Authenticity of Food - Connections to Class, Gender and Diaspora

[waahiba_siddiqui]

Authenticity is linked to a concept of how close something is to the original. How unadulterated it is, how untouched by outside influence. The immigration of South Asians to places like Britain and Turtle Island and their integration into the culture of these places would essentially serve as antithetical to the conditions required for producing culinary authenticity. Initially, South Asian restaurants in these places were serving only South Asian immigrants, mostly working-class ones - so there was no question of authenticity. This was food made by South Asians for South Asians, so the recipes were traditional with occassional tweaking based on the availability of ingredients. Authenticity was not a matter of concern in these establishments - it was more about providing affordable food to communities that was familiar. The question about authenticity really started popping up when more of these restaurants started catering to white people. Noticing an interest of white people in Indian food, restaurateurs started catering their dishes based on both what they thought white people’s notions of Indian food were and white people’s own tastes. This was more of a survival strategy for these restaurants who were less interested in authentic cultural exchanges.
Authenticity of Indian food in Britain became an important point of contestation seeing that most Indian restaurants were operated by Bangladeshis and Pakistanis who were Muslims. Elite chefs and middle and upper class Indians sought to differentiate them from these inauthentic restaurants and started to set up restaurants that focused on regional Indian cuisine, to introduce British audiences to the true flavours of India. Since these groups had the cultural capital and resources they could focus on authenticity as their main selling point. In essence, class and religion of the restaurateurs was the main factor in determining whether or not the food being served was actually authentic or not.
Authenticity and tradition in food can also be connected to maintaining traditional gender roles. With prioritizing women in the domestic sphere, labouring for hours in the kitchen to make an authentic Indian dish, the time they have available to engage in productive activity outside the home is limited. Since women are seen as the protectors of culture, their place in homme and their dedication in the kitchen is seen as essential to maintaining the authenticity of food and of culture in the diaspora.