Curried Rat Enjoyed By Soldiers In Malaya

Press, Volume C, Issue 29469, 22 March 1961, Page 10

Curried Rat Enjoyed By Soldiers In Malaya

(Army Information SertHea)

TAIPING. Monkey meat and birdnest soup may be two foods New Zealand soldiers will miss when they return home from Malaya. They have enjoyed the local foods during their stay here, from scorching curries served once a ■week in camp, to curried bamboo rat eaten on jungle patrol. The curiosity of many soldiers has been aroused by menu items such as shark fin soup, or even bats. Ninety per cent, of the dishes have been found very tasty. Soldiers on jungle patrols have had the best chance to try unusual dishes. “The abos seem to eat anything except snakes.” says Second-Lieutenant N. Kidd, of Wellington, whose men have tried practically every aborigine dish while patrolling a jungle area. “We've had fish. pigs, squirrel, monkeys. bamboo rats. deer, birds, bats and frogs.” The light ration packs used by soldiers on patrol lack bulk for big eaters though the nutriment embodied is more than adequate. As a result some tried out aborigine foods and once the word got around that they were tasty the habit spread. Wild Tapioca From abandoned aborigine cultivations, wild tapioca is taken. The tubers, which sometimes reach a foot in length, provide a starchy sweet potato which is very enjoyable when fried as chips or mashed with plenty of salt. The leaves taste like spinach. Iban trackers attached to the New Zealand battalion introduced the New Zealanders to a hyacinth-like flower tasting rather like asparagus. Fern nodules are eaten here as they are in New Zealand and tree roots have also been eaten. Curry and rice provided in the ration packs are a good basis for preparing native foods. Curried bamboo rat is one popular dish. It tastes like rich mutton. Giant frogs as big as footballs are clean eating and taste similar to fine sea fish. Lizard is curried. Monkey, which has a gamey taste, and squirrel, have been' eaten quite often "The main thing about eating jungle food is to watch what the aborigines eat.” says Lieutenant Kidd. "We don’t go for unskinned or ungutted animals, but apart from thait we've tried most things.” Unsuccessful One aborigine stuck a bat into the camp fire one night, singed it and ate the great wings like potato chips. He broke the mouse-like body in half and gave Lieutenant Kidd a piece. The experiment was not successful. Pineapples, bananas and a local fruit called durian are found in abandoned cultivations. Durian is a foulsmelling fruit reputed to have aphrodisiacal effects, but its extreme richness and smell have put many men off after a mouthful. The New Zealanders trap fish and animals by the methods used by the aborigines. Fish traps practically identical to the Maori traps for inanga (whitebait) yield several tasty fish. More military methods produce bigger fish similar to cod. which grows up to three feet long. Aborigine “pressure cookers” made from bamboo sections are used to prepare some items. Pigs and bantams from the aborigines are curried.

Eating shops abound in the towns of Malaya, for many people buy their meals out. Taiping has many food shops and stalls, a number of which are frequented by New Zealanders in search of a change from European food. One popular place is •The Drain.” an open-sided stall by the market place; and another is Simpang, about five miles down the main road, w’here parties often end up with the local equivalent of a pie-cart meal. In the Chinese shops in town, the soldiers have learned to use chop sticks for nasigoreng. a local dish of rice flecked with prawns, egg, vegetables, and other tasty tidbits. Nasigoreng and curry are served once a week in the camp messes and further dishes may be introduced on popular demand.

Prawns, shark fin soup, and many other peculiar dishes are popular with the New Zealanders. Chinese food with its many sauces is extremely piquant and many enjoy the great 10-course meals which take up to two hours to eat. Indian curries and Malay sate (basted meat on sticks) are popular, too.