KUALA LUMPUR: Today's most talked about fruit on Twitter has to be the ever delicious and sexy strawberries.
All thanks to the Cameron Highlands by-election and Pontian MP Datuk Seri Ahmad Maslan.
The highland town has always been famous for its strawberries, and with politicians flocking there ahead of the Jan 26 by-election, Ahmad, known for his cooking adventures on social media introduced his latest creation: nasi goreng strawberry.
Many took to ridiculing the MP for combining the fruit, often associated with desserts, with fried rice.
Rembau MP Khairy Jamaluddin jokingly remarked that while he was a fan of Ahmad's cooking, this new recipe was just 'gross'.
He shared a photo of a pavlova topped with berries, and said this was the correct way to use strawberries.
"You can call it Ahmad Maslan's Pavlova," he tweeted.
Youth and Sports minister Syed Saddiq Syed Abdul Rahman thought the recipe was an even bigger crime than 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), all in a light-hearted manner, of course.
Other Twitter users also found it odd that the former Barisan Nasional (BN) cabinet minister opted to put strawberries on a plate of fried rice.
Food enthusiasts however would know that strawberries have long been included in a variety of savoury recipes.
One such dish is the barbecued strawberry chicken.
Recipe website 'Taste of Home' shared a recipe for chicken cooked with a cup of sliced fresh strawberries, among other ingredients, and received positive reviews from those who tried it.
One reviewer who posted under the name 'Gail' said, "A bite of chicken with a strawberry slice was out of this world."
For those who live in Cameron Highlands or have been there on holiday, they would definitely be familiar with 'sambal strawberry'.
While it only came about in the past few years, it is fast becoming quite popular and can be eaten with rice, bread or simply on its own.
So basically, don't knock it till you've tried it. If you are as adventurous as our Pontian MP, give nasi goreng strawberry a try and tell us how it went.