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Does anyone else here think it's odd that Americans eat almost everything with knives, forks and spoons daily but if their menu choice changes to Asian food many will eat those items with chopsticks instead of what they customarily use? If you like using chopsticks why not use them for steak and fries or fried chicken and mashed potatoes or spaghetti and meatballs?
I have an acquaintance (not of Asian descent, no firsthand experience immersed in Asian culture) who does indeed eat everything with chopsticks (including soup), and to be honest, it comes off as a bizarre affectation.
Does anyone else here think it's odd that Americans eat almost everything with knives, forks and spoons daily but if their menu choice changes to Asian food many will eat those items with chopsticks instead of what they customarily use? If you like using chopsticks why not use them for steak and fries or fried chicken and mashed potatoes or spaghetti and meatballs?
If eating foods derived from European cuisine do any people use the two-handed knife and fork technique instead of the American method of changing hands?
Not I. I eat almost everything either with my fingers or with the large serving spoon I use to stir the pot of food during cooking. Another nice option you get, when you live alone. Well actually, I do use little plastic forks and spoons when I eat avocados or sardines. I wash and keep using them until they break, which usually happens after a week. I also eat everything left-handed. The right-brain control makes eating a more artistic experience.
But many years ago, it took just a few visits to Chinese restaurants, to develop good skills with chopsticks. But you just can't eat fried rice fast enough with them. But maybe that's a secret tactic behind Asians generally being leaner and healthier than Western people? The limitations of scarfing-up so much chow with chopsticks, may be an intended curb on the amount of food that is eaten.
But many years ago, it took just a few visits to Chinese restaurants, to develop good skills with chopsticks. But you just can't eat fried rice fast enough with them. But maybe that's a secret tactic behind Asians generally being leaner and healthier than Western people? The limitations of scarfing-up so much chow with chopsticks, may be an intended curb on the amount of food that is eaten.
Nah.
Asian family still living in country of origin. They don't skimp on the rice they eat or how fast they eat it, their technique is just different than what you see when you are at a Chinese buffet. It's more that the chopsticks are employed as scoop, with the bowl picked up and held close to the mouth, and the sticks being used more to rake and push the rice in, which makes for pretty fast eating.
I like chopsticks for food designed to be eaten with them. I don’t know why anybody switches hands with the fork and knife, and I wouldn’t say “most” Americans do this.
Fork left, knife right. I am left handed, yet it is not at all difficult to use the knife with my right hand!
Where I am in the U.S.,"continental" dining style is quite uncommon. It's typically fork in dominant hand, and not holding the knife at all unless it is being employed, but if it is, using dominant hand for that. It's fairly rare to see the "fork left, knife right" approach, overall.
after witnessing all you can eat buffets.....with people using their fingers eating baked beans and mashed potatoes... some things you cant un-see
speaking of other cultures and eating..... when in Jamaica and time to eat ...im looking for utensils while everyone just started eating with their hands....and it was slippery foods!!
some foods you got to use your hands....chicken wings....pizza (thin crust) meats on wooden skewers …
I think it's hilarious for Americans to show off their chopstick skills but when they eat Indian food (or Ethiopian, for that matter) they seldom discard their silverware and use roti or bhatura to eat their chickpeas and lentils!
I think it's hilarious for Americans to show off their chopstick skills but when they eat Indian food (or Ethiopian, for that matter) they seldom discard their silverware and use roti or bhatura to eat their chickpeas and lentils!
Why is that funny? People will do what is familiar, and many are familiar with chopsticks because Chinese-style food has been mainstream for so long and it’s fun to use them to pick up bite sized pieces of food.
I’ve only had Ethiopian food a few times, but everyone at the table used the injera to pick up the food.
I've never noticed anyone changing hands (that seems extremely awkward.) I'm left-handed, as is my husband, our mothers, some grandparents, many aunts and uncles... so I suspect we wouldn't feel like switching anyway, by default. I'll have to watch out for that... the switching. We use the fork in the left and knife in the right. It's natural.
My children and I are proficient in using chopsticks (down to rice, yes) but my husband isn't. He can get sushi and noodles but is infuriated by chasing rice and peas. lol. We go out for Asian food fairly regularly, on the fly, and I keep chopsticks in a slip in my bag for that because I hate the feel of the dry, wooden ones provided. We have our own soup spoons for brothy soups and have a large set of chopsticks for home.
I use the utensils best for the job. Very often, the right utensils follow the cuisine. While chopsticks are great for both cooking and eating Asian food (so many fewer utensils to wash), they're not great for flipping or holding sausages, tend to cut through wheat-flour pastas (rice noodles are sturdier and "done" at a harder bite, in cold water), and aren't good for flipping over large pieces of meat or stirring heavy sauces. They're good primarily for Asian cuisine... although I do tend to use them for frying anything and for flipping over meatballs.
I use a fork for everything, I cannot use chopsticks. I will even eat "hand" foods such as pizza & burgers with a knife & fork, if I am at home.
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