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. Continue reading