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Madison Glisson
Professor Watkins
English Comp 2 TR 9:00
23 February 2016
You Are What You Eat
Food is a part of who we are and where we come from as far as ethnicity. America is truly
the melting pot country we say it is due to our variety of ethnicity in this country. We have
Whites, Hispanics, Indians, Chinese, Japanese, Italians and much more that bring a little piece of
home with them to the United States. We have a privilege here in America to get to try all of
these different ethnic foods that we may not normally eat. With the variety of ethnicity, holidays,
and general outings, we can take a look into other culture groups other than our own.
America has numerous varieties of ethnic food groups from all across the world such as
fried rice from China, pizza from Italy, sushi from Japan, enchiladas from Mexico, and much
more. People do not actually realize where our different food choices really come from though.
We think of going out for some pizza at the Pizza Hut, or going to get some pork fried rice at
China Buffet as a normal thing, but in all reality it was at one point brought over here by a
different ethnic group other than our own. Judith C. Rodriguez, from the Diet Help
Incorporation, states that People are eating foods with origins in cultures other than their own,
especially here in America, where almost all of the dishes have been modified to suit the
popularity of the mainstream population (Rodriguez). Rodriguez may also go on to say that
there has been an increased incorporation of ethnic cuisines in the American diet including
foods from Asia, the Middle East, and Latin America as well (Rodriguez). With that being
brought to attention we can learn a whole lot about different ethnic groups and cultures by their
eating habits that include what they eat, how they prepare it, and how they eat it as well. Every

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culture is different in their eating habits. Rodriguez believes that peoples food habits, how they
obtain, prepare, and consume food, are all the results of learned behavior from generations past
(Rodriguez). With that being said not everyone in the world gathers, cooks, and eats foods all the
same, and that is what makes each ethnic group so interesting and unique for others outside of
that ethnic group to learn about and to try the different styles of food.
Not only are our eating behaviors different from other countries and ethnic groups, but so
are the holidays we celebrate and the meals we prepare for those holidays. We even tend to
sometimes not know the history of where our own traditional holiday foods come from and why
we eat certain meals on certain holidays. Thanksgiving, for example, traditionally has a meal that
includes turkey, gravy, stuffing, maybe a few vegetable casseroles of some sort, and for dessert,
pumpkin pie. In other countries you may find their holidays and holiday meals quite different
from our own, such as Cinco de Mayo, or Chinese New Year. Susan Bernstein takes a look at
Chinese New Year for an example. Each Chinese New Year is named after an animal such as a
pig or a monkey, there are parades and their meal traditionally includes steamed dumplings,
which are like raviolis with meat and vegetables inside of them (Bernstein). Another holiday
Bernstein found interest in would be a Hindu holiday known as Diwali, the holiday of lights.
This holiday of lights takes place every fall, as the adults light little lamps called diyas, while
the kids eat a special sweet they like to call barfis, which taste like soft cookies and have pictures
of lamps drawn on them with icing. Sometimes these barfis are made with nuts like almonds and
pistachios that can make it into a healthier snack (Bernstein). We notice that each holiday from
whatever country or ethnic group it may come from, all have their own special traditions and
traditional food that make each holiday unique to their culture.

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Different ethnic groups have not only shared their different holidays with us, but they
have also brought their variety of general outing foods as well. When we think of general
outings, we think of fast-food and fancy restaurants. Both offer such a variety of ethnicity
choices with the different types of restaurants and fast-food options we have. We can drive down
the street and find just about any type of food for whatever mood we are in. Karmeen D.
Kulkarni from the American Diabetes Association brings to our attention that fast-food
restaurants and other take-out restaurants now offer such a wide-ranging selection to choose from
such as pizza, tacos, falafel, tandoori, egg rolls, and hamburgers(Karmeen). We can find a place
to eat for just about any mood were in for whether it be fast-food or a fancy restaurant. We are
privileged here in America with the many opportunities to try foods of different ethnicity other
than our own that we are so used to having.
We can see that with all of the places we can go out to eat, the different cultural holidays,
and ethnicity choices, we are truly a melting pot country. It is a great advantage we have to learn
about other ethnicities and for people to share their ethnicity with us as well. Because we are a
melting pot country we get to indulge in such a variety of cuisines from all over the world. We
get to enjoy delicious pastas and pizza from Italy, egg rolls and fried rice from China, sushi from
Japan, and even cheese burgers and hot dogs from our very own United States. Sometimes the
same old thing can get tiring and tasteless, but with the variety we get here we never have to
worry about that problem. We can have Chinese one night and Italian the next, and maybe even
American food the night after. We should be grateful to come from a country with such a wide
range of ethnicity shared with us rather than just our own. We have gained a lot when it comes to
food from other countries and ethnic groups. The food we buy, prepare, and eat can tell a lot
about who we are and where we come from in this world.

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Annotated Bibliographies

Bernstein, Susan. "Holiday Foods From Around the World." WebMD. WebMD, 2011. Web. 17
Feb. 2016

Susan Bernstein is a WebMD feature whose article was reviewed by expert pediatrician,
Hansa Bhargava. This article expresses the many different cultural foods used to
celebrate holidays of all different ethnicity. We see that Chinese New Year is celebrated
with steamed dumplings, Diwali with sweet treats called barfis, and even our American
traditional turkey on Thanksgiving. Each culture celebrate their different holidays in
special and unique ways, especially when it comes to the food used to celebrate these
holidays.

Kulkarni, Karmeen D. "Food, Culture, and Diabetes in the United States."

Clinical.diabetesjournals.org. American Diabetes Association, Oct. 2004. Web. 11 Feb.
2016

Karmeen D. Kulkarni, from the American Diabetes Association, states that throughout
time we have gathered a variety of different ethnic and culture groups which has now
resulted in many diverse food preferences for us in America to choose from. Kulkarni is
credible because she is the coordinator of the Diabetes Center at St. Mark's Hospital in
Salt Lake City, Utah. She notices that even fast food restaurants now offer variety of

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different culture and ethnic groups. You can drive down the street and see a place where
you can eat tacos, sushi, egg rolls, pizza, and cheeseburgers as well. All of these different
foods come from a variety of ethnic groups around the world.

Rodriguez, Judith C. "Popular Culture, Food and." Diet.com. Diet Health Inc., 2004. Web. 11
Feb. 2016.

Food is very much a part of our culture states Judith C. Rodriguez. It is a part of our
culture, beliefs, and trends. In America the most common trend is one known as
consumerism, which is a trend where more people are eating away from home, giving
them the opportunity to try foods of possibly a different ethnic group. Its very common
for people to eat foods from an ethnic group other than their own, especially here in the
United States. Our food habits are a learned behavior of where we came from. In America
we have a wide variety of people from all around the world with different ethnicity. With
that being said, we have all gotten the opportunity to learn about and try various different
ethnic dishes from other cultures other than our own.