Dominican flavours in a new context: Homemaking and food practices of Dominican immigrants

Moving away from questions about immigrants’ integration in various domains of the receiving society, this study focuses on their practices and feelings. More specifically, this study provides insights in the role of cultural practices from the country of origin in creating home in their new context. By looking specifically at food practices of Dominican immigrants in the Netherlands this ethnographic study shows how these specific practices contribute to their homemaking. The in-depth analysis shows that there are many different forms of making home after migration, which do not only involve the re-creation of practices from the country of origin. Furthermore, immigrants’ homemaking practices are not only influenced by their individual characteristics, choices and preferences, but also by their context, for example the presence of a co-ethnic community and the characteristics of the wider receiving society. Finally, making home occurs in many different spaces, including the domestic, communal and transnational. The research shows how attention for feelings of home and cultural practices is an entry point to get to know about immigrants’ attachments to both the country of origin and the receiving society.