Mouth-watering meat marvels
MALAYSIANS and food are inseparable. Such love and appreciation for food is nurtured from young, as evident in the people featured in tomorrow’s issue of stuff@school.
As a preview, read the following piece by Daryl Choo Chia Ler, a participant of our yearlong Starstruck! Young Writers Programme.
Published on Mondays, stuff@school is written by teens for teens, and is dedicated to current affairs, pop culture and short stories. It is available only through school subscriptions of The Star.
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Visit www.stuffatschool.com.my for more information. Or, join our online teen community at www.facebook.com/stuffatschool. A typical conversatio on between my parents and me during meal ltimes usually goes like this: “Want some frie ed chicken?” “Sure.” “Steamed fish?” “Bring it on!” “Vegetables?” “Er... no, thank you u. I’ll have that later.” Much later, in fact t. Preferably when the end of the world com mes and all sources of meat are wiped out. That much later.
I proudly admit th he fact that I am, and will always be, a meat ea ater.
Who doesn’t like th he aroma of friedchickthe en, a reminiscent of globally-famous Kentucky Fried Chick ken recipe invented by Colonel Sanders?
Who doesn’t like th he taste of satay, butter prawns, curry mutto on and tempura squid so delightful to the pala ate? People who haven’t tried them yet,y that’s who.
I, for one, will bea r testimony to the wonders of properly y-cooked meat for I am a carnivore, , a consumer of meat, to say the least t.
It is my humble op pinion that if heaven would cook upu something for mankind, it would su urely be, or at the very least taste like, m meat.
On the other hand d, I am a rabid hater of vegetables. ForgiveF me for saying this, but I hav ve always hary boured a dislike for the consumption of salads, tomatoes, celery or in short, any kind of green leafy vegetables.
Every time I am forced to eat lettuce, I have to chase out of my mind the thought of black beetles hiding among the leaves.
The tasteless, uninteresting flavour that can be obtained by munching a raw carrot does not appeal to me.
Needless to say, the crunch produced when a cucumber is bitten into only reminds me of the sounds that can be heard if one were to chew on a snail.
Besides, I tell myself, why eat any vegetables when theyhary can be fed to livestock to prop duce more meat?
That said, it seems to be a blessing from heaven that my sister happens to be a born vegetarian.
There seems to be nothing that amazes me more than her ability to gobble up vegetables as easily as taking a walk in the park.
Unlike me, she doesn’t have to pinch her nose or prepare a glass of water to gulp down her greens when she eats.
In contrast, she hates any food that comes from an animal. This fervent dislike for meat provides an opportunity for a “consensual trade” in the sense that she will trade her portion of meat for my vegetables. Unfortunately, this ggame of exchanginggg food seems to be banned under the “Parents Protocol”.
Anyone caught breaking the rules will be sentenced to the consumption of a double portion of their hated food during the next meal.
Despite threats from my parents of future diseases due to improper diet – which include heart disease, kidney failure and constipation, among many other dreaded illnesses (I’m still alive, after all) – I remain a firm believer of the marvels of meat.
In truth, I understand that a balanced diet is needed to obtain the necessary nutrients and, one way or another, I’m going to have to start eating vegetables some day.
But in the meantime, why not indulge?