What? How? Who?

[mme_hardy]

Deep-frying foods in vegetable oil seems like a modern American craze, but it was an ancient cooking tradition in West Africa, and one that we have inherited from enslaved people.

Akara sounds pretty tasty, but that's a bizarre sentence up there.

Comments

[mildred_of_midgard]

I had to think about this one, but possible translation of the apparent non sequitur: "Deep-frying foods in vegetable oil seems like something that belongs in affluent cultures full of unhealthy, processed foods, but actually, we got it from some very poor people."

Agree that the actual historical misconception is staggering.

(Also, pretty sure it's bigger in Great Britain than America right now, but possibly this person has never set foot outside...the American South?)

[malkingrey]

Tracking down the author by name, she's actually a fairly high-powered scholar -- doctorate in history from Johns Hopkins, affiliated with Amherst College, an associate director of the Folger Shakespeare library . . . so she really ought to have known how to better phrase things.

[mme_hardy]

But most Africans in their native countries weren't poor. That's a post-colonialism thing. And deep-frying is pretty much anti-fashionable in the US right now.

[mildred_of_midgard]

Oh, I wasn't saying they were poor when they were originating this practice in their native countries, and it didn't sound like she was either. But they were definitely poor when they were slaves here in America and preserving this practice so they could (supposedly) passing it onto modern Americans, according to this (weird) thesis.

And deep-frying is pretty much anti-fashionable in the US right now.

I think that depends on your social circle. Health conscious people won't touch them, of course, and alternatives are starting to catch on, but deep fried french fries and potato chips are still very much a modern American thing.

I mostly liked the food in Britain when I was there, but wow I just wanted my vegetables to be vegetables and not deep fried.

[mme_hardy]

But there's a difference between what we all eat and what's a "craze". She's describing deep-frying as a "modern craze", which is like saying hamburgers are a modern craze.

[legionseagle]

Where in Britain were people deep frying vegetables other than spuds?

[mildred_of_midgard]

Scottish Lowlands and northern England. I wasn't there long enough to experience it myself, but I've also heard stories of deep-fried Mars Bars and deep-fried pizza.

[legionseagle]

Which vegetables, as a matter of interest?

[mildred_of_midgard]

Unfortunately, it was ten years ago, and I no longer remember. I just remember complaining when I got back, and my friend who had done a study abroad stint at the U of Edinburgh (where I spent most of my time) was like, "Yeah, they do that there," and then told me stories of all the other things she'd seen and/or consumed in her time.

[mildred_of_midgard]

In the same place that the artist of today's SMBC comic must have visited: Edinburgh. I thought I'd heard it was a more general British thing, but maybe it's just a Scottish thing.

P.S. I did like the haggis.

[legionseagle]

Um. That cartoon is -- not a good look. Certainly, chip shops deep fry stuff and Scottish chip shops deep fry a wider range of stuff, but careless deployment of 'deep fried Mars bar' stereotypes can give rise to some pretty awkward situations.

[mildred_of_midgard]

Wow.

I did not mean to stereotype the entire urban population! I just remember being frustrated that so many of my vegetables were no longer identifiable as vegetables, when this was in no way indicated on the menu when I ordered them, and this was coming from someone who's an unhealthy eater in general. I quite liked Scotland otherwise! Including the food.