The irony of the title 'Simple Recipes'
The title of this book is entirely satirical. At the beginning of the novel, the narrator says, "There is a simple recipe for cooking rice." The notion the reader gets is that cooking rice is the easiest thing to do in the kitchen; ironically, the narrator goes ahead to say that she finds it difficult to match her father's cooking skills. The reader expects the narrator to learn the tactics of cooking rice as quickly as possible, but that is not the case.
The irony measuring water
No matter how excellent an individual is doing particular things, the reader finds it satirical that the narrator's father can measure cups while his eyes are closed! The narrator says, "My father did not need instructions or measuring cups. He closed his eyes and felt for the waterline.” How possible is this? It is beyond imagination that someone can close his eyes and get all his measuring correct. Consequently, this is the irony of the narrator’s father.
The irony of the cooked rice
The narrator is a slow learner, and she believes that she will take a long time to master the art of cooking rice. When her father allows her to cook rice, she suspects herself, and she thinks that her father will reject or refuse to eat her so poorly cooked rice, but he enjoys it cooked rice. The narrator says, "In answer, my father would keep eating, pushing the rice into his mouth as if he never expected anything different, as if he noticed no difference between what he did so well and I so poorly.”
The irony of the narrator’s cooking style
The narrator’s father knows that cooking rice is the simplest thing to do. He tells her daughter, “The instructions are simple. Once the washing is done, you measure the water this way – by resting the tip of your index finger on the surface of the rice. The water should reach the bend of your first index finger.” Satirically, these instructions look simple, but in practice, it takes one year to master the expertise of cooking rice, and the narrator's point of view proves this.
The irony of live fish
The narrator recalls the day when her father was preparing fish for supper. She watched keenly, and she realized that the fish was still alive and kicking. According to the narrator's description of the live fish, the reader expects her to be merciful and stop her father from killing the fish for supper. The reader finds it satirical that the narrator is already drooling to eat the fish and she does not like the way the fish looks at her helplessly. The narrator says, "The fish is barely breathing, though its mouth opens and closes. I reach up and touch it through the plastic bag, trailing my fingers along with the grills, the soft, muscled body, pushing my finger to overtop the eyeball. The fish looks straight at me, flopping sluggishly from side to side."
