Warning: Not for vegetarians

This year I spent Ramadan in the Arab Emirates, something which I have not done for many years since I moved back to the UK in 1995. Ramadan in the Middle East is a very cultural experience as it affects everyone, both muslims and non-muslims. The working day is shortened and the people become nocturnal, the cities restaurants, markets, gyms and shopping malls coming to life at night, after Iftar. There are  Ramadan tents erected for the Iftar meal and remain open till the early hours for shisha pipe, special Ramadan sweets and drinks and snacks.

During Ramadan, my children and I spent the majority of the daytime at home, and I spent time trying out new ingredients and recipes in the kitchen. I got a lot of recipes from a famous Arab TV cook called Manal Al Alam and I used to spend an hour each day watching her cooking a 4 course Iftar meal and jotting down the ingredients and cooking methods. She would make a starter, main course, a Ramadan dessert and a cold fruit or vegetable drink of some sort. I stuck to starters and main courses, as arabic sweets tend to contain a large amount of ghee, buttermilk, sugar, and deep fat frying as well as being very complicated and time consuming to prepare. Maybe in another life.

I also went to an Islamic slaughterhouse to observe the Muslim ritual slaughter of a kid goat. This is the first time I have seen this in my life and it was an eye opening experience considering that the only meat I have seen is in neatly cut pieces in neat packages at the butcher's and I have never seen the actual living animal before becoming Halal meat. 

During the celebration of Eid, Muslims remember and commemorate the trials and triumphs of the prophet Abraham by slaughtering an animal such as a sheep, camel or goat. The meat from the sacrifice  is mostly given away to others. Some is eaten by immediate family, some given away to relatives and friends, but mostly it is donated to the poor. This act symbolises our willingness to make sacrifices give up things that are of benefit to us in order to help those in need.

The slaughter has to be done with one forward and backward stroke of the knife. The slaughterer must be a sane Muslim and must perform the slaughter in the name of Allah. The throat, windpipe and both jugular veins must be cut, but the spinal cord must not be cut. An animal killed in this way does not suffer if the cut is made quickly and cleanly enough, because the animal loses consciousness before the brain can perceive any pain. This method also causes maximum and rapid blood loss which is safer and healthier. After the blood has been drained, the head is removed and the animal is skinned, this was done so skilfully, it was as if a coat was being removed from the body. Next the animal is gutted, and the internal organs are removed, some of these are also consumed such as the liver and kidneys.
Finally, the animal is ready to be cut into parts as required by the customer. The whole process takes about 20 minutes and is performed in a large sterile warehouse in a production line manner with around a dozen slaughterers working side by side. There was a viewing window for those who wish to watch.
I was impressed with how sterile the whole place was, with dedicated staff to hose the floor, and take away unwanted animal parts such as the skin and guts. The slaughterers' aprons, knives and boots were constantly hosed down, and you would rarely see blood as the flow was pouring out into a drainage system which has been specially built into the floor. It could even be described as clinical, it reminded me of an operating theatre in a hospital. I was actually quite impressed with it all and I can now say I have witnessed what Halal meat actually means.