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Reflecting on the Pandemic’s Impact on Our Culinary Habits

Five years ago today, I embarked on a new job while situated in my parents’ kitchen. My siblings and I, all in the early stages of adulthood — my brother studying medicine and my sister engaged in her undergraduate studies — found ourselves working together at the family dining table, reminiscent of our school days.

The initial days of the COVID-19 lockdown in March 2020 likely felt similar for many, yet each person’s journey was uniquely colored by their circumstances. While I shared a sense of anxiety and uncertainty, I wasn’t faced with the profound loss that so many experienced as the virus touched their lives.

As we reach the five-year mark of the pandemic’s onset, it’s essential to pause for both remembrance and reflection. It’s an occasion to express gratitude to first responders who worked tirelessly during those intense weeks and to honor those who succumbed to COVID or suffer enduring health issues as a result. Beyond that, it’s a moment to cherish the small sources of hope that emerged amidst the turmoil, highlighting how, even in grief, individuals found unexpected joy in new connections and activities.

During the weeks I spent at my parents’ home, prior to settling back into my own space in New York, I discovered the depths of my boredom. I acknowledge my experience was far less severe compared to others, and this boredom gave way to unexpected social interactions.

I reached out to old friends via FaceTime, crafted cocktails with my family as if we were at a fancy bar, and binge-watched Tiger King, engaging in lively discussions about Joe Exotic. Additionally, I became enamored with baking banana bread.

Has there ever been a time when individuals across the United States rallied around similar culinary projects like during those early lockdowns? While food trends continue to evolve (remember the Dubai chocolate bar?), the pandemic sparked a nation-wide movement of home cooks united in preparing the same recipes from their kitchens like never before.

The need to cook at home, due to the closure of restaurants, was a driving factor. For many, the uncertainty of jobs and economic stability heightened concerns about food security. Preparing meals at home was not only more economical but also a critical coping mechanism. I recognize the privilege I had in sourcing ingredients and working from home during this time, allowing me to delve deeply into the food cultures that unfolded.

The dishes that gained immense popularity during this period transcended visual appeal or a bid for social media recognition. Instead, they heralded the essence of cooking as a therapeutic experience. We were drawn into labor-intensive projects, like the widespread craze of sourdough baking that seemingly took hold of the nation.

As home bakers became more engaged, grocery stores quickly ushered in reports of yeast shortages, prompting bakers to create their own sourdough starters, sidestepping the scarcity of commercially available yeast. With endless time at our disposal, nurturing a sourdough starter became an enticing challenge.

Inevitably, there emerged a flour shortage as well, driven by the combined baking enthusiasm for sourdough and its more accessible counterpart, banana bread. Making a loaf of banana bread might not demand much time, yet for those inexperienced in baking, it represented a delightful challenge. After all, it requires ripe bananas to develop that signature flavor!

Banana bread evokes comforting memories. When I was in college, my grandmother would send me her homemade banana bread in Tupperware, a heartwarming reminder of home during stressful final exams. Perhaps we collectively sought similar comforts through our kitchen experiments in the turbulent days of lockdown.

In April 2020, renowned chef and author Samin Nosrat, known for her work on Salt Fat Acid Heat, initiated a virtual gathering by inviting everyone online to participate in creating lasagna during an all-day Instagram Live session. In an essay for The New York Times, she urged people yearning for a shared experience to prepare her lovingly crafted dish, “The Big Lasagna.”

Nosrat dedicated herself to a traditional approach, suggesting that while store-bought noodles were an option, she preferred to make everything from scratch. The result? A dish that typically serves around eight to twelve individuals — indeed, a substantial lasagna.

This cooking endeavor not only offered a meaningful distraction but also highlighted our profound yearning for the communal experience of sharing meals during such isolating times.

Such collective cooking efforts represented just a fraction of our coping mechanisms amidst 2020’s overwhelming landscape, yet they also reveal valuable lessons that resonate even now.

Sometimes, dedicating time to create a dish solely for your enjoyment holds immense value. You don’t need to arrange a fancy dinner or transform your kitchen into a bakery to indulge in making fresh pasta or experimenting with bread baking. Do it for yourself, whether for the thrill of trying something new or simply the desire to spend a day crafting lasagna.

Our collective experiences around cooking and feeding one another — even from a distance — remind us of a profound truth: food is a source of comfort. While many of us undoubtedly recognize the ability of a good meal to bring solace, it was emphatically reinforced during that period of intense stress.

We prepare meals to support those in grief, extend invitations after breakups, and during a global pandemic, we united in baking an extraordinary amount of banana bread.

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