dwindling ( thats what they say always ) coffers today . The Graduate Student Council which meets every month, offers you free food just to come and attend their sessions . Talk about perks !!! So you just need to keep your eyes and ears open , and be at the right place at the right time.
David Letterman once quipped that , the best place to start understanding and respecting a person's culture is from their food . Make sure your taste buds are tuned up , if you are heading to the USA!!! Face it , even though you cook , you cannot survive solely on it . When you head out and eat outside , invariably you come up across stuff that are terribly bland and on the wrong side of the spice-meter . But , you need to live with it . It might be quite difficult to start with , but you do need to adjust to it . Trust me , if you are going to be a closed book when it comes to cuisine , you are shutting down a lot of avenues . And yes , a word of caution for vegans . Options here are non-existent , so its better if you guys sharpen up your skills , before you land . God, i sound preachy.
. But, yes the moral of the story is , none of the above even come close to being a substitute ,for your mom's cooking . Guys and girls , if you haven respected what she puts on the dining table daily , its high time you started . And for those who do , its high time you started celebrating her cooking and learning from her . There are some fathers who cook to . With due respect to them, i haven come across many . As i said , you realize somethings worth , only when its not around .
PS : I want my idly and dosa.
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