I feel eating with fingers have got a lot to do with the culture in which one grew up- whether one is habituated to using cutlery or otherwise. And it isbetter not to force any one into something. It spoils the charm.
I fully agree with the Chef that eating with fingers is the ideal way to eat Indian food.I relish the food only when I eat with fingers. He is right when he says that we may eat our food through our mouth but the eyes,nose see the freshness of food,and aroma of the food which is appetising.Further, when we touch the food with the fingers,I have the craving to eat and it is tasty.Hence,I advocate that Indian food will be more tastier when we eat by our fingers.
This article seems one of those useless pieces where everything Indian is justified on the basis of science. Tell those people who give all the funda about eating Indian food with fingers to do the same in a party or 5 star restaurant. I have seen such hypocrites all my life. Talking India, doing west.
to,marryam h. reshii appropos your article 'eating with fingers' i would like to inform you the following.cutlery came to be used in europe less than 250 years ago because a belgian businessman came up with the idea and with the help of an engineer friend manufactured cutlery in silver. until then everybody ate with their fingers. even till today there are festivals in england where people dip their fingers(not just the tips) and eat wholeheartedly. the underlying message readers get from your article is that eating with one's fingers is kind of dirty and unhealthy. i assume that you do eat at fast food places like macdonalds, buger king, pizza hut. now how do you eat the french fries, burgers and pizza ? with your hands unless you are a minority of one to eat these items using 'cutlery'. so is it ok to eat with your fingers in a western food in a western restaurant? when you eat (indian food) with your fingers, the tips of the fingers feel the texture and consistency and weight of the morsel of food and transmit the message to thebrain, which in turn holds the info.until food is tasted to release the digestive juices in the right formula and proportion. a reply is welcome.
i think the author doesn\'t have any better things to do. Not only that Rediff seems to be having a scarce of good articles & authors. Please do not publish such junk anymore , don\'t lose the quality.
I totally and completely agree that eating Indian food with fingers enhances its taste and is more satisfying. I live in the USA and so miss my mother's soft hands putting the morsel in my mouth. The food tasted delicious.The texture, temperature and the right quantity is measured when we eat with our finger tips. So Marryam, you have to try this to get the feel of it, thats all I want to say :-)
Hi, I didnot understand why did you go for that many confirmations on the taste of food with your fingers.
It is quite obvious that Indian food is enjoyable if you have it by fingers. I donot know whether taste gets enhanced or not but it is comfortable and comfort makes you enjoying the food.
I think that you are an ABCD because you still have question in mind
1. Enjoy Dosa with fingers. Struggle to eat it with fork
2. Mix dal and basmati rice or mix rice with any paneer dish by fingers and enjoy food. Struggle to complete by mixig them with a spoon and have it
3. Cut small pieces of roti and use any curry with fingers and enjoy your food. Make a mockery by cutting your roti with a knife and then fork to to get grip and spoon to add curry to finally put partially in your mouth and partially on your shirt
How may examples you want.. Just by going once or twice to page 3 parties and watching the crowd esp this generation women/girls to use left hand and spoon eventhough their brain order does not support, donot write a column that to with disagreement.
our culture .. let it remain. Our food is suiatable and enjoyable once you eat with your fingers..
The author seems to have knocked on wrong doors to understand the significance of eating with fingers. Indian philosphy categorizes food into three types. 1)Sattvic 2)Rajasic 3)Tamasic. The categorization is based on the intrinsic heat or 'pith' content of the food and it's effect on the thought process and spiritual pursuits of the person. There are several books written on this subject describing each type of food and the acceptable combination of foods . The advantage of using fingers are 1) You will know the correct temperature of food (would not burn your gullet as can happen with cutlery) 2)With fingers the Food (especially Indian) can be mixed thoroughly with different 'dishes' for the proper taste and softness. As an example it is impossible to get the correct proportion of mix if a person wants to eat - Rice , Gongoora , Ghee with spoon! 3)Fingers also help us identify hard stones or other material in Foods like cooked Rice before we put it in mouth 4)Fingers also help us in weeding out aromatic supllements like (Kari Leaves) which are removed from Indian Food while eating. (Try that with Spoon / Fork) Last but not least ,remember experience of running fingers in Hair
the primary reason that God gave us hands and fingers were to work and eat. The "accessories" to have food can never compete with the stisfaction of a meal with fingers. I love my home made indian food and i love it having with my fingers no matter if its a Five Star hotel or Foreign country.
