Opinion Ranking cuisines, ranking cultures

There are two ways in which to respond to the recent “best cuisine” rankings released by Taste Atlas, the global food catalogue and review website. The first is emotional: One could react with pride or anger, depending on where one’s country is placed. Many Indian social media users, for example, see India’s high rank — at No. 5, below Italy, Greece, Spain and Japan — as a validation of the country’s rich culinary traditions. Users from several African, Caribbean and Asian nations, on the other hand, are outraged to find their cuisines either ranked very low, or below “inferior cuisines” (“you know it’s wrong when ‘fish and chips’ cuisine makes the top 30” one user posted).

The other way to respond to such a list is to laugh it off, recognising it for what it is: Attention bait that is based on user reviews and not one that is drawn up by a jury of experts. It is easy to spot its shortcomings: How is it possible for the top three spots to go to European countries? And how can a single Caribbean or African nation — with some of the most exciting food in the world — not feature in the top 20? What is obvious here is a certain “global hierarchy of tastes” as described by food studies scholar Krishnendu Ray.

Advertisement

Beyond the ranks themselves, this list, and another one which ranks the world’s best dishes, offer something richer, if only one looks beyond the obvious. For example, Japanese kare is ranked as the world’s best dish, but this temporary status is unremarkable in comparison to the fascinating story of this preparation, which is based on Indian curry and was developed under British influence in Japan during the Meiji period. It tells so many stories about the history of three different nations and their cultures. Simply put, it is folly to imagine that the value of any food or cuisine can ever be expressed by a mere ranking.