What makes a picky eater?

I wonder what makes some people picky eaters and others more adventurous.

I assume it starts from childhood.

I always loved to eat, and ate everything. I can't remember not liking anything new. Most of my childhood memories are based on food. I remember people through food. Like my aunt in Amritsar with whom I spent many summers - made the best parathas (flat skillet bread). Our next door neighbor made the most delicious pooris (fried puffy bread) and different vegetables on a lot of religious holidays. Our upstairs neighbor's daughter made the best tomato chutney.

When I was 9 years old we traveled to England, and then Holland and Germany for about 3 months each. In Holland we were staying with a Dutch family who made Dutch food everyday. My mother was concerned for me that I might start acting up and missing food that I was used to after a couple of days when the novelty wore off.
That day never came. I looked forward to meal time everyday. Even the simplest meals that they ate daily were things that I had never seen in my entire life. But I loved it. I found nothing weird or strange.

Keep in mind this was the seventies when India, where I grew up was a very different India from today. We had almost no access to western media. Other than a couple of American or British movies I may have watched in my 9 years of life. I had no cookbooks nor had I ever seen a food magazine. I had no idea what a pot roast was, or a herring or gouda cheese. I had probably never even seen a chicken breast in my life since we always cut up the chicken to make curry.

In Germany while staying with my uncle and his Dutch wife I was first introduced to fondue. I just loved it. A concept that couldn't be more foreign to me-but I just loved it. I was thrilled to be sitting at the table with our special wooden plates in front of us with different sauces. There were a few mayonnaise based sauces and probably horseradish and mustard sauces. In the middle of the table was a pot of bubbling hot oil. I was instructed by my aunt to take a piece of the raw meat (probably beef or pork chunks) and carefully set it in the pot. Each skewer had a different colored top and that told us who it belonged to. I waited patiently while my meat cooked. I don't remember how I knew when it was cooked. I am sure my aunt showed me the first couple and then somehow I must have figured it out.
Then I removed the meat from the oil and dipped it in those delicious sauces and then ... heaven. The hot crunchy meat with the cool creamy sauces-couldn't be any more delicious.

As I write this I think of the average dinner table today with a 9 year old and 2 others (I had younger cousins - probably 6 and 4 at the time). Most parents today would freak out about hot oil on the dining table. And some may have an issue with deep fried meat - I don't know. All I know is that I learned so much from those type of dining experiences.

I learned about a totally new food - in fact a totally new concept of food.

I learned to be careful around hot oil.
With the presence of hot oil we were expected to behave a certain way, like no fidgeting and no sudden moves.

I think those are excellent life lessons that come in handy in a countless number of ways through out my adult life.

Also, none of us kids ever got preferential treatment or special food made for us in Germany, Holland or when I was back home in India.

Kid cuisine is such an American thing. And it is a terrible thing in my opinion. I may have answered the question I set out asking - what makes picky eaters?

One reason is too many options, or maybe not enough. Spaghetti, Chicken Fingers and French Fries? What's that? There are a million other foods that exist.

Too much drama around food. I've seen parents hold their breath, "Will Billy eat the peas? I am going to hide the carrots in the muffin."

I think that is ridiculous.

Growing up we had no kid food. And on most days we had no say in what was for dinner or what we got to take for school lunch. We all ate what was put in front of us.

And no, this didn't make us feel deprived, abused or un-loved.

On special occasions of course, we were asked what we wanted and then that made the treat all the more special.

I know I don't have kids, but I was one - once upon a time. And I grew up with plenty of cousins. I just didn't see parents getting all bent out of shape like they do today about what we would eat. We ate what was there.

I am grateful for that.

I am sure I was a tad unusual for liking new food as much as I did. But it was also the attitude that we were taught - and that is, that different people eat different foods. We should be thankful when we eat, and we eat what is put in front of us.

The nervous energy that parents display when it comes to feeding their kids today is picked up on by the child and manifests itself in all sorts of ways.

Just feed your kids what you are eating yourself - as long it isn't a bag of Doritos and a pint of ice cream.

What kind of food did you eat growing up?
Are you a picky eater or do you embrace most foods?
What approach do you take when feeding your kids?

Agree with me. Disagree with me. I don't mind.

Until I eat again!