Presented by
Nina Mukerjee Furstenau, Author & Journalist
for Chicago Foodways Roundtable
For almost all people, food is journey to identity. More than sustenance, food holds memory, desire, reward from frustration, and a link to place; food can represent how we live and who we are; food holds story.
Biting through the Skin centers on the life of an Indian family in pre-long grain rice America. In 1960s Kansas, eating was cause for inquiry. All key cultural, spiritual and family values transferred in the Mukerjee family via the rituals around Bengali food preparation. Food was, in fact, the only way these elements of identity were passed down in an area and era where there were no other avenues. Biting through the Skin shows how we maintain our differences as well as come together, what we learn about ourselves and about others from the rituals of cooking, serving, and eating. It examines the idea of belonging and the tiny details of life it rests upon.
Readers are invited into the kitchen and tasty creations are the result. Biting through the Skin is an engrossing book that transforms flat facts of immigration into a story of what makes identity, and how foods become talismanic creations that keep our past alive.
Author Nina Mukerjee Furstenau sees families as a small pockets of culture within the larger American landscape; and sees that immigrants of all kinds are left with memories and recipes. In effect, heritage can be reduced to a 4×6-inch recipe card, something that can fit into a shirt pocket. Biting through the Skin is a distinctive combination of memoir, traveler’s tale and cultural commentary from the perspective of a first generation immigrant. It includes recipes—step-by-step guides—with a vital sense of food as culture.
Born in Thailand to Indian parents, Nina Mukerjee Furstenau grew up in Kansas, served in the Peace Corps in Tunisia, and founded a publishing company with her husband. Now a journalist and food writer based in Fayette, Missouri, she also teaches journalism at the University of Missouri.
Saturday, April 26, 2014 at 10 AM
Kendall College, School of Culinary Arts
900 N. North Branch Street, Chicago
(West of Halsted Street, North of Chicago Avenue)
Free Parking in the student lot across the street
Cost: $3. Free to Kendall students and faculty with ID.
This program is hosted by the Chicago Foodways Roundtable. To reserve, please e-mail: chicago.foodways.roundtabl
* * *
Recipes adapted from Biting through the Skin, Nina Mukerjee Furstenau on April 26, 2014.
Payesh (rice or vermicelli pudding)
serves 6-8
1/2 gallon whole milk
2 tablespoons vermicelli noodles (1″ diameter bunch) or a handful of uncooked rice
1/3 cup raisins
1/2 cup slivered almonds or pistachios
3/4 cup granulated sugar or 3/4 cup palm sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
In a deep, heavy-bottomed pan, bring the milk to a low boil. If you are using rice, add it after 10 minutes and continue to boil on medium-low heat until the milk has reduced to half its volume. You will need to stir every two minutes to prevent scorching and to break the skin to allow evaporation. Once the milk is reduced, usually after about 30-45 minutes, add raisins, almonds and vermicelli (if you have not used rice earlier). Add sugar and cook until dissolved, stirring frequently. Remove from heat, cool and add vanilla.
Party-popping Fried Cashews
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 pound raw cashews
1/4 teaspoon salt to taste
black pepper to taste
Heat an eight- to 10-inch frying pan over medium high heat. Add oil, then stir in all the cashews. Continious stir-fry until medium brown, which may take 6-8 minutes. You may need to adjust heat to make sure they do not burn. Drain nuts on paper towel lined colander, sprinkle with salt and lots of fresh ground pepper, and slide them onto a serving plate. Fantastic served warm. Note: For an event, these can be kept warm in a slow cooker set to low.