There’s an art to pairing food with film. It needs to be relevant and easy to enjoy – subtly enhancing the film, not distracting from it. This is why the very precise nature of current edible cinema events have never really taken off – nobody can enjoy a film while they’re following an eat-by-numbers system. It’s a great idea, just in dire need of simplifying.
So – simplify it. Grab a film you love, one or two dishes to complement it, and introduce the idea of edible cinema to your home cinematic experience. To get you started, here’s a couple suggestions:
1. The Life of Pi – Indian Food
The story of a young Indian boy trapped on a boat with a tiger seemed the perfect fit for Indian food with a strong seafood influence.
As a starter, stick with a simple mango chutney and poppadoms. It won’t help stave off scurvy, but it’s a lot more appealing than citrus fruit. Next, try a seafood curry – a king prawn bhuna, for example. Wash it down with a Tiger beer. And if you don’t feel like cooking anthing, just order from the best Indian Restaurants in your area using JUST EAT.
2. No Country for Old Men – Southern Style
A Coen Brothers criminal masterpiece set in the Deep South seems perfect for edible cinema. Nothing says 1980s Texas like good old fashioned Southern indulgence. Try the kind of southern fried menu that would make Tommy Lee Jones proud.
To begin, try corn on the cob. It’s healthy and home grown: a humble reflection of the film’s rural, agrarian opening. To follow, anything within the Tex-Mex culinary umbrella – nachos, burritos, fajitas, chili, quesadillas – whatever you can get your hands on. Finally, indulge yourself with fried chicken, because heading into the land of Dixie demands a taste for the signature dish of the American south. Wash it down with bourbon on the rocks – because, after all, it’s the Coen Brothers.
3. Shaun of the Dead – British Comfort Food
With the release of The World’s End, Edgar Wright’s Cornetto Trilogy has reached its end. But there’s no better time to look back at the film that started it all – Shaun of the Dead. For this, try something as distinctly British as the work of Simon Pegg. The kind of simple comfort food you’d want from your post-apocalyptic local pub.
Just keep it simple with a plate of fish & chips: Shaun of the Dead doesn’t suit complex food, it suits something comforting, familiar and indulgent. Throw in a Cornetto for good measure, and wash it down with a few generic lagers – artisan craft beer just doesn’t seem fitting.
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