By looking at the food culture in certain countries around the world, we can interpret a lot about what the broader culture of their society is like. For example, it makes sense that America has a developing food truck culture because of our relaxed, innovative, and free-flowing nature. In other countries that have stricter laws and less room to innovate, you see a more formal dining experience so concepts such as food trucks aren’t tolerated or trusted by the people. It is also essential to look at the technicalities of what people are eating. In Jordan, it would be very hard to find a restaurant that has pork because a large percentage of their population of Islamic followers. The same can be said about cows in India. Knowing that cows are not eaten in India, we can automatically conclude that the Indians consider cows to be sacred, or deemed higher than other animals for a particular reason. While most situations where a certain group of people, or even an entire country, is not eating a certain animal it is because of religious reasons that is not always the case. In Japan, offering another person the eyeball of the fish is considered a test of character and manliness when being welcomed into a new family. The average person going to Japan may not know this, which is why food knowledge extends way beyond just knowing a great recipe, or enhancing your palette with a certain type of food. Food knowledge can teach someone about a country’s culture, inform someone about the type of person they are, or give someone a diverse perception of how even the slightest differences in what we eat can say so much about a person’s identity.
There are only certain things that can define a nation. Race, government, religion, and food. Countries have same religions, same governments, similar races and ethnicities, but food is different in every country you go. Sure, there might be tendencies and patterns in certain regions, but every country in the world has there own flare and flavor. The most unique part of a country is their food. So many aspects of food can define a nation. Their meal time rituals, their spices and flavors, their preparation, the certain things countries do and do not eat. We can gather so much information about a nation based on their culinary traditions and we can feel a connection to that nation wherever we are as long as we are eating their food. If you asked someone about their knowledge of a country, they would probably be able to tell you their signature dishes before their president. Food is more than just a representation of a nation or a delicious bite to eat, sometimes it defines a nation and a group of people.