The Joy of Senses

Food can play with all your senses. Visually, smell, touch and even sound, this results in the appreciation of what we are about to eat. Nobody wants to eat a plate of grey goop. Memories are triggered and can be processed as positive or negative. Childhood memories like tasting Popeye candy cigarettes, or the last thing you ate before you got the flu.

When something is plated beautifully and smells great we then anticipate that the next sense of taste, will open up like a domino effect. Thou the opposite can also happen if you are presented something and it looks good but once you taste it either it is too salty or perhaps too fishy or down right nasty you are going to take note. But if you are starving and have not eaten in days I guess you will eat anything.

If you have never heard the sound of food be it frying in a pan or a sizzling platter arriving at your table of hot onions and fajitas next time, take note. This too plays into your senses. If I were to say the word Dill pickle you will start to salivate. (Well it works for some). The smell of fresh basil or other herbs like rosemary or thyme triggers also senses.

Our tongues have many sensory areas for bitter, sweet, sour and salty. We have a food industry now that offers blind tasting, wine tasting, cuppings of coffee, food sampling so there is no lack of exposure.

Our noses also play a key part in the overall process of eating. Many people like to smell their food to take in another sense. You have seen those people at the stores smelling their produce to pick the ripest fruit. Wine tasting also have people dipping their noses to get the bouquet of the grape. Then there is the dreaded smelling of spoiled milk ritual. (I will pass on this task). Limburger cheese, my father’s favorite -- Kitchen Witch Two take note this cheese is especially known for its pungent odor commonly compared to body odor. I think it smells like feet but who am I to say. Some people don’t like the smell of cabbage, or fried fish we all have different sensitivities to all senses. Some people won’t eat anything green and some won’t eat things because of their texture.

This is where I can say we are not created equal in this department it is all personal. When we are asked what we would like to eat for our favorite meal for a special celebration it shines a light on what kind of person we are because it in many ways reflects who you are. Spicy food, comfort foods or exotic foods.

Unless you have a medical condition there should be no boundaries for the adventures of trying different foods.

Bland diets and eating the same thing everyday is dull. Try something new you don’t need to travel the world to broaden your taste buds. Are you not curious to know about other foods in today’s society between online shopping and a wide variety of grocery stores you can expand your horizons just in your own kitchen. Go to the ethnic shops and explore what treasures they offer. Be it a new spice or a jar of their best selling condiment to go with grilled meat or even an exotic fruit you have never tasted before.

This allows you to open up so many doors to all the different cultures and gives you an understanding how and what other people eat in this wonderful complex world we live in. Like I said food brings people together and through this perhaps we can understand each other a bit more.

One third of the world population eats with their hands, many countries like Moroccans often eat with their hands and use bread as a utensil or couscous and with rice in other places like India and China. Even as small children we start out with finger foods. Heck, how many cocktail parties offer things on platters to grab with your fingers. God made them we might as well use them, but this opens up all other factors into how we eat food. Even my dear Jacques Pépin likes to eat his salad with his fingers. Use whatever you like, nourishment is the end result we seek and the sooner it gets to my belly the better.