This is a question I get a lot when I go out for lunch or dinner with colleagues or friends. I always tell them it is a religion thing as it is the easiest explanation but there is more to that story hence this post.
In Hindu religion, beef is not allowed as we consider cow to be a sacred animal. It is worshiped as mother and God as it provides us with milk like a mother. We have a special day during Tihar festival to celebrate the special place cows and oxen have in our lives. Please read more here.
Until recently, Nepal used to be the Hindu country where selling and eating beef was illegal but now it is not. Anyway, while I was growing up in Nepal, beef was never an options so it never was a question.
When I moved to Australia, there were no restrictions on me. My parents never asked me not to eat and I am not that religious to not eat beef just for that reason. Most of my friends here eat beef already as it is the easiest and cheapest options for meat. But something about the smell of beef has always turned me off. Definitely I am not into steak, may be curry won’t be that bad as it will be very close to buffalo we eat in Nepal but I have never thought of starting eating beef. I have eaten beef my mistake a few time like in a salami or pie and never liked it.
I think if you didn’t eat something ever, sometimes the new taste doesn’t agree with you and it seems to be the case with beef for me. There were so many opportunity I could have started eating it but I never wanted to.
Once AS came to Australia, I was fully predicting that he would be a beef eater as he was living in the US and it is so normal for guys to do it but he never ate beef before too which means I never had to cook it.
I am not going to say never but it looks like we may not eat beef, ever. But explaining all this will not be easy to everyone so I always say I don’t because of religious sentiments.
I also know that one day when we have kids, they will definitely eat it and we will have no problem with that.
Take care everyone and more update from Nepal very soon :),
M from nepaliaustralian
XOXO
nepaliaustralian 