Halal

Malaysia is a Muslim country but non-Muslims are given allowances to practise their own cultures. This is why you find plenty of dishes here cooked with pork as a main or side ingredient.

And whilst many neutral establishments would say that they serve no pork, what they serve may not be halal: a requirement or condition of the type of food that Muslims are allowed to consume.

Many of us, including Malaysians misunderstand the meaning of the world Halal. We tend to synonymize the word with Pork, a notion which is far from the truth. See the following video, Halal, another project from 15Malaysia for a slapstick form of explanation to what it really means.



I'd like to add a side explanation about why many people would mistake pork- and lard-free for being halal foods. In order for food to be halal, it has to be slaughtered in the most humane way possible. Yes, I know... how can 'slaughter' and 'humane' be used in the same sentence and still make sense?

The kill
Well, it is quite impossible to eat meat without first killing the source first, and whilst many slaughterhouses use electricity or other methods that liken to murder to achieve that goal, animals/meat that are prepared in halal form .. die fast, and relatively painlessly. They use a method of slaughter which is so quick that (I've heard) the animals can still blink after the cut has been delivered. This I learned from hearsay.

Compare that to the way my mother in law kills the geese that she rears and you will agree that it is a more humane way. I heard from my husband that she slits their throats, then lets them run around, the head dangling from the neck by thin strips, until they bleed out and die. You can imagine the mess they make.

Now before you go calling for petitions to against my mother in law, she has stopped rearing geese because they are so damn loud and fierce and I have no proof of this having happened... though it does make for a good conversation piece. And it does drive my point home.

Why no Pork?
Well, it seems that pigs are the only animals that have cloven hooves and no necks. It has been stated in the holy book that this animal cannot be consumed because of those two characteristics. Pigs having no necks cannot be killed in the halal form and thus cannot be killed humanely (as required by the religion) and thus cannot be consumed because it cannot ever be 'halal'. This I learn from wikipedia.

Benefits of halal (and kosher)
Animals that were killed in the halal and kosher (will get to that later) way do not 'suffer' and thus do not hyperventilate or wriggle violently like a fish out of water (at the brink of death). This allows the meat to be more tender and palatable due to the lack of lactic acid build up in the body. This I learn from my course in university.

Kosher
Kosher food is the equivalent of halal foods. Kosher is practised by Jews. Halal is practised by Muslims. Again, if you look closely, there are many ways that peoples are alike.

Why then do we still like to focus on the differences that separate us?