Principles of Gastronomy: Food Markets & Food Trucks Analysis

This report delves into the principles of gastronomy, examining the role of food markets and food trucks in shaping culinary culture. It explores how these venues contribute to the aestheticisation of food and identity by providing fresh, often organic, and traditional food items. The report highlights the significance of farmer's markets in offering authentic culinary experiences through local and national food items, and the symbolization value of their settings. It then analyzes food trucks as integral parts of the food experience, emphasizing their provision of comfort food made with fresh ingredients and their connection to culinary heritage. The report uses examples from various countries to illustrate how food trucks and markets uphold and rejuvenate culinary traditions. References to academic papers support the analysis, providing a comprehensive understanding of the subject.

Running head: PRINCIPLES OF GASTRONOMY
Principles of Gastronomy
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1PRINCIPLES OF GASTRONOMY
Food Market
The food markets are an important part of the gastronomical experience. The food
markets sell everyday fresh produces as well as semi processed food. Sites like this provide
local as well as national food items. This site represents all the elements of food and identity.
As they provide fresh and organic food they are appealing to the senses of the spectators thus
fulfilling the Aestheticisation of the food and identity aspect (Aucoin and Fry 2015). The
products that they offer often include many items that are traditional and parts of age old
practiced recipes. They remind people of the age old times. Items like finger pepper, emu and
kangaroo meat are available in the Australian farmer markets. They are traditional authentic
ingredients of Australian cuisine and give the buyers a sense of authentic culinary experience.
In markets of Singapore, one can get fruits like Durian that cannot be found in many places.
Moreover, the setting is also like the old markets that add to the symbolization value.
Image 1: farmer’s market in Singapore countryside

2PRINCIPLES OF GASTRONOMY
Source: Google Images
The farmer markets have fermented, smoked and curated items that are mostly
traditional recipes of the native culture. Local people bring those items for sale and the buyers
are acquainted with food categories that purely local (Spilková, Fendrychová and
Syrovátková 2013). For example, Japanese cuisine use different types of yellow and red bean
paste that taste best if bought from the local markets. Many items that are sold in the farmer
markets are made for centuries. The recipes have become family heirlooms and the makers
have inherited them by generation. These kinds of recipes create not only authenticity value
but also rejuvenation of the culinary heritage of the place.
Food trucks
Food Trucks are also an important part of culinary culture of a place. Food trucks
generally serve local authentic dishes as well as national and sometimes global food items
with a local fusion. Earlier, food trucks only served local street food while in recent times
they are an integral part of the food experience. These food trucks represent all the aspects of
food and identity. The food that they serve is all comfort food items and prepared with care.
They use local fresh ingredients and almost no leftover is used. This engages the senses of the
people and thus fulfill the aesthetic value (Martin 2014). These food trucks, though evolved
to a much modern version have their roots in the age old pie carts or hand drawn carts of old
times. It reminds people of simpler times and with the recipes being close to home and a
comfort value, provides and experience that is authentic.

3PRINCIPLES OF GASTRONOMY
Image 2: food truck serving authentic Caribbean food
Source: Google images
The menus that these trucks sell are prepared with local ingredient. As the motto is to
provide home-cooked food, it needs to have the symbolic presence of certain ingredient for it
to become the symbolic representation of the culinary culture of the locality. They also
uphold the culinary heritage of the place as the recipes are generally changing and part of the
native food menu. The menu style is hand written and changes periodically. The focus
remains on providing fresh food and thus the menu changes according to season and
ingredient availability in the market (Esparza, Walker and Rossman 2014). For example, food
trucks in America sells fast food and ice-creams, in Cuba, it is Cuban Sandwiches and in
Australia, poultry, coffee and traditional food items are popular.

4PRINCIPLES OF GASTRONOMY
References
Aucoin, M. and Fry, M., 2015. Growing Local Food Movements: Farmers' Markets as Nodes
for Products and Community. Geographical Bulletin, 56(2).
Spilková, J., Fendrychová, L. and Syrovátková, M., 2013. Farmers’ markets in Prague: a new
challenge within the urban shoppingscape. Agriculture and human values, 30(2), pp.179-191.
Martin, N., 2014. Food fight! Immigrant Street Vendors, Gourmet Food Trucks and the
Differential Valuation of Creative Producers in C hicago. International Journal of Urban and
Regional Research, 38(5), pp.1867-1883.
Esparza, N., Walker, E.T. and Rossman, G., 2014. Trade associations and the legitimation of
entrepreneurial movements: Collective action in the emerging gourmet food truck
industry. Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 43(2_suppl), pp.143S-162S.