“I do eat the poo chute”: Sophie Monk’s shrimpy confession
<p>When Sophie Monk, host of <em>Love Island Australia</em> and a regular on The Hundred with Andy Lee, stopped by for a chat on National Prawn Day, it should have been safe to assume that the conversation wouldn’t steer to a prawn’s digestive tract.</p>
<p>And yet - somehow for <em>Today </em>show hosts Karl and Sarah, that’s exactly how things went. </p>
<p>“From the glitz and glamour of the red carpet to the Sydney Fish Market,” came Sophie’s introduction, before Karl exclaimed, “an ambassador for prawns!”</p>
<p>“I’m the face of prawns,” Sophie confirmed. “I don’t think I look like a prawn - I mean, I’m dressed a bit like a prawn - but, yeah, I’m the face of prawns. I get asked to do a lot of endorsements.”</p>
<p>Karl, wanting to get to the bottom of Sophie’s surprising career move, asked, “why did you choose this?” </p>
<p>“Because prawns are my thing,” Sophie told him, “they’re very Aussie, and everyone kind of eats prawns.” </p>
<p>From there, Sophie went on to state that vegans probably didn’t, and Sarah Abo noted that it just “means there’s more for us”.</p>
<p>Karl then asked about the “emotional moment” when she’d gotten the call, and Sophie was more than happy to fill him in, telling the hosts “it’s funny you ask, because I get calls for make-up brands - you name it, and I’m like ‘no, it’s not my brand’. Prawns? I went ‘that’s my brand’.</p>
<p>“It’s Aussie, everyone loves it.” </p>
<p>And it was then that Sophie revealed the truth behind her particular prawn habits, describing how she’s “really good at peeling them … but I do eat the poo chute thing.” </p>
<p>Sarah, without missing a beat, told her she “can’t do that, Soph!” </p>
<p>But Sophie wasn’t having any of it, telling the pair that she’d given it some thought, and that she’d decided it was okay, “because they just eat little bits of seaweed on the floor, so really - technically - you eat sushi, whatever.” </p>
<p>Her carefully considered logic wasn’t enough to sway Karl, who was quick to inform her that he would not - and could not - “do the poo chute”. With his nose scrunched, and Sophie asking why, he stated, “it’s not my thing.” </p>
<p>Sarah admitted that it wasn’t her thing either, while Sophie continued to try and convince them, noting “extra nutrition” and efficiency - apparently, her method is quicker. </p>
<p>Miraculously, that was then enough for Sarah to change her stance, with the host announcing that she was going to “try the poo thing” the next time she dug into a prawn.</p>
<p>“We don’t even know it’s poo,” Sophie continued anyway, to the laughter of both hosts and those hidden behind the scenes, “it comes from the brain to the tail! How do we even know? Maybe it’s just a spine.” </p>
<p>“It looks like poo,” was the quick-and-to-the-point response from Karl. “If it looks like it, smells like it, it’s poo.” </p>
<p>And, as it turns out, Karl was right. The “poo chute”, or black line, is actually the prawn’s digestive tract. </p>
<p>But for those who think Sophie’s on to something, there’s no need to fear - the chute can be eaten, and some professional chefs even think that it has the added benefit of improving the taste of the prawn. </p>
<p><em>Images: Today/Nine</em></p>
