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Trinidadians Eat With Their Hands - Page 2

I may give it a try and have a pile of napkins right next to me

How do you go about eating dhal with your hands? It must exist a trick just when eating doubles?

Hands With Eat Trinidadians

Well LDS_, I can't imagine anyone eating just dhal with there hands, I would assume that it would be easier to pour it in a cup and drink it, which some people do with their favorite achar, I like kutchila (grated mango pickle or other firm green fruit) or chalta (Dillenia indica or commonly Elephant apple in asia) achar myself. But any good achar can do.

Obviously there is some techinique and skill needed with eating with your hands, you always and only use your right hand since you left is considered unclean.

Dhal for instance is poured onto the rice, the rice absorbs any curry and dhal liquid adding achar and or pepper sauce for a slighly different flavor. Some people like to mix everything together and then eat it. Others perfer to grab a few different items separately. Your hands become your tool and after practice you can successfully eat with you hands with the ablity to manuver them and preciscely pick up the items you want to place in your mouth without making a mess.

In Trinidad, Guyana and many regions in India as well as the middle east people use olny their fingers tips, constructing a small ball with the rice, dhal and curry mixture and using the thumb to to push the food off into your mouth.

https://www.traveltalker.co.uk/nepal/eathands.jpg - This is a pic of a gentleman using the finger tips and thumb method.


While my Southern Indian friends use there entire palms to form a slightly larger ball and place in their mouths.

I know many who pefer not to eat with their hands but give them a plate of Bhagi (Dasheen or Tarro plant), rice and dhal and as Trini's say " they will fling away the spoon or fork" and eat with their hands.

Oh and make sure the food is not scolding hot! Even though there are some who don't mind...

Trinidadians Eat With Their Hands Caribbean / Tobago & Trinidad

Trini, thanks for such informative post.

I saw the picture and it seems a bit difficult but I am sure not that hard to master with practice, nevertheless wouldn't that ball become really sticky?

I am not the type to eat with my hands, but I did start eating curry recently with my hands after 7 years of eating Indian food. I just find it so much easier to eat it with a fork. I still eating my roti though with a fork, mainly because most of the time the chicken inside is not boneless and I do not like to be taking food out of my mouth to throw away the bones. Doubles are quite tricky, I still eating them with a fork too.

I am wondering, is it an insult to ask for utensils if you are eating curry at somebody's home?

Page 2 Hands With Eat Trinidadians

Well you should not feel like you are insulting anyone, I would have to say Trinidadians are more critical with native Trinidadians than those who are not born on the island. But you might get some stares eating roti with knife and fork.

Eating rice with your hands can be a difficult thing and yes it is sticky. My Dad and my Brother will never eat with their hands for the same reason. But Roti and doubles can be easily eaten without the use of Utensils well sometimes.

When you buy a roti at a roti shop or stand its wrapped and it can be quite difficult eating it. I am a born and Bread trini whos family had a rotishops business and I never order a roti wrapped if their is bones because, I would hate to bite down on a really hard bone. I would usually order conch or shrimp wrapped and still its messy. Since the Roti is soft and does not hold up to the liquid curry and breaks apart.

If its wrapped I would open it up and break off the ends and sopp up some curry from the middle. Thats the way I do it.

I think this is why doubles are more popular since its not as messy as the roti wrap.

LDS_ if you would like to experience eating with you hands start off with the Roti by simply seeing it as bread or a roll where you break peice off and sopp up some of the goodies (gravy and or meat) maybe the meat you can still eat with the untensils if you are not comfortable. You would have to ask the vendor to not rap it but put it in a container, that is if they will do it.

Hands With Eat Trinidadians

Thanks for the suggestions. As a matter of fact I started eating roti just like you do:

Besides the fact that I am not that thrilled about eating with my hands, when I open the roti in this way, it allows me to see how the food looks like inside.

Trinidadians Eat With Their Hands

LDS, no one expects you to eat dhal or any sort of gravy with your hands..
When eating dhal, you have to eat it with the rice. The trick is to position your hand as though youre holding a small ball at the tips of your fingers. You more or less "scoop" the food up like this. When you place it in your mouth, you "press" the food out into your mouth with your thumb (my this is getting complicated..). Two things to note:

1. the rice isnt supposed to end up in your palm. It's more of a balancing act, but you get more food holding rice in your hands than using a fork..
2. you dont actually have to place your hand in your mouth. Your thumb transfers the food there.

And I guess thats all for the art of eating rice with your hands

Its just like using chopsticks... since you have to practice on the easier things first.
It is a little messy, but again, the food does taste alot better!

Trinidadians Eat With Hands - Page 2

Well *my* dhal is not as gravy type but that's another story. *laughs*

All that? It is almost like you need a degree before getting it right. Why do you say that the food tastes a lot better this way?

Trinidadians Eat With Hands Trinidad & Tobago / Caribbean - Page 2

Cookie, its good to know that there are still sophisticated Trinidadian Women who can enjoy eating with their hands.

As a male growing up and in a Typical Indian household my mother always ate with her fingers and still does today. I though it was cool because of my uncles doing it and I wanted to be like them. Today, I still eat rice with my fingures but I don't think there is any chance of my Neice and Nephews eating with them.

LDS see you are learning very quickly pretty soon you might discover and easier way, than mine... If you do please let me know...