(veggie) Food for Thought

I wasn’t really a fan of veggie dishes until I met my vegetarian friend. She can’t eat meat (not even eggs) and seafood not because she doesn’t like how they taste, but because her religion forbids eating non-veggie foods. I always think that vegetarian dishes taste bland, do not have different textures and not that sophisticated, unless made by those chefs you see in Food Network! Boy, was I so wrong. A score of spices (half of those I couldn’t even pronounce and I was never introduced before) mixed with one main ingredient – yes, that makes a big difference (think potato turned into a veggie samosa and plain naan dipped into dal and other sauces)! Although my food journey with my Sikh friend started backwards as I got to know deserts first before the main veggie dishes, I was glad I have expanded my knowledge of vegetarian dishes. To that, I think that her being a Sikh has played its part very well.

I had the chance to witness a Sikh wedding ceremony, Anand Karaj, this summer. I was excited not only because it’ll be my first time to see one and I get to wear Sikh’s traditional dress – Salvar kameez – minus the Kirpan (coz only baptized Sikhs carry that!) but also I was told that since it will be held in the Gurdwara, ONLY vegetarian dishes will be served. Okay, I didn’t come just for the food, but I want to see the wedding. Family and friends gathered to witness the ceremony, but it was not that long compared to our traditional Catholic wedding ceremony. The thing that stood most to me was when the bride and groom were doing the four wedding rounds. As the bride and groom were making the four wedding rounds, the four hymns of Laav were sung. Each of the four Laav has a special significance and describes the marriage of the soul-bride to the divine husband. All throughout the wedding, my Sikh friend nicely explained to us - very curious and slightly incognito party crashers - what was happening.

Sikh Wedding (I wasn't able to take a picture, but the one where we went to looked like this)

Yes, I became good friends not only with my Sikh friend, but also with eggplants, spinach, potatoes, chickpeas, lentils whom I never bother to give a second look before (my pescetarian sister always asks me to try her veggie food. Now, she knows who to ask when she can’t find her food). Except for the extra five pounds showing on the scale, I was happy that my learning how to eat veggie foods has brought the curiosity out of me – to learn about another religion, Sikhism.