39
the thought of chewing up a fish eye made me gag! I was not about to offend this
wonderful family, so I swallowed it whole. The meal was very satisfying and tasty!
After the meal, I walked back to the road and made my way home.
Fish Cooked on a Stick
On another occasion, along with some colleagues from DARA, we got into several
larger canoes for a recreational outing (Fig. 26). Our guide took us to a place at the
lake’s edge for lunch.
A fire was burning on the ground just out from a lean-to. When we got there,
some fresh fish had been caught (Fig. 27).
I wondered how the fish would be cleaned and prepared. At home in the United
States, I fished a lot and we clean the fish by cutting it open from the anus to the
gills. We then remove all the entrails and most often cut the fish head off as well.
Many times we filet the fish meat off of the skeleton and remove the skin before
preparing the meat. Thus the meat is truly skinless and boneless. If a fisherman
leaves the skin on, for sure he would remove all the scales before preparation. So to
say the least, I was amazed how the Orang Asli prepared my fish. They took the
fresh fish, stuck a stick deep into the cavity through its mouth, and held the fish over
open fire (Fig. 28).
Fig. 25 Rattan ready for commercial sale, Pahang, Malaysia, 1974
Orang Asli Anecdotal Reflections
the thought of chewing up a fish eye made me gag! I was not about to offend this
wonderful family, so I swallowed it whole. The meal was very satisfying and tasty!
After the meal, I walked back to the road and made my way home.
Fish Cooked on a Stick
On another occasion, along with some colleagues from DARA, we got into several
larger canoes for a recreational outing (Fig. 26). Our guide took us to a place at the
lake’s edge for lunch.
A fire was burning on the ground just out from a lean-to. When we got there,
some fresh fish had been caught (Fig. 27).
I wondered how the fish would be cleaned and prepared. At home in the United
States, I fished a lot and we clean the fish by cutting it open from the anus to the
gills. We then remove all the entrails and most often cut the fish head off as well.
Many times we filet the fish meat off of the skeleton and remove the skin before
preparing the meat. Thus the meat is truly skinless and boneless. If a fisherman
leaves the skin on, for sure he would remove all the scales before preparation. So to
say the least, I was amazed how the Orang Asli prepared my fish. They took the
fresh fish, stuck a stick deep into the cavity through its mouth, and held the fish over
open fire (Fig. 28).
Fig. 25 Rattan ready for commercial sale, Pahang, Malaysia, 1974
Orang Asli Anecdotal Reflections