For The Child
November 08, 2005

Train a Puppy

We’ve tackled some difficult topics ranging from how to overcome bias to what to look for in your child’s learning environment, but today’s discussion will be centered upon one of the most simple ways parents can welcome diversity and open-mindedness into their homes by sprucing up a routine.

For ages, food has brought family and friends together from near and far to celebrate holidays or to simply revel in one another’s company. Food has not only been the substance that gives life, but has also been a social glue—a tangible comfort that encourages the formation of relationships through conversation and pure enjoyment of special dishes. So if food is so integral to our daily lives, then why not occasionally switch that bowl of spaghetti with meatballs for a dish of North Indian Tikka Masala with chunks of tender chicken? You must be thinking that it’s easier to make spaghetti then to look up an unfamiliar recipe for a dish you don’t even know how to make or how it tastes. Don’t worry. But if your excuse is that your kids only like spaghetti with meatballs, then you’ve got a real problem on your hands.

You might have heard the saying, “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” meaning that one retains more of its tastes and habits acquired at a young age than when one has fully grown.

While old dogs are capable of learning new tricks, it is much easier to train a puppy. So if you are ever going to invite diversity into your home as a way for your kids to develop an open mind-set about other cultures, now is the time. It is essential that at a young age, children associate good food with an assortment of dishes from spicy Korean tofu stew to tangy American-style baby back ribs. The most obvious, and many times overlooked, means to bring together a multiplicity of cultural tid bits is at the dinner table with the family.

Take one more step further and dig into the ethnic origins of shakshouka, a savory dish with chopped lamb and vegetables in a tomato stew topped with an egg. You will not only be able to bring a new dish to the table, but share a new culture with a brief explanation of some of its rich history. In other words, you would be able to explain that shakshouka is part of Libyan cuisine, which has Italian, Mediterranean, and Arabic influences. Keep in mind that recipes are often modified and the origin of the same dish may be unclear since foods can be considered part of other regions as well. However, the crucial lesson here is not a history quiz, but rather a plan to expose your children to new foods and some basic history that will, we hope, encourage the curiosity to try new things beyond taste in the future.

Without a doubt, it will take a little more effort for you and your family to do a bit of research on making a variety of dishes and also becoming knowledgeable about the food you and your family will eat. But in the long run you will see that you will have trained your “puppy” to appreciate having an eclectic palate and also to love other cultures through what we do everyday—eat.

If you don’t trust yourself to cook other ethnic foods or can’t always find time for home-cooked meals then by all means order ethnic take-out food, which is just as good if not better. On a side note, it would be a shame to make something that didn’t come out “right,” leaving that dish a bad representation of its culture. So cook only if you feel comfortable doing so, and if you don’t, there is always the option of ordering General Tso’s lightly battered chicken with jasmine rice instead of chicken nugget Happy Meals. Nowadays, you can even prepare quick and easy meals with pre-made ethnic sauces at affordable prices from your local market. Multiculturalism is in the meat and vegetables you choose to eat and lots of times in the sweets you give your children. It may not be far fetched to say that “you are what you eat” with a positive connotation because if someone is open to eating most anything, you wouldn’t have trouble concluding that they are as mentally open as what they consume. Start young with food and there will be plenty of time to accept and respect other cultural entities.

Want a general overview of the history of several ethnic cuisines? Visit Sally's Place. Find a variety of recipes broken down by cuisine (some are rated too!) visit Recipezaar.

Happy Eatings!