I wish I would have offered to share it
WWWe asked for reader’s stories a about the ethnic food they brought to school as kids
SPECIAL TO THE STAR
got picked on, but you certainly would look at your food, and be like, “OK, I’ll just eat this really quickly,’ or ‘I’ll just eat it at home, and then nobody will know.” AAAnother option was to just buy some- thing t in the cafeteria. What we had was different. There was your classic PB and J, or Ham and Cheese, and just your classic sandwich. WWWe didn’t grow up eating sandwiches, and a it doesn’t really go with the “nor- mal” food. It was in a tupperware, or in used yogurt containers. It’s leftovers. YYYou didn’t make specific things for lunch, it’s whatever’s in the house, and home-cooking, we never ate out. What would you say looking back? Maybe let other people try it, and share it that way. If I saw my younger self, I’d be like, “Who cares?! Just eat it, it’ll be fine.” TTe This week we’re running the stories of ight Canadians — the lunch they brought to school as kids, what made them feel embarrassed and what they wwwould say to themselves and their parents now, in a series we’re calling Lunchbox CCConfessional. To see past stories go to thestar.com/life. t Paula Navarrete, 30, executive chef at Kojin, Momofuku, and mother Marta Mejia The lunch: Rice and beans. That’s navy beans, chili peppers, spinach, poblano peppers, tomatillo. We serve it at Kojin, aaand we still do the bacon on top, and rice if people want it. Why was it embarrassing? I never
You don’t want to have Lunchables and pizza all the time anyways.
This dish is on the menu at the restaurant, and it’s an homage to my Colombian heritage.
There’s beans on the menu, my grandma’s mashed potato cake is on the menu, because it’s inspired by my family.
I think as chefs, we all go back to what we used to like as kids.
Paula’s mom, Marta Mejia, says, “We tried to give them something natural, it’s much healthier.
“Of course they asked (for other foods), my sister would even say, “The other kids have those things.”
But we wanted them to have balanced food. It’s something that we always worried about in Colombia.” Compiled by Evelyn Kwong. Stories have been edited for clarity and length. If you’ve got a story or photo to share, use #lunchboxconfessional on Twitter, Facebook or Instagram