24 Flavours — 8. Pomfret is a Big Thing

This 24 Flavours literary journey is part of a series of writings from a few years back when Math Paper Press was actively publishing it. The series has since gone into hiatus but I’ll sharing the pieces that were written. Each piece is based on a food theme, 24 in total. I had devised mine to centre on my family, and some of the storylines are interconnected. Not all 24 stories are completed so you’ll have to check back periodically to read all of them.

“Boy, stop eating the bee zceng on the uncooked pomfret. Later you sure get diarrhoea.” Ma yelled at me before turning her attention back to washing the kai lan.

One of the big treats of our dinner menu was either steamed silver pomfret or deep-fried black pomfret. For the latter, Ma would coat it with a sprinkle of MSG, let it sit for an hour or so before deep frying it. For no rhyme or reason, I had developed a taste for the sprinkle of MSG that Ma used to marinate the fish. I knew this was weird but I couldn’t resist swiping the MSG with my index finger and putting it into my mouth.

Later on, the pomfret would be lolling in the hot oil, missing portions of the magic-tasting powder. The kai lan veggies were the last to be cooked and dished. Kor would help with plating the rice. Then, Pa and Kor would be seated at the table enjoying their hot dinner. I would be in front of the TV, digging my way through my plate. Ma would wait for everyone to finish before she started on hers. She was always the last to eat.

When she was done, only the pomfret’s bony head and skeleton would be left. Ma said the head was her favourite part of the fish though she liked the stomach too. I’d sometimes sit at the table as she ate, watching her finish everything.

These days, I have lost the taste for that “salty” additive but I have learnt to like eating the fish head and stomach as much as Ma had. As the years went by, I seemed to have inherited largely my Ma’s tastebuds. Her love for bitter gourd stir fried with eggs, bitter fish stomach, salted fish, century egg, roast duck neck, pig’s ears, and white radish soup are now a part of existence and sustenance. Perhaps I am as much of her then I’d prefer and yet, inheriting her tastebuds has become a remembrance of her.