Panda-monium!

Recipe of the Week: Bok Choy with Ginger

Yesterday, at lunch, I was hungry after a grueling math lecture, and needed something filling. So, upon informing my friends of this, we sped off to Panda Express, a fast food joint that serves Chinese dishes. But as I looked through the glass that covered, at the Orange Chicken, the Krispy Shrimp, and the Beijing Beef, I wondered if this food was really representative of traditional Chinese cuisine. Almost everything here seemed deep fried, seemed unnatural, seemed American.

Now I am not one rat on fast food, trust me, I eat it all the time. But something about this lunch at Panda Express stuck out to me. It was labelled as 'Chinese food,' but seemed American enough to me.

Upon minor research, I discovered that Panda Express was in fact not how people in China eat regularly, and no, they don't constantly eat the deep fried Orange Chicken I had craved for lunch. But this begs a deeper question: what does this scenario represent?

The traditions and customs of another country were brought to America, and were adapted to fit its needs and demands. Americans wanted deep fried meat rather than rice dishes, and that is what they got. Americans want fast, easy, and cheap, and that is just what Panda Express has turned Chinese food into. Panda Express shows us the epitome of Americanization.

This may seem like an awful thing, but I don't view it that way. I wasn't going to Panda Express that day to experience traditional Chinese dishes and culture, and I don't think other people do either. I wasn't expecting food from China, I was expecting my normal, deep fried Orange Chicken. As long as people don't go into Taco Bell believing it is just like real Mexican food or Sbarro believing it is Italian food, this Americanization does no harm. It is only when one's expectations change, when they truly believe that are experiencing another culture, that problems can occur.

So go ahead and order the Sweet and Sour Chicken, but know where it comes from, and what it really represents.

Peace out, and rock on.