Thursday, February 7, 2013

There Are Many Benefits To Halal Meals Ready To Eat

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By Alyce Larson


Halal is a Qu'ran, Arabic word meaning in its simplest term permissible and lawful. It gets applied most to food, but covers drink, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals and is crucially important to a quarter of people living on the planet today. The faithful of Islam eat only such foods. Muslims live life and eat according to these principles, with cleanliness, integrity and self-restraint implied. With the fast moving pace of today, Halal meals ready to eat make perfect sense.

These foods are classified as haram, the very opposite to halal. Pork and all its variations and by-products, animals who've died before slaughter or slaughtered not in the proper way. Also carnivorous animals, those preying on others. Any food that may be contaminated by banned animal, blood or meat products is also banned. Intoxicating alcohol is haram.

For modern Muslims in the West, the concept of ready dishes prepared properly by Muslims to the appropriate standards marks a significant step in the right direction. It's true that butchers and specialist stores aren't sufficiently widespread, despite there being some 1.6 million Muslims around the world, with that figure growing all the time. Being certain that you're cooking ready-to-eat dishes that are approved is much more convenient. No need to prepare all from specially bought ingredient for every meal.

Some additives and ingredients are deemed mashboosh, questionable. That's since their origins cannot be confirmed. This list includes emulsifiers, flavourings, enzymes and gelatine. With a lot of ready dishes that aren't certified, some mashboosh items are likely to exist, so strict adherants of Shari'ah in particular have needed to forego them.

The slaughter rituals creating halal are called zabihah, comparable to kosher. This was a matter of quite heated controversy recently. That's due to some considering it cruel that animals need be alive and well before killing, which is done by a razor- sharp knife across the throat. In reality, this is a quick, painless method. It's done so that the entire blood, considered haram, drains out of the animal.

To be sure, always seek certified products. In America, the organization giving out certification is the Islamic Food and Nutrition Council of America or IFANCA. Their website gives guidance about which foods are approved and which are questionable, with lists of brand-name dishes and products from across the world which are certified. You're able to search product availability for other countries besides the US.

In Britain, it's the Halal Food Authority or HFA that's the governing body. Rather than giving listings of products, it provides a membership directory for you to consult. In addition, it lists approved takeaways and restaurants, including the approved fast-food branches that are safe to eat at.

With increased availability of Halal meals ready to eat, there's so much more to choose from. Dishes include fantastic curries, stews, haleem and more. Chinese, Asian and Thai meals are within easier reach of most Muslim families. Baby foods plus packed lunches, ready snacks and microwaveable items, non cook tinned goods and more are ideal for the kids. Buy certified products and eat with confidence.




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