I don’t know the first thing about rolling a joint.
I do have a sushi mat that I put inside a gallon zip loc bag (to keep my mat clean). The mat makes it quite easy.
I kind of like the whole performance of preparing sushi rolls… hat and all. It’s fun for me and my guests. I will do some research on nigiri… thanks.
It’s been a while for me as well, but I think it would be easier still than, say, a California roll. Not as many moving parts 
My boss mentioned those mats as well, and I’ve seen them around, for sure.
Making nigiri is harder than rolling a maki. Every Japanese American kid I know learned to make inarizushi. I mean, even a 5-year old can stuff rice into a pouch, right? Most of the girls (because very few of the boys were encouraged to learn) were taught to make makizushi of various kinds. Nigiri, OTOH, was usually not made in the home because it really is more than squeezing rice into a ball and topping it with something tasty. It takes practice to make good nigirizushi. It’s not hard, but you have to develop the feel for getting the right texture of the riceball as you’re forming it. It’s kind of a two stage process of forming a loose mass of rice in one hand, then pairing it up with the topping, and using both hands to press them gently together. Too tight and it feels more like a dumpling in your mouth, too loose and it falls apart too easily.
IME, though, making makizushi is easier than rolling a good joint. I can’t roll a good joint to save my life.
Oh, I am aware that ‘sushi’ is all about the rice and its temp, texture, and seasonings.
I’m far from a perfectionist, so I’d probably be quite happy with my nigiri if I ever felt inclined to make them… which I don’t, bc we have several professionals nearby who do a fabulous job
I leave brewing, cheese-making, bread-baking, and distilling spirits to more talented folks, too, and prefer to merely consume their perfected fruits of labor.
I was pretty good at rolling joints back in the day (tobacco & hash like all the Euro kids did), but now solidly prefer a nice bowl or cart.
(post deleted by author)
I’m so sorry you’ve had these experiences. I’ve never had to deal with it in a work context, thankfully.
What you described about the “eating test” for the Rhodes — my dad had a similar story.
He was invited to the executive dining room by his British bosses: they later told him it was a test before they promoted him — they had never before promoted an Indian person to that seniority, and wanted to make sure he could “eat like a civilized person”. (This was in India, decades post independence.)
The first hungry onion group meal of Indian food we had in New York, I did pause to decide whether to eat with my fingers or not because it was a table of 8 or 10 people I didn’t know very well yet. I thought later that maybe I should have stopped at the rice. But indian restaurant, indian food, indian person 
.
My nephews’ friends too, both in NYC & CA. We would make them call their parents to ask if we could feed them — if they were still “new” to the mix 
(most of them also called me the same term for “aunt” my nephews did 
). The kids also helpfully gave advance notice of known favorites (we’re having idlis Cooper — you want to come over?) 
.
Re rice balls, as I said on the other thread, to me that’s an expression of love 
:
It’s unfortunately a cultural thing stemming from a combination of (1) germaphobia and (2) the perception that using (and the ability to use) utensils is a sign of sophistication.
I was told long ago that one eats with one hand and not the other because of bathrooming in many cultures.
Since e-coli made the rounds in our family ago, I’ve been very careful about handwashing before eating, period.
I suppose so. But it is an inaccurate perception. If eating with hands, one would always be expected to wash hands before and after. And in the Indian subcontinent, only the right hand is considered appropriate to eat with for the reason @mts has mentioned - the left hand is used for ablutions after going to the toilet so is considered ‘dirty’ and shouldn’t be used for eating or serving anyone food. Also, hands are used for taking food to mouth, never to grab or serve food, which is done with utensils. And food is handled with fingertips rather than the palm of the hand. So there is hygiene and etiquette built in - just perhaps not perceived by people who find it uncivilised.
Yes.
I never said it (the perception) was right or wrong, just that it is. As unfortunate as it may be.
Sometimes being integrated in certain social circles requires us to abide by rules of etiquette that are both irrational and uncomfortable.
For example, my grandfather always used chopsticks to eat, and considered using a knife to be a sign of bad luck and just gauche. But in the US, he conformed (at least in front of most American guests), even though he found the practice of using a knife to eat both unbecoming and unfortuitous.
Are exceptions acceptable for less dexterous folk, Indian or other descent?
Because — while I am technically left-handed, “ablutions” are decidedly a right hand and right hand only skill for me.
Strangely, I’ve never come across lefthandedness in an eating Indian food situation! I would expect left-handed persons to eat with their left hand. The etiquette probably originates from a time when running water to properly wash hands was probably scarce, so using one hand strictly for eating and the other strictly to wash ones privates after going to the toilet made good sense from a hygiene perspective. Nowadays most people have facilities to wash their hands properly around mealtimes and toilet visits, so the etiquette should practically not matter so much.
Well, I would certainly hate to offend anyone if I were ever in that situation.
My dexterity is all over the place. I use my chef’s knife with my right hand, but cut my food on the plate with my left hand (fork in right, which is frowned upon in Western culture but I don’t have to care about that, thankfully). I also play all sports with my right hand/foot.
Thanks for sharing your grandfather’s experience. I find it interesting how people adapt to their circumstances.
My grandmother (a devout Hindu) considered eating beef unacceptable in a very strange way - she used to hide in a different room if my grandfather brought white British colleagues (this was in the 1950s in an industrial town in India) home for tea and once the guests had left, went about disinfecting the rooms - all this because she presumed as Englishmen they were eaters of beef and had somehow sullied her home by their mere presence. Then her daughter (my mom) got married, moved to the USA and developed a taste for steak. But to her credit, when my mom became very unwell after giving birth to me, my grandma travelled to the US on her own and cooked and fed steak to her daughter to aid her recovery (as advised by the American OBGYN). She discovered that a nation of beef eaters was actually very friendly and helpful. She never ate a bite of the stuff herself though.
That experience of your dad being subjected to a ‘can he eat in a civilised manner’ test is worthy of its own thread! These sort of practices must have been (and could still be?) fairly common. The ability to be a cultural chameleon surely works to one’s advantage. But is it right to subject people to this sort of scrutiny?
what a heartwarming story. Always amazing what a mother’s love can overcome.
Code switching is only recently being talked about much or studied seriously, but you are right.
I came across this, and immediately thought “oh so if I speak 6.5 languages is that 6.5 personalities?”. Before I could ponder that further I adjusted the number to 7.5, because American English and Indian English actually engender different accents and personas in everyone I know who switches between them. (The 0.5 Is for the language I’m still learning.)
i’ve really appreciated all the comments in this thread. i’ve always been very ‘handsy’ in my eating, in spite of being raised by a father that uses a knife and fork to eat pizza – to my eternal embarrassment.
in college i had a dear friend that later became my housemate. her parents emigrated from Chennai. we would cook for each other. she turned me on to a lot of dishes that i hadn’t seen before, and also taught me how to eat them. i’m not as adept eating with my hand as i was then, but i’m glad to have had that experience (i miss you Veena).
And, of course there’s a difference between the way Americans use cutlery and the way the British/Europeans do. …
