Leave it to the Japanese to come up with some of the coolest and yet weirdest trends around. Somehow, the latest idea that they've come up with is meat cakes. This unusual concept is also unusually intriguing. In all honesty, this trend is slightly confusing, but we're willing to give it a go because it is, after all, a cake full of meat. Plus, they look absolutely gorgeous when they are artfully layered and decorated with meat roses. Who needs frosting anyways?
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If you aren't convinced that next year a meat cake is going to replace your traditional sweet treat, have a look at some examples that might persuade you otherwise.
See, the plate is even decorated with a saucy inscription just as it would be if you ordered a normal dessert.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BawWekKDXaX/?tagged=meatcake
And this one comes with vegetables that are made into a work of art. If you aren't in love with veggies now, you may never be.
According to Kotaku, these savory stacks of meat that are dubbed with the porte manteau "cake" started appearing a couple years ago and haven't stopped gaining popularity. Now, they are popping up at yakiniku (yaki =grilled niku=meat) restaurants all over Japan.
Yakiniku restaurants are popular destinations for birthday revelers in Japan. Why, we don't know. But it does seem like a fun idea to grill your meat at the table.
Naturally, enterprising chefs decided to let the stacks of meat speak for themselves. Instead of simply stacking up slices of meat, crafty food artists began by shaping the cuts into something that resembled a birthday cake minus the frosting. This nifty idea accomplishes both the need for dinner and a cake at a birthday celebration with just one order.
Plus, diners get the joy of dissecting the cake and creating a scrumptious meal from a gorgeous presentation.
Whether or not this trend of meaty birthday cakes will catch on here in the US remains to be seen.
However, those with summertime birthdays at the height of grilling season may not be opposed to the idea.
