You are what you eat. Really?!

Truthis,somuchofthetimewe don’t have the slightest clue what we eat. If you are what you eat, you don’t wanna be you!

A fairly common spot of food trivia which would turn the guts of many, is the hugely expensive and much sought after Kopi Luwak coffee: at a mere R12 000 for 500g or, in your favourite New York cafe, expect to pay $100 per cup.

The secret ingredient of this venerated beverage is partially digested coffee berries that have passed through the alimentary canal of a palm civet in Sumatra. It is then collected and after a pretty straightforward process, voila, you have it. In a nutshell, it has both body and aroma!

Does it really matter what kind of coffee it is? Yes, I guess it does!

So, while nursing my cup of hot civet poop, I got to undertaking a spot of research.

Civet cats are not the only creatures who give of themselves for our eating and drinking pleasure. Commonly, I am led to believe, ground animal bones are used to give added whiteness to sugar. Add that to your coffee and boy are you cookin’.

But it gets better.

There is a substance called Castoreum. It is a strong-smelling, creamy, orange liquid sourced from the anal glands of the North American

beaver, would you believe, and is used to enhance the flavour of raspberry in sweets/candy. With the addition of beaver urine, the taste really comes through!

Just in case you relax in the comforting knowledge that you in fact hate raspberry-flavoured candy, this substance can also be found in some perfumes, cigarettes, and even some chewing gum. However, for cheaper similar products, anal gland secretions from a pig is a good generic!

Now I don’t want to make a meal of this, but I truly wonder about the plethora of stuff that I haven’t and won’t research!

We are what we like to think we eat — sounds vague enough to get by.

A long way back, I got used to the idea that great French Champagne tastes vaguely like the inside of a Comrades runners’ takkie. I convinced myself that at the price I have to like it, and, what harm could it do anyway?!

I have to confess that I do like it — mind over matter — that is until I tried MMV from Vergelegen. Now I stick to the mantra that local is lekker.

For years we have scorned some European countries who find snails and frog legs delicacies, and Far Eastern lands that happily serve fricassee of puff adder and sauteed kakalaka. We may indeed heave when we discover that in some faraway lands ‘Toad in the hole’ means just that.

There should be no skin off my rosy nose when I am served Mopani worms deep fried on rice. These are delicacies to be savoured and enjoyed.

The only question that should remain is, what wine will complement it. There’s a question worth pondering!

Boy would I like Jamie Oliver’s opinion on all this.

So, perhaps we are what we don’t eat, or would rather not eat, or damn well refuse to eat!

Some of my family have transitioned from hard core carnivores to committed vegans. Perhaps they are onto something.

For my part, to heck with it all. As they say, if it doesn’t kill you, it’ll make you stronger. I’m 30 runs short of a century — I have been doing “it” ever since I discarded the breast in favour of solids. I ain’t going to change now. Neither should you!

“So, while nursing my cup of hot civet poop, I got to undertaking a spot of research.”