It is often said, by those around me, that whenever eat I make a mess. Regardless of whether my meal consists of pasta or simply an apple I manage to get it all over me. I have a different take on my eating habits; I am not messy I just experience my food rather than eat it. I wonder why anyone would only want to understand food on a functional level when food is such a tactile and visceral experience. When you eat a salad how can you fail to feel like spring has bloomed in your mouth or when you taste warm lemon pudding has not the sun burst upon your tongue? Food is not just about taste but about feeling; tactical and emotional. Is there any point in eating spaghetti unless the bolognaise sauce is running down your arm? What is more delightful on a summer’s day than biting into a big juicy piece of watermelon and having the juice flow down your chin? As you bite through the pink flesh childhood memories flood your brain of sitting on a brick wall swinging your legs as the warm rays hit them and laughing at secrets only you and your best friend know.
My favourite cuisine is Mexican because I don’t know many Mexican foods you aren’t expected to eat with your hands. It is the ultimate tangible culinary experience. Whether it is Taco’s, Nacho’s, Quesadilla’s or Burrito’s your first experince is the physical feel of the food which lights an anticipatory fire within. It is the crunch of the corn chip beneath your fingers, the softness of the tortilla as you hold it in your palm or the creaminess of the guacamole as it drips onto your hand which entices your mouth to water desirous of the gastronomic delights to come. Think back to when you first ate a Taco. When you bit into it there was satisfying snap of the shell then tenderness of the beans on your tongue followed by the pop of spicy flavours and the warm buzzing from the chili that stimulated an aching for more which is sated by the sour cream and guacamole that follow. There is no neat way to eat a Taco, by the end of the meal you will be swimming in sauce but will do so with a smile on your face and joy in your heart. Why would you want to eat any other way?
Next time you eat I urge you to experience your food. Let it run down your arm, dribble down your chin, even drop into your lap. Do this without concern for others judgements or your own need for socially sanctioned cleanliness. Eat with gay abandon and when you do, I promise you, food will no longer be something that only nourishes your body but also your soul.
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