I love my boyfriend but our eating synergy is way off. He grew up all American, eating hotdogs, hamburgers, pizza, faux Mexican food (Taco Bell!) and Shake and Bake. I grew up Asian American, specifically Taiwanese — which means that I am a HUGE foodie who will eat practically everything and am open to trying almost anything.
He loves sandwiches, and things all mushed together in one bite. Exhibit A: burritos, pizzas and sandwiches. I love everything separated: Exhibit B: bento boxes, dim sum and tapas.
At least we both love Sushi. And by sushi I mean real sushi, meaning sashimi and such. We both dislike fake sushi: those monstrous over stuffed and overly glazed and fried sushi rolls. Btw rolls were 100% absent from all menus when we visited Tokyo last year.
I complained to my girl friend about this issue and she said if you can’t get over this minor issue, good luck with navigating the rest of the “real issues” which come with any relationship. But I am stopping to protest that IT IS A HUGE DEAL! I am a huge foodie and I want to share my love of food with my boyfriend!
I’ve compromised! We rarely go out to eat so I do all the home cooking — pot roasts, steaks, pastas — I’ve gained ten lbs in the past year! I throw in an Asian meal every three days or so but I can tell that he is just humoring me by eating the meal, not lavishing praise on the meal like on the other days when I make a pot roast or taco.
He jokes about the “sketchy Asian food” that I love to eat. ??? Everyone knows that Asian food is the superior cuisine of the world! Just listen to the vast list of food experts who rave about it: Anthony Bourdain, Andrew Zimmerman and the Pulitzer Prize nominated Jonathan Gold just to name a few!
My plan is to ease him into loving Asian food by starting off with fusion foods and some of the most popular, well loved and cross cultural dishes and track his progress and feedback. I’ll need YOUR help too! Any help, suggestions, and ideas are welcomed!
