The Foodies Spectrum

There are over six billion people on earth, and every single person is unique. Sure, some people may look the same or be genetically identical, but they have different thoughts, different dreams, different desires and aspirations. Because of this fundamental property of human beings it is reasonable that people enjoy different things. These things that capture our attention and continue to interest us day after day can be anything from puzzles to the great outdoors to the boundaries of outer space and beyond. However, money can sometimes limit the extent people can enjoy their hobbies or interests. People who enjoy food also known as foodies are a great example of how limitations and hobbies can coexist. Foodies are limited to the things they can buy because of money and sometimes how much time they can spend preparing their food, but this does not mean they still cannot enjoy food. Instead these limitations dictate the way they go about enjoying their favorite foods and not preventing them from being a foodie all together.

A foodie economist may tell you that a trip to your local supermarket is an easy way to observe the condition of the economy. When money is tight there are more sales and cheaper foods on the store shelves. In times of prosperity there are a greater variety of premium foods to choose from and more free samples to munch on while shopping. For foodies the supermarket is the starting line for an amazing gastronomic adventure. The economic situation at home can dictate what a person can buy. Foodies who are in college find themselves in a very tight economical situation very often. With little cash and almost no time, college foodies want something that is cheap, quick and filling to eat. This equation doesn’t always equal microwavable TV dinners and fast food. Although, occasionally time becomes a bigger priority and fast food and microwave food is the answer, but this doesn’t make someone less of a foodie. When time isn’t a priority there are other foods that fit the bill. For example sandwiches and soups are very popular among the college foodies. On the weekends when college foodies have more free time they could prepare sandwiches and mix their favorite soups together and store them in the refrigerator so that when they are in a hurry they can have a meal ready in a jiffy. This and numerous other meals are just some of the possibilities of meals that a person could make when under certain limitations.

Of course if you told Alton Brown from the show Good Eats, who caters to the more involved foodies, that you were eating premade sandwiches and soup out of your refrigerator he may not approve. But if you told Rachael Ray from 30 minute meals the same thing you told Alton Brown she would probably be more understanding. Foodies, just like politicians, have their extreme lefts and rights. Some foodies will state that you can’t be considered a foodie without pouring numerous hours and plenty of money into food. What this argument implies goes against some of the fundamentals of what a foodie is. A foodie is a person who is interested in food and enjoys eating it. It is true that some of the best food in the world is prepared by some of the greatest chefs and costs a pretty penny, but that doesn’t mean that anything less is not enjoyable or interesting. However there are some things in this statement that are useful to analyze.

Food has a cost. It would be naive to state that every single person in the world is eligible to be a foodie and money does not play a role in socioeconomics. This is because not everyone is able to eat food. People die every day because of starvation. It would be a stretch to consider someone a foodie if they were unable to get any food. So there is a minimum cost to being a foodie in monetary terms. But, for all intensive purposes the cost is very minimal and it is safe to assume that the majority of the population has the ability to get food.

Time is another cost of being a foodie. There is a famous saying that “there are never enough hours in the day”, however for some reason we always make time for things we love. Foodies are no exception. Even when under time constraints foodies find ways to make sure that they can get in some cooking action. Now this isn’t to say that every meal of every day is going to be handmade and cooked to perfection, but that every once in a while you can engage in a food adventure and cook something new or learn about something interesting. The idea that a foodie is always cooking their own meals and that they can never really cook a short meal is a gross exaggeration of what a foodie really is.

The important part of being a foodie is enjoying the food you eat. How do you know when you enjoy eating food, especially when it is a necessity? At first it may seem difficult to generalize what qualifies this emotion in terms, but if you analyze the behavior of a person it is easier. For example a person who goes out of their way to cook and prepare a meal would defiantly be considered a foodie because you wouldn’t invest so much time in something you could do faster if you didn’t enjoy it. The “Alton Browns” of the food world would be a good example of this behavior, because these types of people will travel to great lengths to get fresh ingredients and make sure there dishes can be the best money can buy. In general terms these people would probably be societies “upper-class” who have the resources and time to invest in cooking. A quick look at these foodies kitchen would reveal lots of fancy cooking tools and gadgets that even Albert Einstein couldn’t figure out. Being a foodie for these people is usually pretty easy and there is not a lot of compromise when it comes to the dinner table.

Then you have the “Rachael Rays” who want to provide a good meal in the quickest possible way and are usually on a budget. These people would be societies “middle or working-class”. This group of foodies is often very creative in the way they approach cooking. Just like the college foodies sometimes they need quick meals. When they are in hurry they usually buy premade ingredients or mixes to help prepare meals quicker. But don’t think that these meals would be lacking in creativity. Some of the dishes like Rachel Rays Italian Grilled Cheese are a multicultural fusion of flavors that are quick and cheap to make. Unlink the” Alton Browns”, usually buying more expensive meals such as steak or specialty dishes that require expensive ingredients are less common and are only prepared on special occasions, and when they are they are just as creative and tasteful as their more frugal counterparts.

Then you have the light foodies. These foodies don’t belong in one economic category or the other; in fact these foodies are composed of a good mixture of different social classes. The light foodies are people who just occasionally try take a stab at something new in the culinary arena when things get dull in the kitchen. People who are looking to impress a certain someone or just looking for a recipe they saw on TV. These people are not consistent in their food interests but enjoy a new recipe every now and then.

Regardless of the economic status of a foodie, they are always finding new and creative ways of cooking. Their creativity is not restricted to the home either. In today’s pop culture foodies have established themselves as a powerful source on the television. With a wide variety of cooking shows ranging from wild cook-off style competitions like Iron Chef to the old style cooking shows like Julia Child. Foodies are becoming more connected in the digital world and people are starting to take notice. Popular websites like YouTube and TV channels like Food Network are inspiring more people to take a shot at making new and interesting food creations. And the media are not the only ones getting in on the action, a look around your closest shopping mall will reveal an increase in branded cooking tools and gadgets. Even supermarkets are starting to have cooking classes like the Kroger in Alpharetta, Georgia.

The great part about foodies is that they don’t always have to be professional chefs or people who have every exotic food from the ends of the earth. Foodies don’t have to have lots of money or have the latest kitchen equipment. Foodies just have to enjoy food not just because it is a necessity, but because they enjoy the sensation their taste buds produce. While cost does dictate how they get to their final goal of taste bud bliss, at the end of the day they are all just people with an interest in food.