With The Commentary of the RABAM
Parshas Re-Aiy = Re’eh: Now looky here! Behold! See! The fourth parsha in Dvarim, Psookim 11:26 through 16:17, in which Moishe goes on a rant about idolatry, Goyim, and tithes. Also: movies, neighbors, yeshiva tuition.
Approximately.
In this week's Parsha, Parshas Re'Aiy, the Deuteronomist author (D) continues to pronounce the laws that define the Josianic reforms of the late First Temple period in Judea. ERRR..., I mean, Moishe Rabbeinu continues to lecture on the mountain overlooking Eretz Yisroel, as Klal Yisroel grow increasingly impatient and start checking their e-mails on their Blackberries and playing games on their Palm Pilots. (Boruch Hashem it was a dead zone for cell phone reception or they would have gotten totally out of control.)
Deuteronomist author = The alleged author of Deuteronomy (and probably also the composer of Joshua, Judges, Shmuel, Kings), being different than the Elohist or Northern Kingdom author (E) and the Yahwist or Southern Kingdom author (J), but sometimes believed to be a kinsman of the Redactor (R). There is also a textual strand identified as the Priestly author (P), presumably a descendant of Aaron the minuval.
These are all concepts in higher textual criticism of the Toireh, as exemplified by the Documentary (or Graff-Wellhausen) Hypothesis.
The Torah was finalized in the late 6th to 5th centuries B.C.E., according to this approach, when the Judaic leadership in Babylon sought to institutionalize the cultural roots of the Jewish community, which was largely situated outside its traditional homeland stemming from the mass exile that followed the defeat of the Davidic monarchy, the destruction of the first Temple, and the collape of of the first commonwealth. An alternate hypothes is that the Torah was finalized as authorities in Jerusalem sought to stress the superiority of their tradition over that of the shattered northerners (the Samaritans), and to destroy any lingering cultic significance of Shechem.
The Priestly source is responsible for all those dreary ‘begats’, the Elohist wants you to be faithful and obedient, and the Deuteronomist really doesn’t like you, but would probably see eye to eye with that sermonizing old noodge with bad-breath who obsessed about Nidah in the Yeshiva.
DeWette, in the nineteenth century, noted clear parallels between Deuteronomy and Josiah’s reforms in Kings, and postulated that in fact Deuteronomy was the ‘scroll of law’ so conveniently discovered in the Temple. And indeed, the language is not the same as the preceding four books.
Maybe Moishe finally learned decent Ivrit. Maybe, at 120 years old, he finally hired a professional speech-writer, a college graduate who knew grammar.
Because, of course, no matter how clever and logical all of this is, we know that the entire Toireh was dictated word for word to Moishe Rabbeinu (it says so right in the Toireh!), no matter what all those smarty-pants apikorsim think.
Next they’ll try to tell us that Reboinosheloilem didn’t put all those dinosaur bones and fossils all over the place as a cosmic joke. Or that the world is more than 6000 years old.
The Haskalah (Jewish enlightenment) never happened. Trust me on this.
Damn hippies!
DeWette = Wilhelm Martin Leberecht DeWette (1780 – 1849), a German religious scholar and son of a pastor, rector of Basel University, idolized by Julius Wellhausen for opening the door to historical criticism of the Pentateuch. In mittn drinnen, the followers of ‘that man’ excoriate him and all his kind.
Leberecht = Live rightly. The Gmatria of Leberecht is 249, which is the number of positive mitzvois with the addition of Achad. Odd. I don’t know what to make of this.
But he’s missing a mitzvah or two, so we can safely disregard him.
Should we care what Goyim and apikorsim think? It is not proper for us to know too much about what those people think, except that we should refute it, whatever it is.
6000 Years old = Kabbalah explains that several worlds (974 generations) of living creatures were created and destroyed on Earth before Adam. This can be found in Derush Ohr HaChaim, and in most editions of the Mishnah that include the commentary Tiferes Yisroel.
Rabbi Shimon HaTzadik says “these are the 974 generations that pushed themselves forward to be created, but were not.” And pursuant thereto, Breishis Raba states “Orders of time existed before creation, as Rabbi Abbahu said “Hashem created worlds and destroyed them, until He created this world and saw that it was good.” But let us ignore this, as it does not accord with our worldview. This is why the Aimishteh gave us free will – as is says in Pirkei Avois, psook 3:9 “Everything is foreseen, yet freedom of choice is given”.
Pirkei Avois, whom no one would dispute, also says in psook 5:2 “There were ten generations from Noach to Avraham”. So there. Proof. Only six thousand years.
Early in Parshas Re-Aiy, Moishe Rabbeinu tells Klal Yisroel, "Loi Sevashel Gedee BeChalaiyv Emoi" -- The lamb should not be cooked in its mother's milk. By strange coincidence I prepared this week's Drasha on an airplane, contemplating the meaning of the Parsha and Chazzal's understanding of it while eating my dinner at 30,000 feet. Rachmunah Letzlan, due to some nearly unavoidable circumstances, the airline was unable to get me a kosher meal. Hence, out of fear of sakonas nefashois -- mortal danger of starvation, and out of concern for wasting the Aimishtah's creations, I was forced to eat a philly cheese steak with a shinui, while reviewing the source possuk banning such behavior.
“On an airplane (and) unable to get a kosher meal” = Which is why travellers in the know take Greyhound. Bagels are often sold within a block of many Greyhound stations (even in the heartland), and there’s always a liquor store around so that you can purchase a shrotzim-free beverage.
I love Greyhound. Where and how else can you travel in smooth, air-conditioned comfort?... Next to a four hundred pound alcoholic with crawlies, and psychotic flashbacks to the assault on hill forty nine.....
"It was a clear day, south of NhaTrang, and we had just finished burying four of ‘em, when Charlie hit us with a barrage. I dived for the ditch (demonstrates by body-slamming a pregnant passenger in the next seat over), and grabbed my rifle, when a shell-fragment hit me, and everything went dark."
At this point, he starts convulsing and foaming at the mouth. The bus screeches to a halt - Kansas cornfield on one side, empty highway on the other. No rest stop. No trees to make mei-raglim against. No coffee and a cushioned seat. And that high-pitched screaming in a quavering voice "The horror, the horror.....!!!"
Kansas, for craps’ sake!
Visualize Keebler Elf Road kill, on the great Saigon to Hanoi highway (Route One) built by the French. NhaTrang is north of Saigon, before you get to Hue. Hot, humid, sticky. And there, just south of the city, is the smear on the pavement.
The dead Keebler is slimy and turning greener than he already was, flies are nesting in the putrefying flesh. Buzz buzz buzz. The air is so thick, so moist, you can't breathe it, you have to gulp it. Like being enveloped by hot Jell-O. And, even disregarding the Keebler corpse self-alchemizing on the hot tarmac a few feet away, there is an unmistakable fecundity to the tropical reek.
Keeblers should never use camouflage grease on their faces or head into the bush; the natives will kill them and take their heads for charms. Consecrated when the rice-wine has been made after the harvest - bubbles the size of bagels on the cream-cheese white surface of the fermenting brew. You can smell it a mile away.
"This really was the end of the river. It smelled like death in here, and the water all flowed back. He was close, real close...."
Sorry. I just had a moment.
Ever since the war, I’ve had flashbacks to Kansas.
Why did the Aimishteh preclude our eating of dairy and meat together? Indeed, meat comes from animals, the ultimate source of milk, and they are both His creations. What is the logic of this paradox?
Not eating of dairy and meat together = As it says in psook 14:21 “lo tochlu chol neveila, la ger asher bi shareicha titnena va achala o machor lenachri ki am kadosh ata la Adonai eloheicha; lo tevashel gedi ba chalev imo” (you shall not eat any creature that died naturally, give it to the stranger in your gates or sell it to a foreigner, because you are a holy people to the Lord your G-d; don’t seethe a goatling in the milk of its mother!).
At first glance, the link between things that died of themselves, and boiling baby animals in the milk from their mothers, seems tenuous, obscure even. Voss iz pshat?
Milk is the link of life between animals and their offspring, and as is made clear with the business of the blood, we may partake of one side of the equation but not both. Like with most ritual matters where one can go astray, time is used to set boundaries and provide for ritual ‘plausible deniability’. Go soak yourself, and stay away from me until evening. Or do not eat milk and meat at the same meal, and allow several hours in between to separate the two.
The business of the blood, however, is much more shver. Blood is more the stuff of life than milk, and is sacrificial besides, in addition to sharing the ability of certain liquids to transfer impurity or conduct purity (as detailed in Sefer Vayikra, Parshas Metzora – Infected one, 14:1 to 15:33). Consequently, the specific rule about not consuming the blood is given three times in this parsha.
Psook 12:16 "Rak ha dam lo tocheilu, al ha aretz tishpechenu ka mayim" (Only ye shall not eat the blood; thou shalt pour it out upon the earth as water.
But the blood you must not consume, pour it on the ground like water).
Psook 12:23 "Rak chazak levilti achol ha dam, ki ha dam hu ha nafesh ve lo tochal ha nefesh im ha basar" (But be firm not to consume the blood, as the blood is the life, and you must not eat the life with the flesh).
Psook 15:23 "Rak et damo lo tochel, al ha aretz tishpechenu ka mayim" (But the blood of it you must not consume (but) pour it on the ground like water).
Whatever is said three times has a seriousness and a weight that should not be taken lightly (on the other hand, old geezers do tend to repeat themselves).
Kashrus, of course, is part of the boundary which the Bnei Yisroel must erect between themselves and other nations; it says in Sefer Vayikra (Leviticus), in Parshas Shmini, psook 11:44 and 11:45 that we are not to pollute ourselves, as we were brought out of Egypt to be sanctified – in psook 11:46 "Ki Ani Adonai ha ma'ale et chem me eretz Mitzrayim l'hiyot lachem l'Elohim v'ihyitem kedoshim ki kadosh Ani" (For I am the Lord that brought y'all up from the land of Egypt, to be Elohim to you, and you shall be holy as I am holy.).
Food is probably the easiest seduction, and the path along which many are likely to go native, and eventually blend in. By keeping kosher we maintain the distance necessary to remain separate.
Like many rules regarding ritual purity, kashrus operates on the principle of excluding everything which is doubtful; that which cannot be clearly recognized as Tahor (ritually pure) is best avoided, lest one inadvertently err, or by one’s example cause someone else to err. This accounts for the exclusion of animals and foods which are not blatantly Tamei (ritually impure), and for strictness of observance - better safe than sorry. It is for this reason that our Rabbis ruled that one should not eat dairy with meat, even if the animal that yielded the dairy is not related to the animal which gave the meat. Caesar’s wife should be above suspicion – and so should a mamleches Kohanim ve goi kadoosh (a kingdom of priests and a holy nation – Sefer Vayikra, Parshas Kedooshim, psook 19:6).
The fact that the commandment about not cooking meat and dairy together had to be repeated, and that Chazal chose to build a hedge around it even, suggests that the Bnei Yisroel may have been lousy listeners – that it took them forty years to find their way out of the desert says as much (that, and that at the drop of a Kippah they kept worshipping idols).
On the other hand, maybe they had a really killer recipe for Murgh Makhni or Lamb Qorma. Or a fine mutton pilaw served with yoghurt, a la Isfahan.
It is incredibly easy to become addicted to Indian and Persian cuisine, and Moishe may have been frustrated at his people’s dining habits – “you wanna go to the Darbar Palace AGAIN!?!?!”
Because of the need to even avoid the suspicion of eating milk and dairy together, several Rabbis have ruled that one may not cook meat in coconut milk, because an observer might conclude that you have combined meat and dairy, and assume from that example that it is acceptable to do so.
Which is, upon consideration, insanely unlikely – those who use coconut milk live in regions where there is little or no dairy farming – the natives of South-East Asia are in fact repelled by even the idea of cheese.
Forced (by circumstance) to eat the Philly Cheesesteak with a Shinui = Perform a forbidden act in an unnatural way (for example, with one's weaker hand) in order to decrease a Torah-defined infraction to a (lower) Rabbinic infraction. A common strategy in Sabbath law.
Shinui = "Change." Also, a political party in Israel, which many consider to be intolerably liberal and irreligious. It opposes the exemption of orthodox youth from army service. Manifestly kofers.
Murgh Makhni & Lamb Qorma = Both are dishes commonly associated with Indian restaurants. Murgh Makhni is chicken (murghi) in a rich sauce composed of butter (makhan), tomatoes (tamatar, benjan-e-Rum – ‘Roman egglant’), cream (malai), cumin (zeera, jeera), and paprika (deghi mirch). Lamb Qorma derives from a Central Asian treatment of meats, in which they are seethed in their own rich fatty juices, and the gravy is extended with spices. In the Mughlai (Mughal style) version, cream and finely ground almonds (badam) or pistachios (pista) are added. The Kashmiri version does not add cream, but adds black cardamom (bara elaichi, or kala elaichi), and cloves (lavang), as well as black pepper (kala mirch) and extra animal fat (rawghan). A much richer version, with only aromatic spices added, goes by the name Roghan Josh – ‘fat seethings’, or seethed (josh) in fat (rawghan). Potatoes (aloo) added to a qorma or roghan josh will balance the richness, but eating potatoes tend to make one heavy – not recommended in so enervating a climate.
Lamb Qorma = So called because in Urdu the local equivalents of our lamb and mutton are considered different animals altogether, so instead of domba ka gosht (meat from a fat-tailed sheep) or bakri ki gosht (lamb from a nice tender goatling), one speaks of mutton-gosht and lamb ki gosht. But the goat is very nice.
The Rabbeinu Yoinassan asks this exact question. He responds that just as a human would never eat his own child, so too a sheep would never want to be consumed with its own child. However, amongst sheep, as amongst humans, verbal abuse, infliction of guilt, and the occasional confiscation of the keys to the car are all permitted, even encouraged.
Rabbeinu Yoinassan = Yonatan HaKohen, a Provencal scholar who critiqued the Rambam’s Mishneh Toirah. Please recall that the Rambam got cheremed up the wazzoo.
The RASHBA, however, argues that the Toirah was not speaking literally. The RASHBA insists that the possuk was actually meant as a warning against "having relations" with your slutty girlfriend and her hot divorcee' mother at the same time. Though you can "cook the lamb," if you know what I mean, and you can "drink of her mother's milk," you are not permitted to do both at the same time, chass ve'sholom.
Rashba = Rabbi Shlomo Ben Aderes (1235 – 1310), student of the Rambam, and a prolific author of responsa (teshuvos) to the halachic queries. A Posseik of note, but not just a poskener; he also wrote a commentary on the Torah.
As regards the Maimonidean controversy, he really should have recused himself, yet in taking a compromise position excepting the works of the Ramban from the ban on youth (under 25 years of age) studying philosophy, he showed respect for his teacher.
We are commanded to respect the wise and the old, as it says in Vayikra (Leviticus) 19:32 "mi pnei seiva takum ve hadarta pnei zaken..." (rise before grey hairs and honour the face of an elder).
If this applies to any aged person, how much more so to a teacher, who is like a parent? It says in Parshas Va Eschanan in Dvarim (Deuteronomy) psook 5:16 "Kabed et avicha ve et imecha, ka asher tzivcha Adonai Eloheicha, le ma'an ya'arichun yameicha u le ma'an yitav lach..." (Honour your father and your mother, as the LORD your God commands you, that your days may be lengthened, and it goes well with you), and it was said originally in that famous Charlton Heston scene with the dark storm-clouds, flaming finger, and pompous diction in Parshas Yisro in Shmos (Exodus), psook 20:12 "Kabed et avicha ve et imecha le ma'an ya'arichun yameicha al ha adama asher Adonai Eloheicha noten lach" (Honour your father and your mother, so that your days may be lenghtened upon the land which the Lord your G-d has granted you).
It is not, then, that Rashba showed favoritism or particularity when ruling that his teacher’s books should not be banned to the young – it is precisely because he respected his teacher as his teacher that he could not do otherwise than exclude the Rambam’s works from the ban.
Having relations = The Toireh is disturbingly specific about forbidden relationships, and in this example you should refer back to Parshas Acharei Mois in Vayikra (Leviticus, verses 16:1 through 18:30). Particularly Psookim 18:17 “18:17 “Ervat isha u vita lo tegale et batbena va et batbita” (you shall not uncover the nakedness of a woman and her daughter, her son’s daughter and her daughter’s daughter).
From this we learn the useful term ‘ervat’, which in addition to meaning nakedness, also has connotations of nastiness and indecency. It is a VERY useful term.
Everything which is forbidden d’oraisa must be assumed to have been both common and tempting. Such a different and more exciting age.
The Vilna Goiyn disagrees, and indeed takes the possuk quite literally. The GRUH believes that the prohibition in the Toirah of eating milk and meat together stemmed from the lack of good restaurants in Moishe's time. But in our day, Boruch Hashem, there are may good restaurants, and as a result, eating swiss on corn beef on a Sunday evening is a delicious mitzvas asei she-hazman grummah.
Vilna Gaon = Rabbi Eliyahu Ben Shlomo Zalman (1720 – 1797). The Genius (Gaon) of Vilna. The be all and end all of Misnagdim (opposers –those who opposed chassidus). He is also called the GRA, which is an acronym of Gaon Rav Eliyahu, and also Ha Gaon Ha Chassid Mi Vilna – the saintly genius of Vilna.
By what is he a genius? As a toddler he memorized the Torah, at the age of seven he was studying Talmud, and by ten he was already engaged upon independent study. When barely an adult, he was consulted by rabbeyim regarding halacha, by goyishe scientists regarding astronomy and mathematics.
In his late fifties he became embroiled in the quarrel between the followers of the Besht (Ba’al Shem Tov; Yisroel Ben Eliezer, 1698 to 1760, the founder of Chassidism), who at that time were led by Rabbi Shneer Zalman of Liyadi (1745 to 1813), versus the mainstream of Rabbinical Judaism. Upshot: the entire Chassidic community was put under a cherem (decree of excommunication), and it was forbidden to associate with them in any way.
Rabbi Eliyahu was not a much published writer in his lifetime, but collections of his commentaries and glosses to many major works were published in the years following his death. Among others, Shanos Eliyahu (the years of Eliyahu – a commentary on the Mishna), Aderes Eliyahu (the glory of Eliyahu – a commentary on the Torah), and perhaps most notably the Biur Ha Gra (Gloss of the Gra – an annotation and supercommentary on the Bavli and the Shulchan Aruch).
He was a humble and somewhat withdrawn man – it should be noted that the titles above were put on works assembled after his death. He did not refer to himself as the saintly Chassid of Vilna, nor to his Toirah commentary as glorious. But we do.
GRUH = GRA. That last letter is alef – pronounce it in this context however you want, as it does not really have a sound of its own.
Lack of good restaurants in Moishe’s time = Sanitary conditions in the midbar must have precluded any eateries getting a Heksher. Dirt everywhere. Shrotzech & foil.
Mitzvois asei she’hazman grama = Positive commandments (mitzvois asei) which have a time component, from which women are exempt due to their different role within the community and within the family. (But not all mitzvois asei she’hazman grama are exempted – the commandment to eat matza on Peysach applies to both sexes. Bear in mind that what the Talmud states as a general principle (klalim – not to be confused with klala, though subconsciously ver veyst?) will necessarily have exceptions. Though such mitzvas are typically accompanied by parallel negative commandments. In the case of Peysach, we are commanded to eat matzo for seven days, alongside a commandment to NOT eat bread during that same period.)
The Rambam lists sixty mitzvois (shishim heima malachos – ‘sixty there are that are queens’) which apply to all Jews, of which women are not obligated for fourteen of them. Part of the exemption is based on matters where a man performs a mitzvah that applies to more than just himself, such as blowing a shofar on Rosh HaShana (the commandment is to HEAR the tootling) or waving an angry chicken in the air on Yoim Kippur, part of the exemption is inexplicable by any logical standard.
For instance, waving around lulavim ve etrogim, counting the omer, putting on tfillin – in what way do these take time away from any task which women customarily perform (and you might ask why it is that they perform those tasks), and how is that different from the overburdening of women that goes on in the fortnight leading up to Peysach? And regarding those mitzvois which should not be performed during Nidah, by what logic should a woman not perform them at other times if they are regularly occuring?
The paradigm of time related mitzvois, which is taken to represent the entire group, is the mitzvah of tfillin, because of the commandment to ‘discuss it, and teach it to your sons and sons’ son’. As the Talmud sees a clear connection between the obligation to learn Toirah, and teach it to one’s sons and grandsons, Chazal seems to have stumbled to the conclusion that this only applies to men, and to have jumped to the further conclusion that mitzvois which have a time component, like that of tfillin, all share precisely that characteristic.
But why would one not teach Toirah to one’s daughters?
It is evident that one of the defining characteristics of Judaism is that it is transmitted to subsequent generations. That being so, women already have the edge over men, as whoever is born of a Jewish mother is Jewish, and if the child is female, she too will have that edge. Not so with a child whose father is the only Jew in the family.
So how does a man transmit Judaism? By instructing and passing it on to his sons. Judging by what the Bnei Yisroel were up to with the heathen women (Parshas Balak, Parshas Matos; Midianite wenches), there can be considerable doubt about the outcome of male to male transmission. If the relations with the sluts of Midian had led to offspring, it is clear that they would have been heathen, as would their fathers who had leapt at the chance to be mezaneh with the idol-worshippers probably have also become. Biyuh bitches.
That children more likely will follow the religion of their mothers is suggested earlier, in Parshas Vayera, with the differences between the destinies of Ishmael the first-born and Yitzchak the son of Sarah.
To hammer home the point, in Sefer Shmos, Parshas Shmos, we read that it was the children of Hebrew women who were considered a danger to Egypt, and again that it was women who sabotaged Pharaoh’s plan – the midwives (meyaldos) who disobeyed the edict, the Hebrew women (Ivriyos) who allegedly delivered before the midwives came to them, the mother of Moishe who kept him for three months, his sister who watched over him along the banks of the river, Pharaoh’s daughter who had compassion for him and provided ‘a nurse of the Hebrew women’ – this is a very gynocentric section of the Toireh, but it makes abundantly clear that the offspring of Hebrew men were not a cause for concern, and that had it been only up to the men, there would have been no Hebrews, no danger to Mitzrayim, and no Moishe.
Ironic, then, that Moishe marries outside the tribe. Even more so, that he subsequently gives the command to slaughter his wife’s people – in parshas Mattois, Psookim 31:15 through 31:18, after the men of Midian have been killed, we read “Va yomer aleihem Moishe ‘hachiyitem kol nekava?” (And Moishe said to them ‘have you kept alive all the women?). “Hen hena hayu l’vnei Yisroel, bi davar Bilam, l’imsarma’al ba Adonai al devar Pe’or, va tehi ha magefa ba adat Adonai!” (Look then, these caused the sons of Israel, through the words of Bala’am, to rebel against the LORD in the matter of Pe’or, and so brought the plague among the congregation of the Lord); “ve atahirgu chol zachar bataf, ve chol isha yoda’at ish le mishkav zachar ha rogu!” (Now kill every male among the young, and all women who have known men by lying with them!).
That there is a very real difference between male transmission of Judaism and female transmission of Judaism seems, in the case of Mitzvois asei she hazman grama to have entirely escaped the eagle eyes of Chazal. That the Toireh presents an extended series of accounts of men failing miserably in transmitting the religion of their fathers, while the narrative takes for granted that women succeed in imprinting their heritage, went right past them.
Instead, Chazal chose to gibber on about public responsibility versus the home, sacred duties, internal clocks, candles, and the like. While they do graciously concede that even though women are not obligated in certain matters, it is commendable of them to strive towards knowledge and rigid observance, they warn against men teaching women, as the man might fail to impart either lumdus or emunah.
Does this imply that sons are more likely not to ask difficult questions?
Or does it suggest that a woman will find more flaws in an argument than a man?
Perhaps one can shper that Chazal wanted their friends to agree with them, and their wives to be stupid. It’s worth wondering about.
These are the same folks, by the way, who blame Chava (Eve) for the fall despite the snake being a salesman like no other, but excuse Adam on the grounds that ‘his woman talked him into it’. So perhaps in this they ruefully acknowledge the ease with which some women can henpeck their fathers or husbands.
But Chazal did not know nearly as much as we think they did. The world is round, it rotates around the sun, and it is significantly older than was dreamt of in their philosophy. You doubt? Read Darwin, read Alfred Russell Wallace, read Einstein, read Rabbi Nathan (Nosson) Slifkin (the zoo Rabbi).
By the way, fossils make Rabbis mad.
Indeed, the Chofetz Chayim, builds upon the comments of the GRUH. He suggests that the juxtaposition of this rule with the references at the end of the Parsha to the three holidays of the cycle of Shaloish Regalim -- Pesach, Shavuois, and Succois -- are clearly intended to provide culinary direction. Consequently, the Chofetz Chayim uses this Parsha to prove that according to the Toirah, there is no better way to bring together the subtle flavors of matzoh balls and chicken consumme than by sprinkling a little freshly ground parmesian on top. Shavuois, he held, should no longer be dominated by cheesecake, but instead should be the holiday of pastrami and onion quiche. And finally, what better way to commemorate Klal Yisroel's sojourning in the desert than by dining on cheeseburgers and beer in the Sukkah.
Chofetz Chayim = Rav Yisroel Meir Kagan HaKohen of Radin (1838 – 1933). The name by which he is known (Chofetz Chayim: choose life) is the title of his most well-known work (which speaks ill of Lashoin Horo), but some might better know him as the author of Ahavas Chesed (Love of Justice), a book on the relations between people. He also wrote a number of halachic works - Mishna Brura, Likutei Halachois, un noch fiele mehr.
The term Chofetz Chayim is taken from Psalm 34:13 - 15 “Mi ha ish he chafetz chayim, ohev yamim lirot tov?” (Who is the man that choses life, and loves days in which he sees good?). “Netzor lashonecha me ra, u sfateicha midaber mirma,” (Hold your tongue from evil, and your lips from voicing deceit), “Sur me ra, va ase tov, bekesh shalom ve radefehu!” (turn from evil and do good, look for peace and pursue it).
Shaloish Regalim = Three times; it says in Shmos (Exodus) 23:14 "Shalosh regalim tachog li ba shana" (Three times feast unto Me in the year).
There are three pilgrimage festivals (Peysach, Shavuos, Sukkos), when all people should go up to Yerushalayim with offerings, or have their proxy do so, in order to make the Kohainim and Leviyim stinking rich…., I mean, we are commanded to keep a feast three times a year in the place that HE will choose, as it says in Re’eh in psook 16:16 "Shalosh peamim ba shana ye'are chol zachurcha et penei Adonai Eloheicha ba makom asher yivchar; be chag ha matzot u ve chag ha shavuot u ve chag ha sukot; ve lo ye'are et penei Adonai reikam" (Three occasions per year all your males are to appear before the Lord your G-d in a place of his choosing; on the feast of matzes, and the feast of sevens, and the feast of booths; and they must not appear empty handed!).
Now note that these three feasts also mark harvests – Barley, Fruits, and late grains respectively. Hence it should not be surprising that food is so important an association.
Parmesan = Parmigiano Reggiano, the king of cheeses. One of the most famous cheeses of Italy, true Parmesan is aged for a minimum of two years, and some of the finest for up to twenty years or more. During this aging process it acquires a density and texture which is much prized, having a fullness of flavour and a cohesion most suitable for shaving or grating over foods to add just the right touch. If aged Parmesan is unavailable, a suitable alternative may be found in a Dutch cheese called Oud Amsterdam – Old (matured) Amsterdam. It is a bit saltier, and has a slightly sharper taste. But heavens to Betsy, it is good.
Matzoh balls = Like prayer, there are two types – sinkers (coarse leaden lumps that descend to the bottom of the soup) and floaters (fluffy kneidelech that bob gracefully on the surface). The dispute about which is better makes the tiff of the Misnagdim and Chassidim pale in comparison. As it should. It is much more important.
As I do not wish my aishes chayill to banish me to the couch, I will not pasken which type is better. Nor will I say anything about the broth. You are on your own here, just as you were with Perenkugel (ya, and leaving out the almonds caused such a gekvetch!). Your mom’s recipe, or your mother in law’s recipe – either way, it’s your problem.
Chicken, celery, parsley, onion, and a little garlic, some fresh ginger. Plus turnips and carrots.
Reduce after skimming, to concentrate the flavour, but do not boil fiercely as that ruins the stock – take your time, sweetheart. A little pepper, saffron, and nutmeg. Absolutely no dill, but yes a little lemon.
Add more liquid to the matzoh ball mixture than you used to, do not stint on the chilling stage, and cook in salted water so that they become a neutral vehicle rather than a dense cracker dumpling overloaded with chicken. Or, if you want sinkers, rachmana letzlan, don’t do any of this. Use schmaltz. Use schmaltz. Use schmaltz.
So why don't we hold like the Goiyn, other than when we are in transatlantic flights in Business Class?
There is a famous story about the Rugachugah Rebbe. He was making his way by ship from Poland to Singapore to visit his in-laws, when suddenly, in mid-ocean, his boat was surrounded by bandits. As the criminals gathered all the money and jewels of the passengers, the Rugachug turned to the head bandit and challenged him to a Slivovitz drinking competition."As long as we can drink over dinner" the bandit replied.
Mid-Ocean, surrounded by bandits (pirates) = Surely an appropriate time to recite a:
Mizmor le David.
Adonai royi, lo echsar.
Bi ne'ot deshe yarbitzeini, al mei menuchot yenahaleini.
Nafshi yeshoveiv, yancheini ve magelei tzedek, le ma'an shemo.
Gam ki eileich be gei tzal-mavet, lo ira ra, ki ata imadi.
Shivteicha u mishanteicha, heimah yenachamuni.
Ta'aroch le fanai shulchan, neged tzorerai, dishanta va shemen roshi, kosi revayah.
Ach tov va chesed yirdefuni kol yemei chayai, ve shavti be veit Adonai le orech yamim.
A psalm of David.
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures, He leads me beside the still waters.
He restores my soul, He leads me in the path of righteousness, for His name's sake.
Yea, though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil, for You are with me.
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
You set a table before me in the presence of my enemies, You have anointed my head with oil, my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. [Psalm 23.]
Visiting his in-laws in Singapore = Do not assume that the Rugachuga married out – it is as likely that his mechutenim (in-laws) settled in Singapore as an alternative to Miami (average temperature year round: 80 degrees) with more exciting food choices, and it may even be possible that they are descended from the ‘Sons of Moses’ (the ten lost tribes, exiled beyond the Sambatyon river after the conquest of the holy land by the Assyrian king Tiglath-Pileser III in 732 B.C.E.). When the Moshiach comes, these tribes will return en-masse, destroying Arabia in the process. How poetic.
Singapore has a rich spectrum of cuisines, from various types of Chinese (which we customarily associate with NITEL night), through Thai, and native Malay and Indonesian, to Indian (see above). While Indian meat dishes can often by no stretch of the imagination be considered kosher, the native cuisine of that part of the world is acceptable to minuvals who are light in their adherence to kashrus. At least, if you ignore that fact that everything is cooked in coconut milk (santen). Including, often, the rice.
The dominant flavours in many Indonesian and Malay dishes are coriander seed (ketumbar), turmeric, (kunyit), garlic (bawang puteh), ginger (jahe or halia), red dwarf ginger or galingale (lengkuas), lemon grass (serai), and of course coconut milk, palm sugar (gula djowo or gula malaka, derived from the sugar palm – pokok enau), and often a substance which is startling in its pungent ferocity: shrimp paste (trassi, blatjang, petis). Chilies (tjabai, lombok), while present in many dishes, are seldom used in excess – that is something left to the diners, who have the option of adding spoonful after spoonful of incendiary red pepper pastes (sambal) to their lauk-pauk (dishes and sides). Slamat makan (bon appetit)!
The Rebbe sat down at the table opposite the heavily armed bandit. The other bandits brought over a bottle of Slivovitz and their leader's dinner, a fresh Maine Lobster. After the eighth shot of Slivovitz, the bandits failed to notice as the lobster began to move its pincers. In a miracle reminiscent of the splitting of the Red Sea, the lobster grabbed the shaygitz by the nose, threw him against the wall, and vanquished all of his minions, while the Rebbe sat back and watched the proceedings.
A fresh Maine lobster = A rude animal that lobsts, of a particular geographic derivation. This is not a Yiddish or Hebrew word, and should never become part of your vocabulary.
Shaygitz = A gentleman of non-Jewish persuasion. Hence the lobsting beast for dinner.
Lobst = From an Old-English root, akin to Greek lekan (jump), related to Latin locusta, both the grasshopper and the locust. Related to Old English loppe (spider), a creature which lopes (leaps, leaps away), cognate with Dutch lopen (to walk), and ablautively also O.E. lepen (leaps, runs jumps). This per Ayto. The Nederlands Etymologisch Woordenboek (Dutch Etymological Dictionary, author Jan De Vries, publisher Brill, Leiden), while discussing cognates such as hloufan (Old German), hlaupa (Gothic), loupon (Old Saxon), shrugs its shoulders in despair at linking it with anything further back in the Indo-European lexicon. A link with loop (circle, noose) is possible.
When asked about this, the Rugachuga explained to his followers aboard the ship that as much as the Jews have kept kosher laws, kosher laws have preserved the Jews. Sometimes by safeguarding their cultural identity, but more often, by preventing them from eating overgrown insects and too much fast food.
Kosher laws have preserved the Jews = Because otherwise we’d be eating crap like Blue Peeps Pie (a blue gelatin cream pie with those horrible little electric blue marshmallow confections stuck on top, between pillows of cool-whip), chicken-fried bacon strips (I’m not kidding! In Texas they double dip bacon strips in batter and crumbs, nuke ‘em in the fryolator, and serve them with white gravy as appetizers. Appetizers!), or chicken Kiev (a pounded cut of chicken wrapped around a stick of herbed butter, breaded, and fried – heart attack on a plate).
I still can’t figure out how it is that there are so many Goyim. It must be part of the divine plan, I just wish HE would let us in on the details. I know we got the Moshiach and all, plus perenkugel, but I still feel strangely cheated. And esurient.
The Rugachaga Rebbe then took the loot gathered by the bandits and used their pirate ship to escape, never to be seen from again.
Like Moishe, having completed his task, he disappears from the scene. And from that day to this, none have seen him. Some believers are convinced that he will return, though they dispute over whether he is the seventh Rugachuga, the eleventh Rugachuga, the twelfth, the hidden Rugachuga, or in fact the ancestor of either the ruler of Oman or the Agha Khan. Es iz a shwere zach. Possibly a Shabbatean corruption of the concept of the Imam-e Zaman, who in Islamic lore will lead the faithful out of the wastes of Khorasan behind a green banner at the end of time, after coming out of concealment (ghaiba).
In our day, you too must see the relevance of not mixing milk and meat to your lives. You must be well grounded in the Rebboinoisheloilum's rules, though you fail to understand many of them, you am ha'aretz: the separation of milk and meat, tzitzis, tfillin, shiluach ha'kan, taharas hamishpacha (family purity), and waving a live chicken over your head. These rules are the essence of Yiddishkeit. Though you may feel foolish doing them, rest assured, you look foolish as well.
Tzitzis =The fringes of garments with four corners upon which you shall look and remember the commandments, as it says in Bamidbar (Numbers)15:37 “Va yomer Adonai el Moishe lemor” (And You Know Who spoke to Moses, saying) 15:38 “Daber el Bnei Yisrael, ve amarta alehem ve asu lahem tzitzit al kanfei vigdeihem le dorotam, ve natnu al tzitzit ha kanaf petil techelet” (speak to the children of Israel, ordering them to make fringes on their garments throughout their generations, and give to the fringes on the corners a blue thread).
Tfillin = Phylacteries. Two boxes, with straps, that are fastened to the forehead (the shel rosh - as a sign between your eyes) and upon the biceps of the weaker arm (the shel yad, so the right biceps if your lefthanded). Prayer boxes. Note that if there has been any water damage, cracking, or rounding of the corners, the tfillin are no longer kosher – you will have to shell out a considerable amount of money to have them replaced.
Shiluach HaKan = The sending away of a mother bird from the nest you wish to raid, providing that the birds in question are kosher. As it says in Devarim (Deuteronomy), Parshas Ki Setzei, psook 22:6 "Ki yikare kan tzipor le faneicha ba derech be chol etz o al ha aretz efrochim o veitzim ve ha em rovetzet al ha efrochim o al ha beitzim, lo tikach ha em al ha banim" (If a bird's nest happens to be in front of you, in any tree or on the ground, with chicks or eggs, and the mother-bird sitting upon the young or upon the eggs, you shall not take the mother with the children).
From this derives the mitzvah of chasing away the mother bird, which Avraham Ibn Ezra explains as being like the prohibition against slaughtering a cow and her calf on the same day, as it says in Vayikra (Leviticus), psook 22:28 “"Ve shor o se oto ve et beno, lo tishchatu be yom echad" (And whether it be cow or ewe, you shall not kill it with its young both in one day). He further compares it to the injunction not to cook an animal in its mother’s milk, and likens it to an indiscriminate taking of life.
The Rambam, on the other hand, explains it as a concern not to cause suffering, and believes that the injunction inculcates us with a merciful quality which should carry over into our relations with our fellow man.
I would like to suggest that this mitzvah also must tie in to our sense of charity and concern for others. We are instructed to refrain from taking it all, much like we are told, in Seyfer Vayikra, Psookim 19:9 through 10 “U vekutzrechem et ketzir artzechem lo techale pe'at sadcha liktzor ve leket ketzircha lo telaket" (And when you reap the harvest of your field, you must not entirely reap the corner of you field, nor gather the gleaning of your harvest), "ve charmecha lo teolel u feret karmecha lo telaket le ani ve lager ta'azov otam..." (and you shalt not glean your vineyard, nor gather the fallen fruit, but leave them for the poor and for the stranger...). This is stressed again in psook 23:22, and that there should be provision for the poor and the stranger is reiterated in Dvarim in psook 10:17 through 21 (love the stranger, for you were strangers in Mitzrayim). And then both charity and the issue of gleanings is restated more fully in psookim 24:19 through 22 with the addition of forgotten sheaves, olives left on the branches, and again grapes in the vineyard, which must be left for the stranger, the orphan, and the widow (la ger, la yatom, ve la almana).
What is baffling is that along with the mitzvah of honouring ones parents, the reward for Shiluach HaKan is said to be long life, as is written in Psook 22:7 “shaleach teshalach et ha em, ve et ha banim tikach lach le ma'an yitav lach ve ha arachta yamim" (send, send away the mother, but the young you may take for yourself; that it go well with you, and lengthen your days). Some have read into this that one must send away the mother, one must take the eggs. Instead, it is better interpreted to mean that if you need the eggs, you should nevertheless be gracious. As you should likewise be with gleanings, field-corners, olives, grapes – do not take all, but leave some for others who are less fortunate or come after you.
Waving a live chicken = One of the most beloved customs of Yoim Kippur. We atone for our sins by risking chicken doody in our hair. Then we do the same to our wives and children. Was it really the Germans who invented schadenfreude? I have my doubts.
These rules = The observant reader will note that metzitzah b’peh has been left out. Read into that what you will. Use a sponge. Only life should suck.
However, at the end of 120 years, you will reap your reward -- true joy at the Aimishteh's side. All day you will sit around a long table learning Toirah with Hakkadoshboruchhu and Moishe Rabbeinu. In the evening you will dine as a group, feasting on the levyasan, which will be good preparation for your night-time activity -- waiting for you in your room will be 72 virgins, wrapped in tfillin, and eating cheeseburgers.
A Gutten Shabbos, You Minuval.
APPENDIX A.
Alfred Russell Wallace’s journeys in South-East Asia formed the basis of his theories about evolution, which were eclipsed by Darwin publishing faster, and being a better salesman. Nevertheless, his book of his travels (The Malay Archipelago, by Alfred Russell Wallace) remains a classic in its field, and I highly recommend browsing through it, as it presents a view of a time and place now past. You can find it on the web at: http://www.worldwideschool.org/library/books/geo/travel/TheMalayArchipelagoVolume1/toc.html
APPENDIX B.
The Chofetz Chaim had a brilliant student at the yeshiva he founded in Radin, who married, and eventually stopped studying, as the needs of providing for a family took up more and more of his time.
One day the Chofetz Chaim ran into him, and urged him to resume his studies, even if only by joining a group for the study of one blatt (one folio page, side a and b) of Talmud a day. The student apologized, but indicated that this would be of little use – he used to devour ten blatt a day, surely one blatt would be as nothing? Better to wait until he again had the time, and then return to his studies.
The Chofetz Chaim told him of a man who was warned by his doctor to stay away from the baths, because in his weak condition they would prove too enervating. One day he passed the bath-house, gave in to temptation and went inside, enjoying the heat and steam for several hours. After a while, it affected him, so badly that he believed he would faint. Mustering all his remaining strength, he rushed to the Mikvah to cool off. But what was this? The door was locked! He wailed in despair. Someone came at his calling, with a basin of cold water to pour over him and relieve his discomfort.
Now surely this man did not say “that basin is not enough, what good will that do? I will have the mikva or nothing!” And so it is with study.
As Hillel says in Pirkei Avos, “Do not say ‘when I have leisure I will study’, for perhaps you may never have leisure.” [Avos 2:5]
APPENDIX C.
The mention of Indian and Persian food (above) must inevitably bring the glory of Avadh (Oudh) to mind, during the golden age of Laknav (Lucknow), when the Nawabs ruled a blessed land, the scholars of Farangi Mahal developed a rationalist strain of Islamic thought, and Urdu poets found refuge from a Delhi destroyed by the Afghan Ahmed Shah Abdali. In its time, Laknav was one of the capitol cities of a splendid Perso-Islamic culture that stretched from the Arab gulf to deep in central Asia and Bengal.
Surely the poet who wrote: “Agar firdaws bar ru-ye zamin ast, hamin ast, u hamin ast, u hamin ast” (If there is a paradise on earth, it is here, it is here, and it is here!) was writing of the beloved sar-zamin of the city by the Gomti river?
Laknav never looked better than during the vasant (spring) festival, when bajras (pleasure boats) bedecked in yellow (the colour of spring) flocked the river, and the fields outside the city were ablaze with flowering mustard.
And, as also mentioned above, food wins converts fast – there is much in Avadhi cuisine to tempt even a Rebbe, from Qorma and Pilaw to Kaliya (meat in a reduced curry sauce), Rizala (meat simmered in a cream base with itr (essences) and kewra jal added to finish), and Kababs of infinite art – Patli Kabab (smoke-flavoured lamb mince simmered with spices), Pasanda Kabab (meat sliced in an even layer from the thigh, pounded, spiced, and seethed in a mahatawa), and the famous Kakori Kabab (silken smooth minced lamb richly flavoured, wrapped around a skewer like seekh, and grilled). Lamb mince, it should be noted, has a softer texture than beef, and is better for kababs.
All of these are best served with the luscious flat-breads for which Avadh is also famous, fresh off the griddles, or hot from the domed iron tandur ovens only used here – luchi, paratha, rumali roti, sheermal, shahi kulcha, bukhari naan.
According to the master bawarchis (chefs de cuisine), food must have khush rang (a pleasing appearance), khush zayaga (a delicious taste), and khush rehiya (a pleasant aroma), all in equal measure. It should be a feast for the senses when arranged on the dastarkhwan spread as a tablecloth on the seating platform.
And in that spirit, some rice dishes:
MUTANJAN
[Semi-sweet lamb rice]
One and a half cups Basmati rice - washed, soaked an hour, drained.
One and a half pounds excellent lamb, chunk cut.
One onion, minced.
Half a cup sugar.
Half a cup water.
One lemon.
Six green cardamom pods.
Two black cardamom pods.
Two smallish pieces stick cinnamon.
Two blades of mace.
Two bay leaves.
One teaspoon whole peppercorns.
Six TBS real Desi ghee, or a fine vegetarian grease.
Two TBS rosewater.
Two TBS kewra water.
A very generous pinch of saffron.
Pinch salt.
1. Mix saffron, rosewater, and kewra water, and let stand to colour.
2. Make a syrup by dissolving the sugar in the half cup water in an enamel saucepan. Squeeze in the juice of the lemon, and remove from heat.
3. Fry the onion in the ghee till glazy-golden. Add the half of the whole spices, stir, add the meat and a small splash water. Fry till the oil comes out and the meat is browned. Cover with water, simmer till nearly dry. Remove the whole spices, and set the meat and onion mixture aside.
4. Bring a pot of water to boil with the remaining whole spices. Boil fiercely for five minutes to aromatize the water, then use your kafcha or kafgir to skim out the whole spices, and add the rice. Parboil till the rice starts to puff, then strain.
5. Mix the rice with the meat and onion in a casserole, add the syrup. Pour the rose-kewra-saffron water spiral-wise over the mixture, cover well, and use tinfoil or dough to really seal the edges and prevent much steam escaping. Set in a 300º oven for half an hour. Remove and up end on a platter.
Note I: Rosewater is available at Middle Eastern stores, Kewra water can be bought at Indian stores. Kewra, kewda, or keora is pandanus - the fragrant screwpine, which has a semi floral grass-like aroma. One can substitute a jigger of pandan extract (available in S.E.Asian markets).
Note II: This version of Mutanjan is not nearly as sweet as some.
ANANAS KA MUZAFFAR
[Electric yellow rice with syrup, pineapple chunks, and ghee!]
One cup basmati rice.
One and a half tsp saffron.
Two cups sugar.
One cup pineapple juice.
2 TBS lemon juice.
5 cloves.
5 green cardamom.
5 drops yellow foodcolour.
5 fresh pineapple rings, chunk cut.
Quarter cup ghee.
1. Rinse and soak the rice for 2 hours. Drain.
2. Soak the saffron in two TBS warm water.
3. Boil sugar with half a cup water, pineapple and lemon juices; stir until the syrup becomes thick. Reserve.
4. Heat four cups water in a pot with the cloves, cardamom pods and yellow food colouring added. Boil fiercely for five minutes, skim out the spices with a kafgir, and add the rice. Cook till puffy and half way done. Drain.
5. Heat the syrup over low heat to boiling, add the rice, mix well and remove from the fire when heated through, whereupon stir in the pineapple chunks and the saffron water.
6. Transfer the rice mixture to a shallow casserole, place the lid on tight and set the casserole in the oven at 300 degrees for half an hour.
7. Melt the ghee and pour it in a circular motion all over the rice.
Note I: You may want to serve this with a bottle of maple syrup or a pot of honey on the side – some people like it much, much sweeter.
Note II: Muzaffar means yellowed. Which, thanks to liberal use of both food colour and saffron, it will indeed be.
Note III: This dish can also be done with mango (Aamb Ka Muzaffar) or even jackfruit (Kathal Ka Muzaffar).
APPENDIX D.
I made mention of coconut milk – which deserves a further note. Coconut milk is not the liquid inside the nut (coconut water), but is gotten from the grated flesh by pouring warm water over it and kneading it vigorously, then straining. It is used in many South-East Asian dishes as a cooking liquid (it can curdle, so never cover the pan), and its flavour is omnipresent, from Sabang in Atjeh to Merauke in New Guinea, and all the way north to the plains of Thailand. It is, oddly enough, also a well-known flavour in the Netherlands, evoking for the Dutch in their frigid boggy wasteland fond memories of a tropic paradise, a gartel of emeralds along the equator.
There are three types of dishes which are impossible to prepare without coconut milk – Gulai (stew curry), Kurma (yes, same term as Qorma, but a nut-paste sauce curry), and Rendang (meat cooked dry and oily with chilies). Below are three examples, paradigms for each type.
GULAI AYAM – Chicken Stew
One pound of chicken chunks, on the bone.
Two shallots, minced.
One or two cloves garlic, equivalent amount ginger, minced.
One scallion, white and green minced separately (the green for garnish).
Three or four kemiri nuts, ground, or a TBS of peanut butter or walnut paste.
One Tsp. ground coriander.
Half Tsp. each: turmeric, paprika, sugar.
Generous pinches cayenne, ground pepper, dry ginger.
One stalk lemongrass (bruised), one stick cinnamon, one or two bay leaves.
One and a half cup coconut milk (one regular size tin).
One cup water.
Squeeze of lime or lemon juice, jigger of Louisiana hotsauce.
Gild the shallot in oil, add the garlic and ginger. When it becomes fragrant, add the powder spices, stir briefly, add the meat, and stir to coat. Add everything else (except the scallion green)and simmer for about forty minutes. It should be slightly soupy, sauce not too thick. Garnish with the minced green part of the scallion, serve with white rice in a deep plate.
Note: A Javan would add trassi (shrimp-paste) to this, with a tablespoon of palm-sugar. A Sumatran would jazz it up with a generous amount of chili pepper.
KURMA KAMBING – Lamb or goat curry
One to one and a half pound of lamb or goat chunks on the bone.
One small-medium onion, chunked.
One or two cloves garlic, equivalent amount ginger.
Three or four kemiri nuts, ground, or a TBS of peanut butter or walnut paste.
One Tsp ground coriander.
Half a Tsp ground cumin.
Quarter Tsp ground pepper.
Generous pinches nutmeg, ground clove, cinnamon, and salt.
A small stick of cinnamon, a few green cardamom pods.
One and a half cup coconut milk (one regular size tin).
One beefsteak tomato, peeled, seeded, chopped.
Throw the onion, garlic, and ginger into the blender, with enough coconut milk to facilitate grinding. When smooth, decant to a bowl and mix in the ground spices. Fry this paste till fragrant, add meat to turn, add everything else, and simmer on low for an hour and a half. The sauce should thicken considerably – stir to prevent any scorching. Serve with white rice.
Note: This is a feast dish in Sumatra, Borneo, and even among the Tausug in the Sulu islands in the Southern Philippines. A Sumatran would add split chilies to simmer in the sauce, a Tausug would add a touch of dark roasted coconut and some turmeric.
RENDANG – Coconut oil meat
The simplest dish of all. Large chunks of meat are covered with coconut milk to generously submerge them, turmeric and hot pepper are added (figure one or two Tsp of cayenne and about half a Tsp of turmeric per pound of meat), a few other spices (pepper, cumin), and some ginger. Cook till the liquid has been entirely taken up by the meat, and the oil comes out. Now turn up the heat, and frazzle the chunks in the oily paste remaining until well gilded.
This keeps for several days, and is eaten only as a side dish next to the main courses. Hence it should be made with an excess of hot pepper. The Javan version is a pale imitation of what is served in Bukit Tinggi, Dili or Medan. Where they would use water-buffalo meat.
All of the above can be garnished with Serundeng – shredded coconut mixed with a little minced onion and tamarind water, pinches of turmeric, coriander, cumin, and cayenne, spread on a cookie sheet and baked on a very low heat till dry and toasty, and a lovely autumnal gold in hue. When cool, put in a jar in a cool place. It keeps for a few months, but is best within the month. It, too, is addictive. A Gujerati of my acquaintance who tasted this once now eats it by the handful as a snack in front of the teevee while watching Bollywood tearjerkers.
But we add spoonfuls over our curry and rice. And so should you.
