Dumpster Diving

A couple days ago, I have learned about the importance of dumpster diving in class. Before, I have never really thought about digging in a dumpster for food. Doing a little research, I have learned that dumpster diving has gotten very popular, and is "considered a great resource by many people" as stated by www.allthingsfrugal.com. From both this website and from our guest speaker David Giles, I have learned that we live in a time of excess and waste, and that we should not look down on those who find a way to use that "waste".

I have never gone dumpster diving and I have never had the urge to go jumping into dumpsters either. The idea of dumpster diving had always disgusted me, however, after learning about how approximately 20% of the world's food produced end up in the dumpster, I started feeling wasteful. David Giles's speech has motivated me into trying to avoid wasting food. In my mind, I have always wanted to give food out to the homeless but I have never actually done it, knowing that perfectly good food goes into the waste I have realized the importance of soup kitchens and overall the action of dumpster diving.

Kimchi

Kimchi, Korea's best known food. It is known for being very nutritious with a unique taste. It is served at almost every meal and few people can go without it before they get cravings. Ever since I was a child, I have always watched my mom our kimchi. My mom's homemade kimchi is to me, the very best kimchi. Store bought kimchi and restaurant served kimchi will always be inferior. For me, I am one of those people who gets cravings for kimchi frequently, now that I am living in the dorms, I get huge cravings. Unfortunatley, kimchi does not smell very pleasant and bringing it to a dorm will most certainly bring complaints, especially from my roommates. Due to this, I look forward to going home just because I want my kimchi and rice.

As a kid, eating kimchi has made me love almost every kinds of food. Kimchi is the main reason why I have a very open diet. My love for kimchi has made me love almost all vegetables, there are very few vegetables that I do not like, a big reason is because there are over 100 varieties of kimchi. Kimchi can be made out of almost every vegetables and while I have obviously not eaten every variety of kimchi, I have still consumed an abundant amount in my life.

Kimchi is not just a Korean favorite too, kimchi has been gradually catching the interest of many foreigners. Many enjoy the health benefits or just enjoy the unique taste. Online, there are many fan websites about kimchi with thousands of members. Either way, kimchi is slowly growing popularity in other countries besides Korea. While it is an acquired taste, those who start eating it will start loving it and will be rewarded from its many health benefits.

*Ramen*

Everybody eats it, everybody loves it, and it is the fastest and easiest thing to make. You often hear people talk about how they start living off of ramen due to the cheap price and the convenience. In fact, it can be called the perfect dorm food. Now that I have started college and started living in a dorm, I feel that ramen will be a staple in my diet. While it is hardly considered health food, it serves it's purpose and fills me up. Whether it is the instant cup variation or the one that is cooked in a pan, each will only take about 5 minutes to cook, which sure beats Rachael Ray's, 30 Minute Meals.

As a kid, I often indulged in ramen noodles. My favorite kind has always been the Asian variety, more specifically, Shin Ramen. Fortunately, there are many different flavors of ramen noodle so everybody can find a favorite. Along with flavor, there are hundreds of different ways to prepare it and to customize it, everybody has a favorite way to eat their ramen. Some people might enjoy adding an egg or some vegetables, I know several people that enjoy adding American cheese. Either way, ramen is enjoyed by many people, but it seems especially important to college students since most don't have money to spend on for food.
Just in case, here are directions for ramen:

Ingredients
Water
1 package ramen

Optional
1 egg

Directions
Bring water to boil in a pot, when the water starts boiling, add the noodles and the veggies that come with it. After about 2 minutes, add the soup base. Then add the optional egg and cook for another minute. Voila! The ramen is done, after eating the noodles you can add rice and