Blog Post 9/28

Reflective Writing in response to the Buzzfeed Videos

I watched the videos “Chinese People Try Panda Express For the First Time” and “Americans Try German Food For The First Time”. In the Panda Express video, the elders’ reaction to American Chinese food was mild and accepted in general. They agreed that some dishes tasted delicious and authentic while some other dishes were not that authentic but still acceptable. However, the young people’s reaction to the food was furious. They disliked the food and considered it fake Chinese food. I was actually very surprised by their reactions while watching the video, and their reactions seemed a little ridiculous to me. The most surprising thing was that the young people, who seemed to be raised in a western environment, were very critical about the food while the elders endorsed the food. Based on my personal experience of eating at Panda Express, I would agree with the elders that some dishes are considerably authentic. Thus, in my opinion, the young people were just being very pretentious and judgmental.

Americans’ reactions to German food were not surprising to me. They all liked the German sausage very much and some of them disliked the German drink and candy. I feel the same as them. When I travelled to Germany, I loved the sausages which were meaty and delicious. Some drinks and candy may taste weird at the first time because we are not yet adapted to the new taste. I encountered many weird food, drinks, and snacks while travelling in different countries. Thus, Americans’ reactions to German food were pretty normal from my perspective. 

Ethnography of the Cox Hall Food Court

I. Background

       Strategically located at the center of the Emory campus, Cox Hall Food Court is a popular dining place for Emory students. It opens at 6:30 am and closes at 7:00 pm every day, serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner. According to its official website, the Cox Hall Food Court is positioned as a place “which offers quick-service dining options”. It consisted of ten food vendors, which are ITP Deli, Freshens, Maru, C3, Green Bean, Twisted Taco, Pasta John’s, Beltline Pizza, Dooley’s Farm, and Char’d House. They together offer diverse dining options for students, staff, and visitors at Emory.

II. Observation

       The first time I went to the Cox Hall Food Court was during a busy lunch time on a weekday. As I entered the food court, I was overwhelmed by its crowdedness. The tables were basically fully occupied, and long lines formed in front of both food counters and check-out counters. In order to avoid the waiting, I chose a box of pre-made sushi roll and a bowl of cold pasta from the refrigerator and checked out.

As I looked around to find an available table, I noticed that most tables at the Cox Hall Food Court had four or six seats. About one-third of the tables were located by the glass. The remaining two-third of the tables were situated near the check-out counters and food vendors. My friend and I sit down at a table by the glass which was lighted by natural sunlight.

I tasted the pasta first. It was very cold, and the pasta was a little too hard. The sauce of the pasta was kind of weird to me, and I did not finish it. The sushi roll was not bad. Again, the rice was very cold and hard, but acceptable. The sashimi inside was fresh and the portion was not too small. Overall, I did not really enjoy my first meal at the Cox Hall and I was still a little hungry after spending ten dollars on my food.

My comprehensive impression of the Cox Hall Food Court was crowded and the food was so-so. It deserved a score of six point five out of ten in my opinion.

III. Interview

       In order to make a better evaluation of the Cox Hall Food Court, I also interviewed two of my friends, Steven and Elaine, regarding their experience of eating at Cox. Elaine eats at Cox Hall approximately once a week. Steven is a less frequent eater at Cox, eating there about twice a month. Their first impressions of the Cox Hall Food Court were both crowded during lunch, but Elaine added that “during dinner time, the line was much shorter”. Steven did not like the food at Cox Hall except the sushi, and he concluded that “the food was not great but a good change of taste”. Steven gave an overall score of six out of ten for the Cox Hall Food Court. Elaine, on the other side, liked the food at Cox Hall, especially the tacos. “It is better than the DUC.” Said Elaine. She was happy with the wide range of choices that Cox Hall offered. After all, she gave a score of seven out of ten for Cox Hall.

IV. Conclusion

       In conclusion, the Cox Hall Food Court offers diverse options of food for everyone on campus. It can get really crowded during the lunch time and the waiting line can be very long. Thus, it is not a good choice if you are in a rush. The quality of the food is not superb, but it is a good choice if you are tired of the DUC.

Sources Cited:

Housing & Dining, http://www.emory.edu/home/life/housing-dining.html

Cox, http://emoryatlanta.cafebonappetit.com/cafe/cox/

In-class Writing  9/23

Dishes:

1. vegetable lo mein

2. coke-cola chicken wings

3. steak

4. miso black cod

Ingredients:

1. snow beans

2. broccoli

3. egg noodles

4. oyster sauce

5. frozen chicken wings

6. 2 bottles of coke

7. rib-eye steak

8. frozen black cod

9. miso sauce

10. soy sauce

11. garlic

12. green onion

estimated price: $250~300

Process:

I would go to the supermarket first to gather all the ingredients. Then, I would go back home and wash the vegetables and let the frozen food to thaw. After that, I would cook the vegetable lo mein first, and then the chicken wings and steak simultaneously. I would cook the chicken wings with a wok, and the steak with a pan. Lastly, I will cook the miso black cod with a pan since seafood needs to be served hot.

There is not a specific theme for the meal. The dishes I picked are those which I am able to make, and I actually made during my trip to UK with my friends. I consider it a combination of Asian and Western food since the ingredients I use are common in American supermarket, but the way I cook it and the sauce I use are typically oriental. I think I will cook this in a friend's house, and I think it will approximately take me an hour and half to finish all four dishes.

Blog Post for 9/23

To me, sustainability is the capability to protect the environment, limit unnecessary waste, and benefit the next generation. Sustainability is important in modern world as resources are limited while population continues to increase rapidly. Sustainability is not something unreachable, people can all be sustainable in different ways. For most people, one easy way to live sustainably is to buy and eat locally. To buy locally means to purchase local food and fruits to support local farmers. It is environment-friendly as it reduces the use of vehicles for transportation. Buying locally may sometimes costs more, but as compensation, we get fresher food and contribute to the economy of the region we live in. To me, in additionally, eating locally is a joy. In Guangdong, China, different rural areas have different signature dishes. Thus, eating locally in different places is a great adventure, and I usually encounter delicious food unexpectedly in different local restaurants.

Blog Post for September 19th

Comparing Evidence used in articles "Here's Why Salads Feel Feminine and Nachos Seem Manly" and "India's War On Biryani Mixes Caste, Religion, Cow-Avenging Vigilantes"

The articles use different types of evidence. The evidence in the salad article are mostly secondary since the writer is describing and interpreting other's study. For example, he writes "The results showed, unsurprisingly, that there was a significant tie to food and gender perception. People were more likely to see the unhealthier options as masculine and the healthier options as more feminine", and this is a summarization of other’s study result. The evidence in the Indian food article are mostly primary as they are cited mainly from interviews. For example, the writer cites “But in the last 20 years there are little shacks selling biryani everywhere. The quality is not good, but it's convenient, a meal in a box.” from Amin, a restaurant owner. Besides the difference in type, the source of evidence used in these two articles is also different. The writer of the salad article uses sources from scientific study to support his claim while the writer of the Indian food article cites interviews as evidence.

Blog Post
September 13th

From my perspective, food has a really close connection to religion and tradition. Different religions have different food restrictions as well as traditions.

My parents and I basically do not have any religious affiliation, but every year, as a tradition, on the first day of Chinese lunar calendar we will go to the temple as many other Chinese families. Following our visit to the temple, we will always have vegetarian meals on that day. When I was young, I did not know the reason. I asked my mom one time, and she told me that is because in Chinese Buddhism gods are believed to be born on the first day of the lunar calendar. Therefore, as a form of respect, people avoid killing animals and eat vegetarian meals on that day. To nowadays, though many Chinese people do not have a strong affiliation to Buddhism, this custom remains as a tradition.

Not only Buddhism has dietary restrictions, many other religions also do. When I was in high school, I learned from some Jewish students that there is a fasting day every year. In addition, in Jewish culture, there are many limitations on food and the ways that it is prepared.

To sum up, food is not simply what we eat every day. It contains cultural heritage and has important meaning to different groups of people.

Revised Version of Blog Post on September 9th

     For a typical Cantonese family, going to teahouse[1] on the weekend for dim sum is like going to church for a western family. Dim sum, the quintessence of culinary intelligence, is an indispensable element for Cantonese. If you have been to a dim sum place in America, you may notice that there are dozens of different types of dim sum, ranging from salty to sweet, from meat to vegetable, from warm to cold, and from big portion to delicate small plate. Among all these diverse and exquisite culinary delicacies, “Har Gow” (also called xiajiao or shrimp dumpling) is my favorite.

     Har Gow is usually considered as the most representative one in Cantonese dim sum. It always appears as the first item on a dim sum menu. Based on my experience, the quality of the Har Gow is highly correlated with the overall culinary level of a restaurant. Restaurants that can produce good Har Gow usually also offer other types of tasteful dim sum and dishes. Restaurants that are bad at producing Har Gow hardly cook anything well.

So what is Har Gow exactly? According to the online ChinaDictionary, Har Gow is a popular Han traditional snack in Guangdong Province made from wheat starch. Typical traditional shrimp dumplings are half-moon in shape, translucent, stuffed with shrimps, meat, bamboo shoots and tastes delicious.[1] Now, after knowing the definition of Har Gow, you may ask what a good Har Gow is like. In my opinion, a good Har Gow should fulfill the following criterions:

1.       have thin, soft, and translucent skin

2.       the skin should be as thin as possible, but not to the extent which it can be easily ruptured by chopsticks (the translucence of the skin allows Har Gow to have a reddish appearance as we can kind of see the shrimp inside)

3.       the shrimp must be very fresh

4.       other ingredients must be seasonal

5.       taste fresh, juicy, and full-bodied

     Comparing to its complicated composition, eating Har Gow is extremely simple. Some people like to dip it in soy sauce while others prefer sweet chili sauce. For me, I like it plain, so that I can have a real taste of it, slowly chew it in my mouth, and peacefully enjoy the sense of pleasure this delicacy offers me.

     I don't know why, but dim sum certainly has some kind of spiritual value in my mind. While living in Guangzhou, a week without going to the teahouse for dim sum is incomplete for me. Dim sum, especially Har Gow, gives me a sense of belonging and peace which has some kind of magic power that can sweep away all my anxiety and unpleasantness.

---

[1] "Shrimp Dumplings (Har Gow)." ChinaDictionary. N.p., 04 Mar. 2015. Web. 13 Sept. 2016. <http://chinadictionary.net/shrimp-dumplings-har-gow/>.

Blog Post 9/12

Summary of Joseph’s Article 

In her article “Feeding an Identity – Gender, Food, and Survival”, Norma Joseph argues that there is a strong connection between food and community as well as religion. She also indicates that gender plays an important role in the realm of food.

According to Joseph, patterns of food shows cultural identity, religious restriction and rituals, and connection between generations. Food is a way for a group of people to preserve their ethical or national identity and tradition. It allows people embrace the past while living in present.

In the realm of religion, food elaborately prepared for rituals or feasts is sacred. Food has the magic power to strengthen community as well as diminish differences. In Jewish culture, food is an indispensable element of its heritage.

Food is also closely related to women’s gender identity. Women play a significant role in preparing food and serving it. Food production is a domain of women’s control, and it is women who render food its power.

The understanding of food and its relationship with community, culture, religion, and gender has changed in history. At first, food was looked as an artifact rather than a treasure of human civilization. However, later researches on food testify food’s connection with social activities, such as immigration, religious practice, and modernization. Women’s role in food production and their status in society also gain more attention in recent studies, and has been recognized.

Food is not only our basic living requirement, it also has supreme value in society, community, religion, and gender identity.

*Revised Version

Simple Dishes

Food not only possesses soul, but also can arouse the soul.

At the age of fifteen, I left my home country, and travelled across the Pacific Ocean to the United States as an international student. At that time, the young, curious, and excited me was looking forward to experiencing the exotic culture and everything there. My transition to the new environment was quite smooth. I gradually adapted to and felt comfortable in the new school, the English-speaking environment, and the people around me. However, there was one thing I could never adapt to, even to this day, and that is the food.

When in China, I, as well as many of my peers, would always became so excited when the bell marking the end of morning classes would ring. We would rush to the canteen, queue up at the food counters which we like, and then, sit together to enjoy the food and brief recess between classes. To me, that was a highlight of my day. Eating what I liked made me feel satisfied and pleasant.

Nevertheless, while in American high school, my perception of having meals changed. Meals became much less important to me. Walking to the cafeteria, choosing whatever I like, then sitting with friends to have lunch and dinner seemed to be a daily routine rather than something exciting as before. I ruminated, but couldn’t find the reason for my loss of passion. Certainly, it was not about the quality of the food served in the cafeteria, as I genuinely liked the cheeseburger supplied every day and the lamp chop provided occasionally, and there were also some other foods that I preferred. However, a sense of incompleteness would always emerge when I was eating the American food, and what exactly was lacking did not appear to be obvious.

Later, I found out the answer to the question at the night of mid-autumn festival, a traditional Chinese holiday. Since my school was located in a rural area and there was no Chinese restaurant within walkable distance, my friend Tingwei and I decided to cook ourselves a home-style dinner for celebrating the festival. Deciding on what to cook was not an easy task. Neither Tingwei and I had much culinary experience. Therefore, after a round of brainstorming and process of elimination, we made a safe choice on food to be cooked: lo mein and fried egg with luncheon meat. Both are fairly easy to prepare. The first dish requires us to boil the noodles thoroughly and then mix them with moderate amount of sesame oil, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. The second dish requires us to simply cook the luncheon meat on a pan and pour egg mixture on top of it. I took responsibility for preparing the lo mein as that is a typical Cantonese breakfast dish and I had abundant experience on controlling the amount of each sauce. Tingwei, simultaneously, carefully mixed the luncheon meat with the egg on the pan.

The dinner was ready after thirty minutes of endeavor. The two dishes were extremely simple, so simple that most families in China even refuse to regard them as qualified components of a regular family meal. However, to us, eating this simplest but most authentic self-made Chinese food make us satisfied. It was indeed an unforgettable meal for Tingwei and I. The food was not complicated at all, and the quality was not superior, but it was the taste of home.

Blog Post

September 9, 2016

For a typical Cantonese family, going to teahouse[1] on weekend for dim sum is like going to church for a western family. Dim sum, the quintessence of culinary intelligence, is an indispensable element for Cantonese. If you have been to a dim sum place in America, you may notice that there are dozens of different types of dim sum, ranging from salty to sweet, from meat to vegetable, from warm to cold, and from big portion to delicate small plate. Among all these diverse and exquisite culinary delicacies, “Har Gow” (also called xiajiao or shrimp dumpling) is my favorite.

Har Gow is usually considered as the most representative one in Cantonese dim sum. It always appear as the first item on a dim sum menu. Based on my experience, the quality of the Har Gow is highly correlated with the overall culinary level of a restaurant. Restaurants that can produce extraordinary Har Gow usually also offer other types of amazing dim sum and dishes. Restaurants that are bad at producing Har Gow hardly cook anything well.

So what a good Har Gow should be? First of all, a good Har Gow should have thin, soft, and translucent skin. Although called shrimp dumpling in English, Har Gow is not a deviation of traditional Chinese dumpling, and therefore, its skin is totally different from that of regular dumpling. For Har Gow, the skin should be as thin as possible, but not to the extent which it can be easily damaged by chopsticks. Translucence of the skin allows Har Gow to have a reddish appearance as we can kind of see the shrimp inside. The shrimp in the Har Gow is also very important. For a Har Gow to taste good, the shrimp must be very fresh, minced, and mixed with other seasonal ingredients. The ingredients of Har Gow usually differ by restaurants, and what determines the final quality is the overall mixed taste. An exemplar of Har Gow should taste fresh, juicy, and full-bodied.

Comparing to its complicated culinary procedures, eating Har Gow is extremely simple. Some people like to dip it in soy sauce while others prefer sweet chili sauce. For me, I like it plain, so that I can have a real taste of it, slowly chew it in my mouth, and peacefully enjoy the sense of pleasure this delicacy offers me.

I don't know why, but dim sum certainly has some kind of spiritual value in my mind. While living in Guangzhou, a week without going to teahouse for dim sum is incomplete for me. Dim sum, especially Har Gow, gives me a sense of belonging and peace which has some kind of magic power that can sweep away all my anxiety and unpleasantness.

 http://www.flickr.com/photo_zoom.gne?id=245032119&size=l

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[1] A kind of Cantonese restaurant which serves dim sum

Analysis of "Tuscan Dairy Whole Vitamin D Milk" Review

In my opinion, the audience of a typical amazon review are customers who want to buy the product. This type of audience basically read the reviews for a better understanding of the product's utility, quality, and practicability. They tend to make the decision of buying the product or not based on the reviews. 

As regarding to the composition of a typical customer review, I think an effective review should include the reviewers general evaluation of the product followed with detailed explanation. A good review should also cover different aspects of the product to give readers a whole picture.

Review of “Tuscan Dairy Whole Vitamin D Milk.”

5.0 out of 5 starsGreat product, many uses

ByDonald Wayneon July 19, 2016

“I found that mixing 1/2 cup water with 1/2 cup Tuscan Milk and a teaspoon of salt makes a salt water like liquid

with a white color that really serves no practical function what so ever, however, when applied to tough and stubborn 

stains on clothing and upholstery, scrubbing with a course brush will not remove the stain but give you the 

satisfaction of knowing you tried really hard.”

Analysis

This review targets the same audience as most amazon reviews. Clearly, the intended readersof this review are the customers as this review is basically the writer's recommendation onusage of this product to others. Though it targets the same type of audience as many other amazon reviews, its content is not a typical customer review. It does not review the taste, 

ingredients, or packing of the milk. Instead, it focuses on recommending special ways to use

the milk. It does not give other potential customers effective and informative review on the 

product. Therefore, personally, I don't think it fits into the "customer review" genre.

Audience and Genre

      Audience and Genre are connected and they influence each other. If we know who the audience are while we write, we are most likely to choose a genre that will attract these specific audience. For example, if we know we are writing to people who have status above us, we are likely to write formally and decorously. Vice versa, if we know the assigned genre of our writing, we are most likely able to guess who the audience will be. Understanding both the genre and the type of audience will help us better compose the writing, making it appealing to the readers as well as fulfilling the requirements for a specific type of writing.

Simple Dishes

Food not only possess soul, but also can arouse soul.

At the age of fifteen, I left my home country, travelled across the Pacific Ocean to the United States as an international student. At that time, the young, curious, and excited me was looking forward to experiencing the exotic culture and everything there. My transition to the new environment was quite smooth. I gradually adapted to, and felt comfortable in the new school, the English-speaking environment, and the people around me. However, there was one thing I could never adapt to, even to these days, and that is the food.

When in China, I, as well as many of my peers, always became so fevered when the bell marking the end of morning classes ring. We would rush to the canteen, queue up at the food counters which we like, and then, sit together to enjoy the food and brief recess between classes. To me, that was a highlight of my day. Eating what I like made me feel satisfied and pleasant. Nevertheless, while in American high school, my perception of having meals changed. Meals became much less important to me. Walk to the cafeteria, choose whatever I like, then sit with friends to have lunch and dinner seem to be a daily routine rather than something exciting as before. I ruminated, but couldn’t find the reason for my loss of passion. Certainly, it was not about the quality of the food served in the cafeteria as I genuinely liked the cheeseburger supplied every day and the lamp chop provided occasionally, and there were also some other foods that I preferred. However, a sense of incompleteness always emerges when I was eating the American food, and what exactly was lacking did not appear to be obvious.

Later, I found out the answer to the question at the night of mid-autumn festival, a traditional Chinese holiday. Since my school was located in a rural area and within walkable distance there was no Chinese restaurant, my friend Tingwei and I decided to cook ourselves a home-style dinner for celebrating the festival. To decide on what to cook was not an easy task. Neither Tingwei and I had much culinary experience. Therefore, after a round of brainstorming and process of elimination, we made a safe choice on food to be cooked, lo mein and fried egg with luncheon meat. Both are fairly easy to be prepared. The first one requires us to boil the noodles thoroughly and then mix it with moderate amount of sesame oil, soy sauce, and oyster sauce. The second dish requires us to simply cook the luncheon meat on a pan and pour egg mixture on top of it. I took responsibility for preparing the lo mein as that is a typical Cantonese breakfast dish and I had abundant experience on controlling the amount of each sauce. Tingwei, simultaneously, carefully mixed the luncheon meat with the egg on the pan.

The dinner was ready after thirty minutes of endeavor. The two dishes were extremely simple, too simple that most families in China even refuse to regard them as decorous components of a regular family meal. However, to us, eating these simplest but most authentic self-made Chinese food make us satisfied. It was indeed an unforgettable meal for Tingwei and I. The food was not complicated at all, and the quality was not superior, but it was the taste of home, which aroused our sense of belonging.