Culture of Food

During the 1960’s, food became a form of youth culture and resistance. People begin moving away from the typical meat-and-potatoes dinner to more natural and organic foods. This is apparent when Belasco explains how upset he could make his roommates by “leaving the meat out of the lasagna, injecting the roast beef with red dye, or serving octopus instead of tuna salad.” He then continues by adding, “In 1970, my wife and I met our first macrobiotic, who seemed irritatingly self-righteous and mystical; but soon we too turned vegetarian and came to appreciate the provocative power of refusing steak at the family dinner table” (Belasco). In the Ruth Reichl book, she explains how she simply wanted that sense of belonging and how food became a part of her culture. She wanted to be a good cook in order to gain social acceptance. She wanted a niche, but she already had a humorous friend and a beautiful friend, so cooking was her only other option. Belasco then shows how the culture of food had changed worldwide. He explains that “eating is more than just a private, physiological act; it connects us to people and places all over the world – past, present, and future” (Belasco). Ruth also experiences a similar adjustment in culture due to food. Ruth initially shows some resistance when she refuses to go to France because she just wanted to be normal and work at Dairy Queen. However, she eventually agrees to move to France and upon arrival, she notices how her outlook on food has changed. She has begun seeking out new foods and ingredients to incorporate into her diet and cooking. Food became a part of her culture. Another common occurrence during this time period is the sense of temptation and the act of over indulging. Teenagers are always dealing with this sense of temptation and over indulgence. One example that Ruth refers to is devil’s food cake, which is very tempting and people tend to over indulge when eating it. Devil’s food cake embodies the culture of the time period.