“A group or family or community that eats together grows closer,” says Catherine, an international grad student from Ghana.
Catherine is one of four students whose Taste of Home submissions were chosen to be featured in La Piazza inside the McMaster University Student Centre from November 25 to 29.
As part of the initiative, international and exchange students and the McMaster alumni community were invited to share their favourite recipes that remind them of home.
After a vote by McMaster community members, four dishes were selected to be featured as part of the Taste of Home menu.
Catherine, an international grad student from Ghana, is one of four students whose Taste of Home submissions were chosen to be featured in La Piazza from November 25 to 29. Photo credit: Christian Braun/McMaster University
Catherine’s dish, Jollof rice and chicken with fried plantain and salad, brings a sense of connection to her home country of Ghana. “I have been missing home a lot, so this gives me an opportunity to express myself through [my home country’s] food and also share it with others.”
Another participant, Achille, was inspired to participate in Taste of Home after seeing last year’s participants include a peer from his home country of France.
His dish, lasagna Bolognese, while not culturally French, is inspired by memories of his mother’s cooking.
“It’s just a dish that I’ve been cooking pretty much my whole life. My mom used to cook it. I think it’s delicious. I think comfort food works for every season.”
The other two dishes include braised pork with sweet brown sauce from Hong Kong, submitted by Yuqian, an international graduate student, and rajma chawal from India, submitted by Kashish, an international undergraduate student.
Collectively, the culinary items on offer through this initiative help to cultivate a diverse community, says Chef John Barreda, Hospitality Services.
“Through initiatives like Taste of Home, we get to invite our international and exchange students, with all of their unique experiences and perspectives, to enrich our university community while also making it feel a little bit more like home,” says Gisela Oliveira, Associate Director, Career Development, Global Mobility and International Student Success.
Students and community members have the opportunity to try Taste of Home Dishes in La Piazza until November 29.
Taste of Home is a partnership with McMaster Hospitality Services and the Student Success Centre and is part of McMaster’s Holiday Market.
(Left) Achille and Chef John Barreda after cooking lasagna bolognese together. (Right) Some lucky students get to taste the dishes offered as part of the Taste of Home initiative. (Photo credit: Gayathri Nunna)