Friday, April 4, 2008

Kevin finds Moroccan Food Illogical

About a week ago I went to a Moroccan restaurant for a friend’s birthday. This was my first foray into Moroccan cuisine and the food, while good, left me confused. Throughout history cultures have had a myriad of methods for consuming their food, whether that be knife and fork, chopsticks or just using hands. Usually no method is better than the other since people modify their cuisine to fit the style (or perhaps vice versa). For example, it would be really inefficient to try to attack a steak with chopsticks, just like how it would be foolish to try to eat a bowl of ramenwith your hands.

Moroccans, flaunting conventional wisdom, have decided to take their cuisine in a different direction. They have opted for the use of hands, a fine and dandy , albeit unsanitary, option. However, unlike their smarter Indian friends, they’ve decided to eschew naan or some kind of bread-like staple. Instead, people simply bare fist hot saucy dishes without the benefit of some kind of protection. This might not be so bad if it’s just rice or a piece of sushi but Moroccans decided to go the couscous route. For those who don’t know, couscous is a type of wheat that is incredibly granular and thus really loose. This is served in conjunction with steaming hot meat (let’s stay professional here) piled on top. So as you try to scoop yourself some couscous goodness, you burn your million dollar fingers on the piping out dish all the while little bits of food is falling off the sides. By the time your hand actually makes it to your mouth, you’re left with maybe 25% of what was originally your share, with the remaining 75% becoming the tears of starving African children.


Do I have to re-invent the spoon from leftover chicken bones?


OtherMoroccan dishes don’t make much sense either. For example, they love serving meat on the bone. This would be fine as finger food if it was served individually, but given the Moroccans’ love of sharing, you feel obligated to break off tiny pieces rather than taking the whole thing. So basically there are multiple pairs of hands going over the same piece of chicken, tearing off tiny pieces of meat over and over again.



Just in case this might be too clean, all their meats feature some kind of fruit sauce that you would normally find in a dessert. Apparently, Moroccans have no time for multi-course meals (edit: in the traditional sense). Instead they prefer to lump all their meals into one dish, resulting in the b'stilla royale: puff pastry enclosing shredded chicken and scrambled egg, and topped with powdered sugar and cinnamon. So basically if your local KFC and Cinnabon collided in a tornado, the result is Moroccan food. Either way, I resisted being the guy to ask for a spoon and finished my meal like a champ, sticky fingers and all.

11 comments:

foodfanatic said...

Kevin,
Why don't you stop going out to "ethnic" restaurants and stick to the trailer trash burger joints you and the misses love so much. Leave the cuisine you'll never get to those who will. Hey, heads up, Jack-in-the-Box is launching a BBQ Swiss burger. Hurry don't out.. Also, don't forget to take aknife and fork cuz you might want to share it and won't want to sully your fingers. Yeesh!!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

Cough Cough* Im a moroccan and i have never spelt one crumb of couscous on the side of the plate you just need skills which im pretty sure you dont have. and we save money instead of buying forks and all that trash . and we save trees , chopsticks are made out of wood.. but hey if you really have to , might as well eat hamburgers and fries and chicken wings and pizzas with forks and knifes too since eating with utensils is soo LOGICAL



geesh some people just DONT GET IT

Anonymous said...

Poor you. Missing a whole lot about moroccan food....FYI: Morocco ranked 2 place in delicious best food in the world after France....and ahhhh complaining about fork and knife...SILLY SILLY SILLY .....

Anonymous said...

I'm Moroccan. Lived in Morocco all my life. Ate Moroccan food all my life. Used a fork and knife most of the time.
Although what you wrote is kind of true to some extent, you make way too many generalizations built on your own or other peoples' misconceptions.
Since you clearly do not understand the culture, you should not make any 'illogical' statements about it.

- If you had actually gone to Morocco, you would have been given a spoon to eat your couscous.

- It was nice imagery with the couscous and the starving African children. But if you actually cared about those children, you would be doing something about their situation instead of futile blabber.

And by the way, I hope a Moroccan restaurant in the US (or abroad in general) has not been your only experience with Moroccan food. If it is the case, you are way too hasty in making conclusions. I thought they taught you otherwise in medical school.

Anonymous said...

I am half Moroccan and have spent summers with my family in morocco. The food is great and I never have a problem eating with my hands. Maybe you should open your mind up a little more to different cultures and get with the program.And stay out of Moroccan Restaurants if thats the case.

Anonymous said...

Moroccan food is one of the best cuisines in the world, I would even rank it #one and next french. Moroccan food has been influenced by the french, spaniards, chinese and many others. One of the first ways of eating in the world was with your fingers, when you were a child you ate with your fingers, now that you are an adult you forgot how to use your fingers?
I am american and have experienced the many diversities all over the world, if you had a probl;em eating ask for utensils but, you truly have deprived yourself of asking the waiter or someone to show you how it is done. I had a little trouble myself at first but, was smart enough to ask and watch and it is a wonderful experience. The entire Moroccan food experience is wonderful.

Anonymous said...

Unsanitary, if you truly knew the way to eat Moroccan food . You would have washed your hands with lemon water. Also, most Moroccan food is eaten with bread except for Couscous which scraped up with your fingers into your palm and jerked around until it forms a ball. Huh ! I am american and I don't even have a problem. Perhaps you should stick to your utensils.

Anonymous said...

You sorry lad, stick to you Indian , chinese and americican fast foods. One thing thats not tolerable is one that complains of the way a culture prepares and eats their food. Sorry to say lad, but Moroccan food is absolutly delish. Been there, ate the food and Oh my ! I used me fingers it was fantastic.

Anonymous said...

You sorry lad, stick to you Indian , chinese and americican fast foods. One thing thats not tolerable is one that complains of the way a culture prepares and eats their food. Sorry to say lad, but Moroccan food is absolutly delish. Been there, ate the food and Oh my ! I used me fingers it was fantastic.

Anonymous said...

I lived in Morocco for many years and I have traveled and lived around the world since i was a child. I have had to get used to the culture of each country I lived in and by respecting the culture and people,I learned so much and I am so grateful for every country's uniqueness. You obviously have NEVER left the US of A. The closest thing to a "cultural" experience for you is going to Panda Express and Taco Bell. Wow! Now you can say you've been to China and Mexico!
You clearly have never been anywhere but your LAZY BOY chair. For you to criticize one of the best foods in the world (if not THE best) just by going to a restaurant and feeling so smug after writing such an ignorant piece about Moroccan food has me feeling sorry for you because you will NEVER experience how amazing Morocco is, their people and definitely their food.
As for your utensils, do you really think that using them makes you a classier person? As if you're a cut above the rest? Are you serious???? You oviously have finished the equivalent of a GED. Let me tell you that you make Moroccans look so ignorant and stupid (I read the part about the "starving African children", you are a moron) when clearly you are the one who is ignorant and stupid. They all speak an average of THREE languages, you probably can't even speak English well, or should I say "can't speak it good" with a twang , just so you understand?

Anonymous said...

you really need to shut your face! people like you piss me off.
NOT ALL OF AFRICA IS STARVING U IDIOT..there are places in africa that would put new york city to shame! Im from Sudan and your comments piss me off. How the heck is eating with hands unsanitary? what u should be worried about is people not washing their hands after they use the bathroom or touching nasty objects.
But eating with your hands is not unsanitary. In your little superbowl custom..u eat cips and buffalo wings and subs with ur hands!
stop talking crap about other ppls culture..i can point out 1000000 things about urs that are questionable
i would choose morrocan restaurant anyday over nasty burger king!
ur a med student?
GO GET EDUCATED BECAUSE UR IGNORANT OF WORLD CULTURES
no wonder people stereotype americans