So we are having family dinner, we are all seated around the table. Grilled fish, garden salad, saffron rice and ice chilled lemonade. I look over and my little sister is eating her salad with her hands. I say, "Ewww yuck, that's so nasty" "Use your fork!" She replies, "but it taste better like this and it's easier to pick up!"
Not until today did I realize she was right! Any food we typically eat with our fingers is ALWAYS delicious. Think about it...chicken wings, nachos, pita with hummus, veggies and dip...but then there are those foods we, as "westerners,"
wouldn't dare eat without the aid of a fork, knife or spoon. Ironically, in other societies eating with your fingers is the norm. So, what's our problem?
If you look at our anatomy, we are fully capable of eating without these simple machines. The opposable thumb, canine teeth, all enable us to consume all types of food. Most of us struggle at the table using that darn silverware anyway. Trying to cut that piece of meat into acceptable bite-size pieces....what a pain. And how about trying to get the last pinch of corn kernels that keep falling through the teeth of the fork or won't go on the spoon? DOUBLE pain in the tooshie. Eating with your hands allows complete control of your food...so why not use them?
And now to the most important part...FOOD IS MORE ENJOYABLE WHEN YOU EAT IT WITH YOUR HANDS! I can not explain this phenomenon and won't try. The proof is in the pudding. Just think about it.
The added benefit of enjoying your food is usually better digestion and complete satiety, which leads to a better functioning body. So, tell me again why we don't eat more foods with our hands?
To help you begin the switch from metal to flesh, I have included tips to properly eat with your hands in public (when you are at home, just go at it...I know I do):
Tip 1: Wash your hands...no really wash your hands well...with SOAP!
Tip 2: When eating bread, tear off a piece that is no bigger than two bites worth and eat that before tearing off another. If butter is provided, butter the small piece just before eating it.
Tip 3: (using Indian etiquette) When eating rice like foods, eat with your right hand and only with your fingers, never the palm. Use the thumb to catapult the food in your mouth.
Tip 4: (using Kenyan technique of eating ugali): When eating a sauce or stew, tear off a piece of doughy bread , shape it into a scoop by making an indentation with your thumb, and scoop the sauce or stew with it.
Tip 5: Always lick your fingers after you finish ( be prepared for stares of disgust but who cares...the most important thing is enjoying your food.)
Well, I'm off to eat my homemade brownie ala mode...with my FINGERS!
Check out other hand eaters:
I concur. Eating with your hands is fun and makes you more aware of how much you are eating. Your little sister is obviously vastly superior in intellect to you (HAHAHAHA).
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