Feasting on the ying-yang balance of Burmese cuisine (photo by Vicki Baker)
Vicki Baker
Food is complicated. It’s more than just what sustains us. Like our language, music, dance, and clothing, food is one of the key aspects to understanding culture. When looking to understand a people and their history, we can scour libraries and study books. Yet there exists a story not found in old tomes but, instead, on the dinner table. Through ingredients, tastes, smells, and color, we are told tales of struggle, love, pride, and passion.
Yet in today’s western world we have somewhat lost this awareness of food’s symbolism. To reestablish this kinship, Voices United deepened our understanding over the dinner table of a very different culture—a visit to Inlay Burmese Kitchen (facebook.com/inlayburmesekitchen).
Myanmar (formerly Burma), located in Southeast Asia, is bordered by Thailand, Laos, India, China, and Bangladesh. While we can easily find food from many of these Asian countries, Burmese food is harder to find. Restaurant owner Seng Mahkaw brings to the Metroplex the unique flavors of her native country, a hybrid influenced by the spices, seasonings, ingredients, and cooking styles of its neighbors, but also by the myriad of local ethnic minorities. (The country is a patchwork of 135 religious and ethnic groups.)
Inlay’s extensive menu hosts a wide selection of appetizers, soups, salads, vegetables, chicken, beef, lamb, pork, and noodles. With so many options to choose from, we opted to share a variety of dishes to truly explore the flavors of Myanmar. We tried the traditional lephet (tea leaf salad). Some sampled moe hin ga (mohinga), considered to be a national dish. Others tried Ohn no khao swè, touted as one of the most popular soups in Myanmar. What a feast, opening us up to this flavorful and complex cuisine.
While embracing our own heritage, Voices United sought a greater connection with the Burmese culture’s unique cuisine reflecting their history, lifestyle, values, and beliefs. For many, most of our good memories are surrounded by food. While we could deem it the single greatest unifier of cultures, we go even further—food inherently is culture, and it’s something that defines us wherever we go.
Come expand your views of diverse cultures, races, and ethnicities with Voices United through discussion groups, book readings, docent-led museum tours, restaurant visits, and more. Voices United, a group of Robson Ranch women who share progressive values, perform community outreach, provide civic awareness, and enjoy a good time, meets monthly on the first Saturday of the month at 11:30 a.m. in the clubhouse. For more information, visit www.voicesunitedrr.org.