Want to be healthy? Start cooking at home

By N.K.A. Ballal, Retd. Sr. Vice-President, ITDC

Two recent ads in the TV really shook me up. The first one had three generations of ladies — grandmother, mother and her daughter — sitting on a stairs, applying oil on each others head. Picture perfect. A tradition still followed. Excellent so far.

The girl suddenly asks her mother, Ma, I would like to have my favourite bhindi as you cook it. Her mother looks up to her mother and repeats the request. The grandmother coolly takes out her cellphone, dials an online site and hands over the phone to her grand-daughter to place the order ! Ridiculous.

Will any grand-mother worth her salt order food online, specially when her grand-daughter is asking for home-made bhindi? Probably, the ad wanted to make a point that how evolved and modern our grannies have become? This is not true. Ordering restaurant food is a recent phenomena because of increase in the number of working women and also the recent trend of youngsters not learning even basic cooking in their formative years.

Second ad: A mother and son are playing video game. The son suddenly stops the game and tells his mother, “I am hungry.” What does the mother do? She whips out her cellphone, places an order from a restaurant and tells her son, “continue the game. Food is on its way.” Frightening prospect.

Is home-cooking going to be passe in a matter of two decades? Will home-cooking be a forgotten art and skill? So many disturbing questions and no answers. This ad may bring some smiles on our faces but what kind of culture are we getting into. A child watching the ad will be conditioned to think that if one is hungry, order online.

Cooking was not a burden, specially if one cooked for their dear ones. The sheer joy of making the children happy and the satisfaction on the faces of the loved ones is tremendous. What about family bonding? The fact is that food is not a commodity but an emotion too. So if one is not able to cook survival food, one is missing something in life. If someone says, “I can only make noodles or tea, it is pathetic.” Not something one should be proud of but a stark reality. Most of the girls I have talked to think cooking is a burden thrust upon them and they can manage with food from outside. But look at the health problem they face so early in life.

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As General Manager of The Ashok, New Delhi, we had the privilege of staying in the hotel itself and so had the command to order from 7 restaurants’ kitchen at our disposal. But you will be surprised. Most of the times I along with the Food and Beverage Executive used to gather at the chef’s cabin to have a simple dal – chawal or roti freshly made for the chef. Even my children got so sick of hotel food, a small kitchen was made in our suite so that we could have some home-food daily.

One day I was observing my wife clean spinach nearly 3 to 4 times. I asked her as to why she was doing so. She showed me some leaves which had been cleaned just once had some more particles of sand in it.

Adulteration has become a big business and one is not sure of any food sold in the market. Khoya, milk, wheat flour, rice, dal, masala powder etc. Even vegetables and fruits sold in the market are full of pesticides.

I am not insisting that every girl or boy should be trained to be a gourmet chef but it is my sincere hope that every youngster should be able to cook basic everyday food. Surprised that I have included ‘boys’ in the list? Well, if you want your wife to earn and contribute to the family kitty then be prepared to share the work at the kitchen too. So if both the boys and girls learn the basics they can ensure that they eat healthy and simple food every day and gorge on their special junk food on weekends. Eat home food if you want to live long and healthy.