love via cut fruit & other stories from growing up as an Asian American
this post is brought to you by Tuo Cutlery.
there are many things I took for granted while growing up. having freshly cut fruit readily available was one of them.
Asian parents, at least in my experience, rarely say “I love you.” instead, their love is shown in a million different actions: careful hovering over you while you do your homework, driving you to school and swim practice and everything in between, teaching you how to carefully fold dumpling wrappers so that they don’t fall apart, and peeling and cutting more fresh fruit than you could ever eat.
fruit after dinner, fruit while doing homework as an afternoon snack, fruit for breakfast, for lunch…
they love you, in my experience, by taking care of you. by providing for you. by having high expectations of you.
our childhood shapes who were are, shapes the way we experience life as adults, and while there are things from childhood I’m still working through (maybe will always be working through), I can truthfully say that I no longer take my parents and their work, their love, for granted.
now, every time I cut fruit or make a dish my parents used to make for me, I feel their love a little more.
I didn’t start to really peel fruit until… well, now. me, a new 25-year-old, started by peeling an apple. little did I know that using a special knife (i.e. a paring knife) made things immensely easier (though I still did struggle a bit).
this is where Tuo Cultery comes in — they sent me a paring knife, and so I learned to peel and cut fruit.
PSA: I am… not great at peeling fruit, but the knife did make it easier to peel. it did slice very easily, so it’s likely helpful for making delicate slices (Cooks Illustrated says paring knives are great for cutting tomatoes, julienning oranges, removing membrane from ribs, etc.).
“Legacy Kitchen knives are forged with premium German X50CrMov15 (Din. 1.4116) stainless steel, which features extraordinary performance.”
“ERGONOMIC G10 HANDLE: Every curve and angle of the Legacy handle is ergonomically designed for a comfortable and ambidextrous hold.”
but beyond all that — Tuo reminds me of home, reminds me of the culture I grew up in. the Chinese word means to expand, to adventure, a mindset of constant growth.
we all become adults, but that doesn’t mean we stop with the growth mindset. the company was born of hard work and the desire to be better — the same ideals my parents carried with them as they immigrated to America.
tuo (拓): to explore, to adventure