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| Fig.1. Three thin slices of meat, one large garden salad. |
“How many animals have you killed today?” A homeless man
said to me as I descended to the Guy/Concordia metro station. I had just finished a class at
Concordia and was heading home. The man, standing at the base of the escalators, had his hand out looking for some form of security. His belligerent rumblings
were heard by all who flowed up and down the electronic steps, and with my
shield up, I walked past him rather than give him the spare change he needed to
save up enough for a trip to the SAQ.
He asked me how many animals I killed because, at the time
this occurred, I was considerably larger than I am today, larger by 150lbs,
give or take a few. This comment, apart
from make me feel bad, made me think. I
wondered what the answer to his question was: how many chickens, cows, pigs and
rabbits had I killed? How many ducks by way of chewing had died as a result of
my appetite? Far more than if I ate solely for survival it would seem. While I
didn’t do the math, I reckon I had killed far too many animals by way of decadent
suppers and larger than necessary portions. And all this exacerbated by my
ridiculous desire to chronicle my life as I lived to eat rather than humbly eating
to live, and writing stories about that.
I thought about my family in Ripi, Italy, living off the farm. If the
belligerent homeless man took a trip to Ripi and asked my uncle how many
animals he had killed he would be fully capable of answering him: Two pigs, I
veal and four sheep a year, two to three chickens and rabbits a week, and all
this to feed a family of 5 adults. (as well as extended family on special
occasions) I can tell you that the pigs are transformed into various cured
salumi, as well as sausages and some chops. The veal is butchered and the meat vacuumed
packed and frozen, as for the sheep, one on Easter and one at Christmas,
another 2 vacuumed packed and frozen.
While we cannot all be humble farmers who live off the land,
we can be more mindful of our animal consumption, not just as individuals but also
as city dwellers, country dwellers, and inhabitants of North America as a
whole. New York Times food writer Mark Bittman holds that North
Americans consume 10 billion cows a year. This is a staggering number for 25 percent
of the world’s population to be consuming, most of the cows puréed and molded
into processed foods and sold to fast food restaurants. North American chicken consumption is in the
100’s of billions.
I’m not turning into a vegetarian any time soon, but frozen
processed foods for me have been a thing of the past for quite a while now, and
fast food visits are few and very far between.
As for how many animals I kill daily, I still don’t keep count but there
are many days I don’t kill any.
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| Fig.2. Dry lettuce makes for a great salad. |
Garden Salad with cheese and eggs
This lettuce is from my grandfather's garden, the cherry tomatoes are from Birri in the Jean Talon Market. The taste of something so
fresh takes offence with each ingredient you add to it. If it’s fresh, keep it
simple. The cheese and egg are there for protein’s sake. The key to a great salad is dry lettuce, so take the time to dry it properly. Once your lettuce is thoroughly dry, mix all of your ingredients together and eat. Perfect on hot, summer days.
