Food Autobiography
Love at First Bite
When Isaac Rais was a young lad he had an incredible appetite for anything placed in front of him. To let his mother, know that he was hungry, he would stand beside the stove and wait till his hunger was satiated. His favorite foods were those that were bright and colorful and mostly sweet. Breakfast time was a favorite of Isaac although there were some quirks involves, as a child he did not put syrup on his pancakes because it made them too soggy. The same reason he never put jelly on his peanut butter sandwiches, opting for honey instead. Cereal seemed to be a big staple of his morning diet and would put a smile on his face as he was sent off to school. As Isaac arrived home from school, dinner time with family was very important since there was little family time otherwise. It was a time to discuss the day over big family meals that his mother cooked and they were usually of middle eastern descent. The biggest parts of the meals would always be a rice dish with chicken or beef and vegetables to go along with it in some sort of stew. His favorite meal was a dish consisting of chicken, yellow rice, potatoes, almonds, and peas known as biryani; whenever it was put on the table it made his whole day better.
His family was very different when it came to eating. His father was very picky about the type of things he would eat (only trying Mexican food in 2014), no onions, no spices, nothing with strange colors. For him it was usually only rice and chicken and bread, all very bland. Isaac’s sister was the same except she rarely ate anything of substance usually sticking to chips and cereal at all hours of the day and having to be fought to eat a real meal. Isaac’s mother however was always willing to try new foods, with many different flavors. He like to think he takes after her in the ways of eating. His grandfather, who was a baker in his younger days, always told him to appreciate the food he was given and that you never know when your plate will be full next since when his grandfather was young he worked for about three dollars a month. This stuck with Isaac and it taught him to appreciate being able to eat whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. A big part of his culture was always drinking hot tea after meals, even on the hottest days tea was served especially if guests were over. This lead to Isaac never enjoying tea until he went away to college and needed something warm to drink that wouldn’t keep him up all night. One thing Isaac always enjoyed about his family is that they rarely went out to eat, opting instead to make meals at home which to him always tasted better compared to restaurant food unlike in Food Inc. where families mostly went out to eat when money was tight instead of buying healthy alternatives at the grocery store like his did. Another meaningful food memory Isaac had was during the holidays, when he would always over eat and then have a stomach ache but it was a meaningful time since he was always around family who cared about each other. He always looked forward to these times, even now that he is older.
As he aged Isaac’s taste preferences went to extremes, he loved spicy foods and he loved sour foods, the stronger the taste the better it was to him. This helped him out a ton whenever people wanted to mooch off of his plate since they were usually too flavorful to handle for anyone else. Isaac likes to eat a lot of the same things every day, there is usually a lot of starchy foods like bread, pasta, and rice. He prefers to eat lots of red meat but recently he has decided to cut back and try more white meats and vegetables. This change was due to discussions he had with friends of his that were vegetarian and vegan about health and the higher chances of high blood pressure and dementia. He also tends to overeat and takes eating as a challenge such as the time he ate a two-pound cheeseburger in under 30 minutes. The Hungry Planet: What the World Eats text really struck a chord with Isaac because it made him realize that he in one day may eat more than a family does in a week.
The main thing he avoids in his diet is mustard, over time he has learned to like the taste of many things such as black coffee and mayonnaise (although not together) but one thing he cannot enjoy the taste of is yellow mustard. The point of mustard has never appealed to Isaac, the flavor is far too bitter on anything he puts it on. He had always watched his friends try it and not for lack of trying it himself he had never developed a sense for it. Isaac is really willing to taste anything once and if he does not like it, he will respectfully spit it back onto the plate and say no thank you.
Isaac does not mind his current diet although he would like to cut out more red meat and look for other alternatives for his long term health. He would also like to make an attempt at eating more fresh foods although this can be a bit difficult when at school since the only real ways he can eat are at the cafeterias.
Throughout the duration of this class Isaac has changed the way he views eating completely. He went from not caring about what he was buying from supermarkets, where his food came from, or what was added into it. Slowly he realized he should be wary of all those additives and to take precaution about what he was eating. Reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran opened Isaac’s eyes about the cruel practices we have towards farming animals. Animals are being tortured while at slaughter houses and not being handled in a sanitary manner, that’s something he didn’t need in his life. Learning that the amount of meat we eat is slowly killing ourselves and our planet prompted Isaac to become a vegetarian for the last half of the class. It was not an easy transition but one that impacted him greatly. Knowing that he was doing a small part to help himself in the long run was more important to him than the few minutes of satisfaction he got from eating that hamburger. It also made him more willing to try more foods, things that would have never crossed his mind before like a quinoa, mango and black bean salad (which he learned was quite delicious).
Going into the class he thought he wouldn’t change his mind about any of the foods he ate because it was all just “hippie talk.” He realized that all that “hippie talk” might not be non-sense after all and that he should worry about eating meat and processed foods. It was a big change from the old ways he thought about food. He always knew McDonalds and pop tarts were bad for him, but after seeing all the future issues they caused he knew it was time to ditch the meat and pick up the beets. Food is still a big part of Isaac’s life and he knows that even though there isn’t meat in it, it doesn’t mean it can’t taste wonderful.
When Isaac Rais was a young lad he had an incredible appetite for anything placed in front of him. To let his mother, know that he was hungry, he would stand beside the stove and wait till his hunger was satiated. His favorite foods were those that were bright and colorful and mostly sweet. Breakfast time was a favorite of Isaac although there were some quirks involves, as a child he did not put syrup on his pancakes because it made them too soggy. The same reason he never put jelly on his peanut butter sandwiches, opting for honey instead. Cereal seemed to be a big staple of his morning diet and would put a smile on his face as he was sent off to school. As Isaac arrived home from school, dinner time with family was very important since there was little family time otherwise. It was a time to discuss the day over big family meals that his mother cooked and they were usually of middle eastern descent. The biggest parts of the meals would always be a rice dish with chicken or beef and vegetables to go along with it in some sort of stew. His favorite meal was a dish consisting of chicken, yellow rice, potatoes, almonds, and peas known as biryani; whenever it was put on the table it made his whole day better.
His family was very different when it came to eating. His father was very picky about the type of things he would eat (only trying Mexican food in 2014), no onions, no spices, nothing with strange colors. For him it was usually only rice and chicken and bread, all very bland. Isaac’s sister was the same except she rarely ate anything of substance usually sticking to chips and cereal at all hours of the day and having to be fought to eat a real meal. Isaac’s mother however was always willing to try new foods, with many different flavors. He like to think he takes after her in the ways of eating. His grandfather, who was a baker in his younger days, always told him to appreciate the food he was given and that you never know when your plate will be full next since when his grandfather was young he worked for about three dollars a month. This stuck with Isaac and it taught him to appreciate being able to eat whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted. A big part of his culture was always drinking hot tea after meals, even on the hottest days tea was served especially if guests were over. This lead to Isaac never enjoying tea until he went away to college and needed something warm to drink that wouldn’t keep him up all night. One thing Isaac always enjoyed about his family is that they rarely went out to eat, opting instead to make meals at home which to him always tasted better compared to restaurant food unlike in Food Inc. where families mostly went out to eat when money was tight instead of buying healthy alternatives at the grocery store like his did. Another meaningful food memory Isaac had was during the holidays, when he would always over eat and then have a stomach ache but it was a meaningful time since he was always around family who cared about each other. He always looked forward to these times, even now that he is older.
As he aged Isaac’s taste preferences went to extremes, he loved spicy foods and he loved sour foods, the stronger the taste the better it was to him. This helped him out a ton whenever people wanted to mooch off of his plate since they were usually too flavorful to handle for anyone else. Isaac likes to eat a lot of the same things every day, there is usually a lot of starchy foods like bread, pasta, and rice. He prefers to eat lots of red meat but recently he has decided to cut back and try more white meats and vegetables. This change was due to discussions he had with friends of his that were vegetarian and vegan about health and the higher chances of high blood pressure and dementia. He also tends to overeat and takes eating as a challenge such as the time he ate a two-pound cheeseburger in under 30 minutes. The Hungry Planet: What the World Eats text really struck a chord with Isaac because it made him realize that he in one day may eat more than a family does in a week.
The main thing he avoids in his diet is mustard, over time he has learned to like the taste of many things such as black coffee and mayonnaise (although not together) but one thing he cannot enjoy the taste of is yellow mustard. The point of mustard has never appealed to Isaac, the flavor is far too bitter on anything he puts it on. He had always watched his friends try it and not for lack of trying it himself he had never developed a sense for it. Isaac is really willing to taste anything once and if he does not like it, he will respectfully spit it back onto the plate and say no thank you.
Isaac does not mind his current diet although he would like to cut out more red meat and look for other alternatives for his long term health. He would also like to make an attempt at eating more fresh foods although this can be a bit difficult when at school since the only real ways he can eat are at the cafeterias.
Throughout the duration of this class Isaac has changed the way he views eating completely. He went from not caring about what he was buying from supermarkets, where his food came from, or what was added into it. Slowly he realized he should be wary of all those additives and to take precaution about what he was eating. Reading Eating Animals by Jonathan Safran opened Isaac’s eyes about the cruel practices we have towards farming animals. Animals are being tortured while at slaughter houses and not being handled in a sanitary manner, that’s something he didn’t need in his life. Learning that the amount of meat we eat is slowly killing ourselves and our planet prompted Isaac to become a vegetarian for the last half of the class. It was not an easy transition but one that impacted him greatly. Knowing that he was doing a small part to help himself in the long run was more important to him than the few minutes of satisfaction he got from eating that hamburger. It also made him more willing to try more foods, things that would have never crossed his mind before like a quinoa, mango and black bean salad (which he learned was quite delicious).
Going into the class he thought he wouldn’t change his mind about any of the foods he ate because it was all just “hippie talk.” He realized that all that “hippie talk” might not be non-sense after all and that he should worry about eating meat and processed foods. It was a big change from the old ways he thought about food. He always knew McDonalds and pop tarts were bad for him, but after seeing all the future issues they caused he knew it was time to ditch the meat and pick up the beets. Food is still a big part of Isaac’s life and he knows that even though there isn’t meat in it, it doesn’t mean it can’t taste wonderful.