“I cook because it’s a really important part of my culture … and being connected to my culture,” said Karen Tinsley, Upper School Spanish teacher about cooking.
Besides being a Spanish teacher, Ms. Tinsley is an avid chef. She comes from Colombian descent and enjoys cooking famous dishes from her culture.
“So when I was younger? I used to visit Colombia almost every summer as a kid,” she said. While she was there, watching her grandmother cook inspired her. “ t was just an intro, like, as a kid, yeah, it’s really interesting to see, like, we just think that’s what we’re going to eat,” said Tinsley. When Tinsley just moved to Philadelphia from New York it was hard to get adjusted. “I moved to Philly for college, and I remember it was really hard. I grew up in a huge Columbia immigrant community in New York, yeah, and so coming to Philly, it was really hard to find that, and I just started cooking. I started cooking like my abuela did like my mom did, and it helped me not feel so homesick.”
Currently, Ms. Tinsley is trying to have her kids enjoy traditional foods. “I bring it back to showing them how to find those connections and find those roots. With that food, you want to, like, want to pass it down to them, for them to do.”
Tinsley’s goal is for her kids to enjoy Colombian food. “This is part of us. This is part of what keeps us together, and that’s part of, like, identity. And so at this point, my boys really like empanadas and maludos. Yeah, they get excited about different foods. But I think you don’t realize as much as a kid how much food is so important to connect with your identity.”
Ms. Tinsley’s husband Mr. Tinsley stated, “I’d say that food is as big a part of her culture as it is in many different cultures around the world. Cooking, specifically, (at least from my perspective) is something that everyone should be able to do a little bit, but very few are considered to be exceptionally good at it. In her very large family, almost everyone is considered to be capable in the kitchen, but there are clear stand-outs whose cooking is really respected and revered.”
The reason Ms. Tinsley loves to cook is, “I bring it back to showing them how to find those connections and find those roots with that food you want to, like, want to pass it down to them, for them.”
