Preparing a Meal

The first step I took when preparing my meal was going to Gordon Commons and purchasing food items from Ed’s. There weren’t many options when it came to making a meal from scratch, so I decided to make a turkey sandwich. I gathered a loaf of bread, Oscar Meyer oven roasted turkey breast, and Wisconsin’s Finest medium cheddar cheese. With these items, I went back to my room and made a sandwich. I first took out two slices of bread, then put three slices of turkey on the bread, and topped that off with a slice of cheddar cheese. I made these sandwiches for my roommate and I. When the sandwiches were finished I disposed of the paper plates and napkins and put the leftover food items in the refrigerator. Although the steps to preparing and eating this meal weren’t difficult, it took more time and effort to prepare it myself rather than going into the cafeteria and eating food already made. But at least by preparing the meal myself, I knew exactly what it contained and where it had been.

I agree with the statements Pollan makes about the events that led up to American acceptance of food. A long time ago, it was considered a good thing to be a little heavier—having some meat on your bones was a sign of wealth and power. People savored every last bite of food. Now, we are embarrassed to eat a lot. As Pollan says, “energy has gone into helping us keep all such animal appetites under control” (page 55). In addition to this, one problem we have as Americans is the abundance of food. There is so much food conveniently located everywhere that we don’t even appreciate it. Fewer meals are made from scratch with natural and organic ingredients. An increasing amount of meals are now pre-prepared or taken out from restaurants and brought back home. This is similar to having to make my own meal—it would have been much more convenient to microwave something already made. The preparation was quite difficult given a lack of choice in organic foods to choose from.