Scooping up baba ganoush with a hand-held strip of pitta, or using fingertips to mix rice and curry are second nature to people from several nationalities, for whom hands are made to hold food.
Eating with the hands is baked into the culinary history of myriad cultures around the world, deeply entrenched in their relationship with dishes that have been passed down through generations. In parts of the Middle East, India, Southeast Asia and Africa, eating with the hands comes naturally, incorporating touch and texture into the dining experience.
In other parts of the world, it is the cuisine rather than the prevailing culture that begets the use of fingers and thumbs over knife and fork. Think South American barbecue, Mexican burritos, British Cornish pasties, American cheeseburgers, sandwiches, tacos, pizza … the list goes on.
“Eating with hands carries traditional significance as well as fostering a deeper connection with the food and its preparation,” says Dr Pamela Chrabieh, co-founder and managing director of Lebanon-based Kulturnest. “It's a sentiment shared across many cultures in the Southwest Asia and North Africa regions.”
Embracing tradition, enhancing flavour
Connecting to the texture and feel of food is the ethos behind chef Ross Shonhan’s Hands On summer menu, available at his restaurant Netsu at the Mandarin Oriental Jumeira, Dubai until the end of August.
co-founder and MD, Kulturnest
The buzzy Japanese steakhouse, which has been serving up fusion food since it opened in 2019, recently launched a 10-dish menu – featuring warayaki Japanese oysters, seasonal vegetable kakiage and Wagyu kushiyaki among others – as a way, Shonhan says, to “reconnect with tradition”.
“Long before chopsticks became synonymous with Japanese dining, using hands was a natural part of eating, just as it was in many cultures around the world,” he says. “By embracing this tradition, we pay homage to a time-honoured way of enjoying meals that emphasises simplicity.
“The aim is to invite guests to experience a menu using only their hands, offering a simple yet profound way to enjoy food and bringing people closer to the essence of dining.”
Rudimentary cutlery has existed for as long as there have been sticks – later sharpened to knives – but eating with the hands retains a feeling of traditional instinctiveness. Fast-forward through the millennia and certain cultures reached a fork (pun intended) in the road when it came to dining with the hands, which is evident to date.
In western cuisine, eating with the hands is usually reserved for finger foods, canapes and cocktail party morsels that are picked up and popped into the mouth to be consumed in one bite. Or hand-held foods to be eaten on the go as opposed to a sit-down meal.
“Many aspects of Japanese cuisine are meant to be enjoyed with your hands, especially Edomae sushi, where each nigiri should be eaten by hand as soon as the chef presents it,” says Shonhan.
“This menu encourages discussions about the cultural differences between Japan and other parts of the world. In Japan, you can have the finest dining experiences, including multi-Michelin-starred restaurants, at places that specialise in items such as yakitori, kushi katsu or sushi, and enjoy your entire meal with your hands. It is not purely a casual style in Japan, and that is the story we want to share.”
Communal and cultural
Eating using your hands was and remains an easier way to connect with food, not just on an enjoyable level, but on a practical one too.
Using fingertips allows the diner to test the heat of food and to more easily create chewable portion sizes without the barrier of a utensil between dish and mouth.
In the Middle East, mezze dishes encourage diners to dive in with their fingers, while in many African countries, flatbreads, rice and grains are used in lieu of a spoon to soak up stews, curries and soups, all hand-held, of course.
“In Muslim cultures, eating with the right hand is a Sunnah, a practice based on the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad,” says Dr Chrabieh. “Similarly, Hindu and Sikh cultures link eating with hands to spiritual beliefs.
“Communal meals, where people share a central platter, emphasise community and togetherness. Moreover, the act of using hands to eat can be a form of respect and gratitude towards the food and those who prepared it, acknowledging the labour and love involved.
“In some cultures, using the right hand for eating also incorporates cultural etiquette and hygiene practices.”
While the origins of the modern burrito are contested, corn tortillas were used in Mexico as far back as 1500BC, as a way to wrap and transport food that could be eaten on the go or while working in the fields.
In Europe, references to the hand-held pasty date back to the 13th century, with the well-known Cornish pasty favoured by miners for its ability to be eaten with the hands and for its dense pastry, which kept the meat and vegetable filling warm.
Health and spiritual benefits of eating with hands
Ayurveda, the traditional system of medicine in India, has long fostered a connection between spirituality and eating with the hands.
According to the practice, the fingers and thumb are each associated with the five elements of earth, fire, water, air and ether, meaning hands-on eating creates a direct correlation between the self and the elements.
“Eating with hands offers several health benefits, too,” says Dr Chrabieh. “It encourages a slower, more mindful approach to eating, which improves digestion and overall enjoyment of food. Direct contact with food can enhance the appreciation of flavours, especially in cuisines rich in spices and oils.”
Of new generations discovering this style of eating, she says: “Embracing traditional practices in contemporary settings can foster a sense of identity and continuity within communities, enforcing cultural connections in a technology-driven world.
“By embracing both traditional and modern perspectives on eating with hands, individuals can enjoy a richer, more holistic dining experience that connects them to their own or another's food, culture and community in meaningful ways.”
The Hand’s On summer menu at Netsu is available until August 31 and priced at Dh350 per person, www.mandarinoriental.com
