Why bowls are rarely used in Western diets

There are several reasons why bowls are less used in Western diets, and these reasons can vary from country to country, region, and cultural background. Here are some of the common reasons:

1.Eating habits and cooking methods: Western cooking methods are mainly grilled, fried, boiled, and fried, and these cooking methods usually do not require the use of bowls.

For example, they may use plates or baking sheets to hold food, and knives, forks, or chopsticks for eating. In contrast, in the Chinese diet, foods such as rice, noodles, and soup are usually served in bowls.

2.Eating habits and eating styles: In Western food cultures, food is usually served on separate plates, and each person eats their own portion, which eliminates the need for bowls. At the same time, they are also more inclined to drink directly from a cup rather than using a bowl.

3.Shape and design of cutlery: Western cutlery is often shaped more for cutting and forking food than for serving soup or rice.

For example, Western knives are usually lighter and thinner and are suitable for cutting meat and vegetables, while Chinese knives are thicker and heavier and are suitable for cutting vegetables and meat. In addition, the diameter of the plate in Western food is usually smaller than that in Chinese food, which allows for better temperature preservation of the food.

4.Environmental considerations: Using a bowl may require more water and detergent to clean, while using a dish can reduce these consumptions. In some Western countries, such as Germany and Sweden, shallow dishes are encouraged to reduce food waste and environmental impact.

In conclusion, the reasons for the less use of bowls in Western diets are mainly related to eating habits, cooking methods, and cutlery design. Still, this doesn't mean that bowls aren't used in the Western diet in all cases. For example, when eating breakfast cereal or drinking soup, the bowl is still a common cutlery.

China invented smelting and casting pig iron technology more than 2,000 years earlier than Europe, making China more adept at cooking meals with soup, boiling boiled water, making tea, and the West was originally nomadic people, their food is mostly barbecue-based, no bowls, Europeans and Americans have maintained this tradition until now, Westerners drink water directly from tap water, not just water quality problems, but also related to customs, Chinese are used to drinking boiled water, Westerners are not used to it.

The Western diet focuses on scientific nutrition.

Due to the difference between Chinese and Western philosophical thoughts, Westerners pay attention to science in their diet, taking nutrition as the highest criterion, especially paying attention to whether the combination of nutrients in food is appropriate, whether the calorie supply is just right, and whether these nutrients can be fully absorbed by the eater, and whether there are others. The color, aroma and taste of the dish are the second-class requirements. Even in France, the leading food country in the West, although its food culture is similar to ours in many ways, when it comes to nutritional issues, the two sides are distanced.

Although French cuisine also pursues deliciousness, at the same time, it does not forget the premise of "nutrition", and they do not want to seek deliciousness at the expense of nutrition.

Western cuisine focuses on nutrition and neglects taste, at least not for the pleasure of taste. They serve cold drinks with cold drinks, and ice cubes are added to the cold wine, and the gustatory nerves distributed on the surface of the tongue are greatly lost in taste sensitivity once they are chilled, and gradually become unable to distinguish tastes. The bloody steak and white water fish, white water meat, boiled beans and boiled potatoes in white water are a little "tasteful", but they are basically not in the "Tao".

The Western diet is mostly meat, raw food, and cold food.

Contrary to China's diet of grains and vegetables, the West eats more meat and fish, and mainly uses animal raw materials. In the Western diet, meat has always been a high proportion of the diet due to the predominance of animal husbandry. In modern times, the proportion of cultivation has increased, but the amount of meat is still much higher than that of Chinese food.

Because meat is naturally delicious and can be cooked simply, it limits the development of Western cooking techniques. When Europeans show their wealth, they often use eating utensils to express themselves, and the number and luxury of utensils become the contents of particularity. In addition, most of the Western dining methods are buffets and cold buffets, and most of the meals are cold, while salad foods are basically raw foods.

Because the living habits of the two countries are different, foreigners eat with knives, forks and spoons, and put food in bowls, obviously they can't eat with knives and forks. Therefore, it is easy to cut and eat food with a knife and fork when putting it on a plate, and it may be that foreigners want a sense of ritual when eating.

Let's do it! Therefore, it is more elegant to cut and eat with a knife and fork. And it is more convenient for Chinese to eat with a bowl, because we use chopsticks, and it is very convenient for chopsticks to pick things from the round bowl. <>

Foreigners, especially the former aristocracy, had better living conditions. In addition, their diet is very different from ours。They usually eat bread and drink milk for breakfast, but without milk, they will also put the soup on a plate and dig it with a spoon to drink.

In fact, careful people can see that not all foreigners use knives and forks in a proper manner. Sometimes, if their breakfast is relatively simple, they may eat grilled sausages and vegetables sandwiched on bread and hold them in their hands, and they will not use knives and forks. <>

The eating environment of Chinese is very different from that of foreigners, we eat a variety of dishes, and the staple food is steamed bread and soup, noodles, etc., these foods are only more convenient to eat with bowls and chopsticks。If you use a knife and fork to eat a bowl of soup noodles, it is estimated that you will not be able to eat the inside of your stomach, so the use of chopsticks or knives, forks and spoons is closely related to your living habits and living environment. For example, if you eat beef abroad, they are fried whole pieces of beef and put them on a plate, which is obviously more meaningful with a knife and fork, and it is very beautiful to eat steak and drink red wine.

We eat beef with a knife and cut it into slices, which is obviously more convenient to eat with chopsticks. <>

These are all habits that have been handed down from before, and we are all used to it. So it has become a characteristic of various countries, just like foreigners don't use our chopsticks, and we don't use their knives and forks. I still hold a fork in my right hand and a knife in my left hand, and when I eat, I can't help but put down the knife and go to eat with a fork.

Because Westerners eat with knives and forks, and then use a bowl to eat, we are the people of a stable agrarian society, and it is more convenient to use a bowl for cooking for a long time.

Tableware is related to living customs, Chinese like to eat rice, everyone eats a dish together, Westerners do not like to eat rice, and each eats its own, a plate contains all the things to eat at one meal?

This is due to the difference in eating habits between the two sides, Westerners basically do not eat rice or pasta with soup, they are only used to eating steak and mashed potatoes. And we Chinese like to eat rice, but also like to eat noodle soup, which cannot be served on a plate.