Kopi Luwak -- A Postscript...

The MUI has decided that Kopi Luwak (Luwak Coffee) is OK for consumption by Muslims. This means that the MUI sees no need to issue a fatwa prohibiting Muslims from drinking really expensive coffee. I have had a mug or two in my time of the kopi luwak, and it is an excellent drop. Nevertheless, it is a luxury that is currently out of my price range.

I am not Muslim so a fatwa would make no difference to me anyway. But, I am a little confused by the reasoning of the MUI on this one. Perhaps some of my Muslim readers or other informed souls will see fit to enlighten me. The concern here was whether the coffee was the product of something that was najis, or ritually impure. If it was, then Muslims would be required to avoid it or drink it and seemingly be in a perpetual state of najasat (ritual impurity).

Kopi Luwak is coffee that is made from beans that have been eaten by a civet and then excreted whole. My understanding was that the civet was najis in the same ways that dogs and pigs are considered najis. In addition, we are talking about coffee beans that have been eaten by something that is najis and then this najis little civet craps out the beans which are then collected, cleaned, ground, and sold for big dollars.

The MUI decision not to act is based on the belief that if the beans remain in tact and are thoroughly cleaned and there is no fecal contamination then the coffee is fine to drink, at least this is the story according to Ma'ruf Amin.

This must mean that the MUI is going to certify the production process or it will have to have a little bean checker dude checking each and every been as it is processed.

Oh well, happy kopi luwak drinking time to all!

Eating Your National Animals

Just a short musing on eating your national animals or more specifically those animals that make an appearance on your coat of arms. This musing comes about as a result of a grocery shopping trip during the week.

One of the things that I have noticed since being back is the myriad of products available on supermarket shelves that once were the exclusive domain of specialty shops or health food stores. I am not sure that this is indicative of a more health conscious community or just a community that prefers to get all their shopping done in one spot and at the same time.

Anyway, I have noticed that my local Frankins and Woolworths supermarkets stock a wide range of kangaroo meat products from sausages to steaks. I have eaten kangaroo meat on many previous occasions. However, I was pretty certain that Dyah had not eaten kangaroo before, so I thought why not, and bought some sausages.

We ate them for lunch with some steamed veggies.

They were an excellent meal. The meat was gamey but then you would expect such when eating kangaroo meat. We have this running joke in our house at the moment about what things taste like. Will has some floaty toys that he enjoys munching on during his bath. His personal favourite is the turtle. Long story short, it has always been, and continues to be, amusing to me that when people eat some strange meat that the question is; what does it taste like? If the answer is that it tastes like chicken, then why not just eat chicken?

I have also eaten emu meat (and ostrich meat). This means I have eaten both of the animals on the coat of arms of Australia.

So, my question is this; Is there anything inherently wrong in eating the animals that take pride of place on your national coat of arms?

I could never eat the Indonesian national emblem as the Garuda remains a mythical animal as far as I can tell.

Beijing, The Olympics, and Dogs

I am writing this post because my mother SMS-ed me earlier today saying that she entered a competition where she had to write in 25 words or less, "Why she wanted to go to Beijing to watch the Olympics?", bugger me if the old bird didn't win!

So, now her and the old fella are off to Beijing to watch the Olympics. Lucky buggers!

The other reason is that this story brings back memories of home. I used to be the Manager of a Domino's Pizza joint. It helped pay my way through law school. Every day that I went to work I had to drive past this Chinese restaurant, not particularly interesting in and of itself. However, this particular Chinese restaurant was in the same building as the local vet! Hence the connection to this story.

The Beijing Tourism Board officials have apparently been doing the rounds of local restaurants that are officially designated dining spots during the games and instructing them that dog meat is to come off the menu. Any one thinking of going to Beijing, then the word to learn is "xiangrou" or "fragrant meat". Aside from the designated eating places, tourism officials are also asking non-designated fine dining establishments to also take xiangrou of the menu.

Xiangrou supposedly provides health benefits. Most people I have talked to said that it increased their body temperature and made them sweat. The classic question must be what does dog meat taste like. I must add that I have no desire to find out either. I have eaten snake and crocodile meat and a range of other game meats of which I won't bore you with. The "what does it taste like" question is always interesting. Stock answer, chicken!

For me the issue has always been getting over the idea of eating a pet. I have always owned dogs. Never owned a rabbit so have no problems dining on rabbit stew.

However, if you want to see the darker side of the dog meat trade in China, I provide this link (viewer discretion advised -- it is a very ugly and cruel trade). I have looked at the link, it is disturbing. I now can see why there are many people passionate about animal rights!

I am not posting any pictures to this post.