26 Grandmothers Across The World And Their Signature Dishes

Bored Panda has reached out to Gabriele Galimberti, the author of the series, to find out more about it. First, we asked if the photographer noticed any commonalities among the grandmothers he met, in terms of their cooking style or approach to food. He told us: “No common ground for the approach to food or the way of cooking, each grandmother has her own style and secrets. The one thing that really connects them all is the love they use to nourish their grandchildren. That may be the true common ingredient of all of these recipes.”

We wanted to know if Gabriele had any preconceptions or stereotypes about certain cultures or cuisines before he started the project. Also, we asked if his experiences challenged or reinforced these assumptions. The photographer answered: “Honestly, when I went on my world tour (2010-2012), I admit that I knew nothing about most of the countries I was in. I had purposely chosen not to study a lot, not to inform myself, in order to have the possibility to study as much as possible in every place.”

Asked about the role he sees food and cooking play in building bridges between different cultures and promoting understanding and empathy, Galimberti answered: “Food is a fundamental element for encouraging people and cultures. In almost every country and culture in the world, many of the social and bonding moments take place around a table set with food. And almost every person in the world, when traveling to new places, has among his priorities to taste new tastes, foods never tasted before, to approach people through those moments of sociality that develop around a dinner or lunch.”

Next, we wanted to know if the photographer recalls any specific dish recipe that he found particularly challenging to prepare. Gabriele said: “For me, who was not a cooking expert at that time, every recipe was difficult to prepare... but for these grandmothers, everything seemed simple and natural. I do, however, remember a pair of recipes that were difficult to eat (simply because they were away from my tastes): iguana in the Cayman Islands, and bugs in Malawi.”

Lastly, we asked about the most memorable encounter Galimberti had during his travels while working on the “In Her Kitchen” series. The photographer told us: “Coming home to my grandmother after two years of traveling with some strange foods and ingredients unknown to her and trying to convince her to try them. It was a little like pushing her to do a piece of my journey of the world but without moving from her kitchen.... it was a lot of fun and exciting.”

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