Food fair serves up worldwide flavor

The UTA community had the opportunity to travel the world without spending a single penny on airfare.

Twenty-three organizations participated in the International Food Fair on Tuesday as part of the 39th annual International Week. Hundreds of students sampled food from about 20 countries, including India, Nepal, Taiwan and France, said Fawaad Khan, electrical engineering graduate student and International Student Organization president.

"The event was three times as big as last year," Khan said. "If you want to try something different and see many cultures, this is the best event for involvement in culture."

Color was on full display, whether it was the various flags being proudly flown above each organization's table, the conversations taking place in various languages or the variety of food on display.

The event represents the UTA community and its diverse student body, said Satu Birch, director of international student and scholar services.

"Food is something everyone enjoys sharing and this is one good way of learning something new," Birch said. "It's really cool because so many different cultures are represented."

Students could be transported to any country they could imagine for a brief moment and then travel to the next just a few steps away. One minute they could sample beer from Germany - non-alcoholic, of course - and the next be in Taiwan sampling tea-boiled eggs. Among all the culture, food was the main attraction.

Taiwan

One of the student favorites was the tea-boiled egg from Taiwan. The country is famous for its tea and the boiled egg is a traditional dish. The flavor was that of a lightly sweet and salty hard-boiled egg, said Joe Chan, electrical engineering graduate and member of the Taiwanese Student Association.

The egg is boiled in a mixture of black tea, soy sauce, Coke and Chinese herbs until the shell cracks, signifying the egg is done.

"Several students said it looked terrible, but once they tried it, they came back for more," Khan said.

France

La Societe Francophone offered a crepe buffet with butter and sugar crepes, Nutella crepes and spinach and Swiss cheese crepes along with a variety of fruit toppings. Events such as the Food Fair can offer a look into cultures within a culture as well, said Reya Bakshi, geoinformatics senior and president of the organization.

"When I did just one five-minute round, I saw so many different regions represented from various countries like India."

India

The Indian Student Association prepared potato balls from the Bombay region of Northern India. The dish was slightly spicy with a crunchy outer shell and soft inside.

The dish is prepared by frying balls of mashed potatoes, Indian spices and chickpea flour. It was topped with a sauce made from tamarind and black salt, engineering management graduate Anirudh Sivakumar said.

They also offered a different take on bread pudding from the Hydra Bali region of Southern India by toasting the bread first, adding a slight crunch and resembling a very creamy French toast.

Nepal

Aisha Ojha, social work junior and president of the Nepalese Student Association, brought three traditional dishes for the fair.

Pokaura is made from ground beans, onions and different vegetables depending on the cook, and then fried and drizzled in Momo soup, Ojha said. Momo soup is made from chicken broth and traditional Nepalese spices.

Also served was Momo Chicken, a sour and spicy dish.

"People kept coming back for the Momo," Ojha said.

Birch said everyone loves food, but the fair represents more than just sampling food.

"It is reflective of culture," Birch said. "You get to meet people, see all of the organizations and it's one good way of learning something new."

@kenneykost

news-editor.shorthorn@uta.edu

Source: Food fair serves up worldwide flavor