How many
times have you shared a meal with a person who picks out cauliflowers and
tomatoes from his meal in front of you? It’s something that almost all of us
did (except for the aagyakari ones
among us!) Be truthful. Don’t you still
do it?
As children,
we've all been lectured enough times on how French beans clean up your liver
and extend your life and that if you eat your pulses, you'll be spared the
wrath of (the inevitable) teenage acne. But we don’t listen, because well, some
vegetables just don’t sit right on the tongue!
I would like
to substantiate my claim by talking the commonest vegetables (Ironically, both
are NOT vegetables, technically!) - The potato and the tomato.
The potato
is the biggest starch-bomb if there ever was. You can boil them, fry them or
extrude them into shapes. They just taste the same mostly. They're nothing
without the spices! The tomato too, is like the biggest escape artist. Ever
seen those murder mysteries where the criminal leaves behind his clothes when
he changes guises and later the police find them? That’s how I feel about
tomatoes. All I ever find are the skins.
When we were
kids, we were forced fed all these vegetables, never mind the disgusting wreck
they turned our mouths into. Let’s take a moment of silence to honour all those
taste buds that died.
Who
forced-fed us veggies?
The adults
did.
The biggest lie our parents ever told us (and I'm not even starting on
the one on where babies come from!) is that vegetables are our friends. There even used to be dancing cartoons on
them on television, all in harmony with the dancing glass of milk and huge
white eggs, all forcing "eat a balanced diet" wisdom down your
throat.
But I'd like
to ask, if vegetables are our friends, why do we eat them?
The answer:
I remember an episode from Powerpuff Girls that I saw when I was a kid. It was
on these weird broccoli aliens that wanted to control the world and the only
way to beat them was to eat them. Maybe that’s the reason why I eat them. Why
do you?
Coming back
to people who are picky-eaters, rest assured. You're not doing anything wrong.
I mean, even vegetables have feelings! They too were once alive. (Until someone
decided to pressure-cook their asses off.)
Food is like
music. You either like something or not. One must have the freedom to choose
not to eat bitter gourds or any other abomination of nature.
There’s no
sin in picking to please one's palate.
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Disclaimer:
The author is a foodie and eats almost everything. Do not take advice from the
above article without the recommendation of a registered medical practitioner
or your mom.
