My friend asked me two months ago if I missed Finnish food. I said I don’t, because the food culture in western countries is basically the same. Our meat is usually chicken, pork or bovine and we also eat seafood a lot. We eat a lot of carbohydrates, for example pasta, bread and other wheat products. But what is different from other food cultures is that in Finland we love rye bread. In Finland, it’s more common to buy rye bread than it is to eat white or multigrain bread. Rye bread is healthier for the heart than white or wheat. The taste of the bread is a little bit stronger than white bread and it tastes good! That’s why I was happy when my friend came to visit me and brought rye bread with her. Taste is little bit more bitter than in white bread, but even though the delight tastes fresh.
The food I have eaten on my trip has been yummy and beyond. In Finland we don’t have as much Mexican food, so it has been delicious opportunity to try different tacos, salsas, soups and fish dishes. The fish plate that I had in Puerto Vallarta was delicious and scary at the same time. Waiter, there’s a whole grilled fish head on my plate! With eyes!
On St. Patrick’s Day we tried Russian food at the downtown restaurant Pushkin. Because Russia is Finland’s neighbor country, I’m used to Russian tastes and aromas. Summer squash rolls filled with sour cream, onion, garlic and spices were perfect choice and the coconut tea was the highlight of the meal. In San Diego you have so many food cultures in different restaurants that you can eat in different continent every day.
Have a great meal! (I’m Hanna Laukkanen, a 26-year-old journalist, who moved from Finland to San Diego for an internship in San Diego Community Newspaper Group. In this blog I will compare Finnish and American lifestyles and try to find out a lot more about the Californian way of living. Please send me feedback at [email protected].)