Food Heritage as Cultural Text: Reading the Traditional Cuisine of the Togutil Tribe from A Socio-Anthropological Perspective

Abstract

This study analyzed the traditional cuisine of the Togutil people in North Halmahera, focusing on four main foods: Paruda, Waji, Dodol, and Halua. This study departed from the assumption that food was not merely an object of consumption, but a cultural text that carries layers of social, ecological, historical, and political meaning. Using a culinary ethnographic approach, this study combined participatory observation, in-depth interviews, and analysis of culinary documents and artifacts. The analysis was conducted by integrating cultural ecology theory (Steward, 1955; Harris, 1998), habitus and cultural capital (Bourdieu, 2010), collective memory (Halbwachs, 2020; Assmann, 2011), and the framework of cultural and postcolonial resistance (Hall, 1990; Said, 2003; Spivak, 2010). The results of the study showed that Togutil cuisine serves as an edible archive, combining ecological knowledge, social practices, solidarity, spirituality, and an arena of resistance against global food homogenization. Paruda symbolizes ecological adaptation and food sovereignty, Waji represents agrarian solidarity and hospitality, and Dodol affirms technical skills and cultural capital. At the same time, Halua becomes a medium of respect for ancestors and symbolic resistance. Theoretically, this study expands the horizons of sociological and anthropological studies of food by introducing the concept of "culinary social memory." Methodologically, this study affirms the relevance of culinary ethnography as a reflective approach to reading the connections between food, culture, and power. Practically, this research emphasizes the importance of preserving traditional cuisine as a strategy for food sovereignty, intergenerational education, and advocacy for customary rights amid the pressures of modernization and globalization.