Flavors of Our Roots: How Food Shaped My Cultural Identity
January 3, 2023
Writer: Sophie Perlson
Editor: KayLynn Young
Rice has always been a constant in my life. Whether it's Kiribath or rice pilaf, rice always brings me back to a place that feels like home. And it’s not just rice that has this power. Food, in general, has always been a constant in my life that connects me to my cultural background.
I was raised in a mixed Sri Lankan and Jewish household where various forms of rice were served almost every meal. On Rosh Hashanah, my Sephardic nana would cook her famous rice pilaf. On Christmas, my grandmother would make Kiribath, a rich, pillowy coconut rice, ubiquitous at every Sri Lankan celebration. When my grandmother was alive, I loved watching her from the stool in her kitchen, listening to her gossip about our crazy family as she grated jaggery - my favorite sugary topping - on the blanket of rice. As I grew up, my kitchen was always filled with delicious aromas. Both my parents love to cook, and it has always been a family activity. My family spent Sunday mornings flipping pancakes, and we all took turns suggesting dinner recipes and planning meals. For me, food is more than sustenance; it is a way to connect to our culture and share familial ties.
Having a Sri Lankan mom and a Jewish dad, I faced the issue most multiracial kids face- I felt like I didn’t fit into either part of my identity. I was too Sri Lankan to be Jewish but too Jewish to be Sri Lankan and had trouble connecting with my culture. I don’t speak Singhalese, the language my mom, grandparents, and family in Sri Lanka all speak, and I struggled to feel connected to them when they lived so far away. However, after spending the holidays with my grandparents, I realized we did have some common ground– food. My connection to my culture was through the countless recipes passed down from generation to generation, gathering memories and history.
This connection even made its way into my academics. In my senior year of high school, I did a project with a few friends where we attempted to better understand our cultural identities through our heritage cuisine. We spent many evenings in our kitchens with our families, learning techniques and hearing stories about our history. We often joked that our project was just an excuse to eat good food, but in the end, we got more out of it than we could have imagined.
While I found a way to stay close to my familial roots in high school, this was much harder when I came to college. Venturing far away from home for college made finding the connection I had cultivated to my roots through food much more challenging. However, I have learned to compensate in unique ways. I find myself ordering rice whenever I feel homesick, and on one occasion, I tried to make Kiribath for my friends in my dorm room. I also noticed that my roommate’s grandma would always send spanakopita, a traditional Greek spinach pastry, to her. Whenever she received those small slices of spinach heaven, I would listen to her tell stories about her Greek roots while savoring the rich, savory flavors of her culture. Through food, I was able to not only connect back to my family while being far away from home, but also learn more about the culture of those closest to me.
Food, in whatever form, will always be a creator of culture. It builds community, draws people together, enforces shared values and customs, and aids celebration. Food is unique to every community, and each small tradition creates a complex sense of belonging. The flavors we and our ancestors grew up with are embedded in our sense of self, and one whiff of a particular smell can flood our minds with memories.
So, whenever you feel homesick or out of touch with your culture, choose to eat. Take a break from the monotonous routine of studying and sleeping, and find the flavors of your culture. Whether that be through attempting to cook a family dish in a makeshift dorm kitchen or finding the best restaurant in Ann Arbor that serves the food of your family’s culture, the warmth of food will always be your most comforting connection to home.
