Lauk kari ayam tanpa bau kari ‘busuk’ – Lao Muji

Salam sejahtera, para pembaca setiaku!

Sebuah syarikat makanan kecil-kecilan, Lao Muji, dilanda kontroversi dek bahasa yang digunakan di Instagram mereka untuk mengetengahkan lauk kari ayam.

hey quick question what is “no smelly curry powder” supposed to mean pic.twitter.com/H8Qvk4g8jU
— kimbo (@ladyarduenna) June 25, 2020

Daripada gambar tangkap layar oleh pengguna Twitter @ladyarduenna, Lao Muji telah menulis:

BOLEHKAH ANDA BAU AROMANYA? Sepanjang tahun, Makcik Cheri telah menyempurnakan resipi Kari Ayamnya. Kami hanya gunakan peha ayam ternak-bebas, dimasak dengan telur, kentang dan rempah ditumbuk segar (tiada bau busuk serbuk kari!)

Alamak sis. Obviosuly frasa tersebut mendatangkan perdebatan hangat di Twitter!

Apa yang dimaksudkan dengan ‘bau busuk serbuk kari’? Kari tu bau busuk ke? Abeh kari dia kalau tak bau kari, bau apa eh? Petai? Belacan? Honestly, brown people’s food ni memang ada bau yang kuat. But kami tidak akan describekannya as… smelly.

Selain itu, untuk membuat kari bukan serbuk kari saja digunakan, banyak lagi rempah ratus harus ada. Kenapa korang cakap pasal serbuk kari je???????? OMG what hahahha.

Ramai juga berpendapat bahawa Makcik Cheri tak begitu mahir masak kari. Kerana serbuk kari harus ditumis hingga keluar aroma harumnya!

Are we going back to 2011? Tentang the whole drama pasal jiran mereka masak kari?

View this post on Instagram

In 2013, I wrote ‘Cook A Pot of Curry’ for @wildricesg, a documentary play about immigration and identity. 2 years before that, the press reported on ‘the curry incident’—new immigrants from China had complained about the smell of curry from their neighbours’ house, and the issue had to be brought to a Community Mediation Centre. 2013 was also the year the Population White Paper was released, which projected the number of 6.9 million residents by 2030. Many Singaporeans felt that unfettered immigration had led to wage suppression, job competition, higher housing costs and overcrowded public transport. Some of the voices that I captured included political commentator @andrewlohhp, activist @rachelabsinthe, and writers @rafaat_haji_hamzah and @sudhirtv. But the interview that I remember the most was one I conducted with Jolovan Wham (@jwham). Over some prata at a coffeeshop in Perumal Road, I learnt about his ‘typical middle class’ upbringing, his education in social work, and his journey through migrant worker activism. I knew then, as I know now, that all it takes for us to penetrate through the fog of mischaracterisations is to sit down (and break prata) with the ‘other’. I would have gladly listened to Jolovan’s stories late into the evening, as the sky began to bruise and the traffic started twinkling with headlights. And maybe finished off (half) a pot of curry together.

A post shared by Alfian Sa'at (@alfiansaat) on Jun 25, 2020 at 6:29pm PDT

Secara kebetulan, karyawan Melayu Alfian Sa’at juga baru saja memuatnaik gambar mengenai karyanya ‘Cook A Pot of Curry’ di Instagram.

Nampaknya masalah yang sama tetap wujud walaupun sudah hampir sedekad peristiwa ini berlaku.

Mujurlah Lao Muji telah mengeluarkan kata-kata maaf.

Hai lelaki-lelaki, kami benar-benar minta maaf kerana menulis ‘serbuk kari busuk’. Kami tidak berniat untuk menyinggung sesiapa atau sebarang bangsa. Hakikatnya, kami peminat segala macam jamuan. Kami hanya ingin bermaksud bahawa kami gunakan bahan-bahan segar dan bukan serbuk paket. Dalam kes ini, kami faham bahawa kami tidak melafazkannya begitu baik dan kami minta maaf seikhlasnya atas kesilapan kami.

Siaran kari ayam itu telah dipadam.

Ok lah, lain kali jangan panggil makanan busuk tau? Tengok saja kalau mat salleh panggil durian busuk, kita melenting kan? Apatah lagi kalau masyarakat Singapura sendiri panggil makanan kita sendiri busuk. Lagilah kita bingit. Kecuali kalau makanan tu sendiri memang digelar busuk seperti smelly tofu… gitu!

Oh, kepada korang yang nak order, it’s not halal ye!

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Say hi to our take on the traditional lo mai gai- our Steamed Sticky Glutinous Rice Balls! 🤗 For these, we use hand minced pork instead of chicken for a sweeter flavour & softer texture. Come & taste the difference now! #laomuji #老母记 #stayhomesg #supportlocal

A post shared by 老母记 (@lao_muji) on Jun 14, 2020 at 3:17am PDT