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Maybe this isn't for the squeamish, but what is the most unusual thing you've eaten? Maybe it's not unusual for where you live, but let's see what strange things people have eaten.
I have eaten some weird stuff, from horse (not so unusual in France and Belgium) to sea urchins (they sell in the market here in Nice, to insects (Cambodia), zebra (once in London), snake (China), guinea pig (Peru) and of course snails and frogs' legs (France, Vietnam, China).
This article discusses why some people find eating horse a controversial matter.
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I think I have never eaten horse. Urchin is a popular ingrediant for sushi, so I like it. And I have eaten locusts as a child. It's a traditional food for some regions in my country.
I once had zebra in a restaurant in London that served up exotic food. It tasted pretty much like beef or maybe a bit closer to horse. I had a dessert of fried locusts. They were quite nice: crunchy and spicy
I remember being warned when I was a student and shared a flat with a Cypriot girl. She told me I should always put the lid on a saucepan when frying chopped squid because the heat of the hot oil makes the pieces contract and they can leap out of the pan.
What we eat quite commonly in Japan could be exotic to people in Western countries.
Horse meet is a popular menu in mountainous prefectures such as Nagano or Yamanashi. We call horse meat "Sakura", which means cherry blossoms, since the meat is usually more pink in color than beef or pork. People in those prefectures sometimes eat deer or wild boars. These are not so common though due to their small populations.
We like to eat burdock root but I'm not sure how much popular it is around the world. We can put it in miso soup or add flavor with soy sauce and sugar.
We also love to eat sea weeds. Do you eat sea weeds?
I heard a little stupid story in history. In the World War Two, a prison in Japan gave Australian prisoners burdoc root. But they mistook it as tree root, and accused it of prisoner abuse after the end of the war. @takafromtokyo
Snails taste very good. It was delicate meat. When I will have opportunity I will taste it again.
Raw eggs are also considered exotic food for me. I tried it several time but not really like them. I prefer my eggs be cooked. Half boiled eggs is the limit of my acceptance.
Whelks are like a sea snail and are good too. But I still think it's the sauce that makes them taste so good. On their own, I'm not convinced.
It sounds good. I imagined it would taste more like sea snails though.
@mheredge
burdock roots look more like tree roots (or even branches) than potetos and turnips. It's firm and very rich in fiber. I often chop it up and put it in miso soup.
Food is always exotic to me when I see how Caravaggio painted it.
And how food was used to convey his meanings to us all ........
http://jackelliot.over-blog.com/2017/04/caravaggio-and-the-art-of-dieting.html
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Nearly 45 years ago, on Friday, October 13th, 1972, a plane crashed in the Andes mountains with the players of a rugby team and their families. Sixteen of them would survive after 72 days on a mountainside and eating their deceased loved ones.
When the crash came 12 passengers killed instantly, while six others in the first hours afterwards succumbed to their injuries. The remaining people could only hope they would be found quickly. That proved vain hope because the white plane was lying in a snow field and therefore not noticed from the air.
The actual situation was that they had to see to survive with a minimum of food, consisting of a couple of chocolate bars and other snacks and a few bottles of wine. There were no plants or animals on the snowy mountainside. The group must take the hardest possible decision: eating the flesh of the bodies of their deceased comrades.
All passengers were Roman Catholic, and some of them compared eating meat with the ritual of the Catholic Eucharist. That made it acceptable for them. Other survivors did not initially engage in cannibalism, but days later were still tacking too, because they recognized that this was the only way to survive.
On December 22, 1972 half of the survivors were on the mountain by helicopter rescued and a day later the same helicopter took the rest of the survivors.
This story is very moving and unbelievable. How people can eat people and own friends... It gives to thought that physiological needs are more important than feels.
> @takafromtokyo
When I was child I often ate twisted raw egg yolk with sugar. It was delicious!!!
@Wirginia a piece of bread with butter sprinkled with sugar is popular to som small children
Today I cooked white asparagus which I realised I probably have never prepared myself before. I am glad I checked on how to cook it as I didn't realise that it has quite a tough skin that needs to be removed before cooking it. I found a recipe for a very tasty garlic vinaigrette sauce that I used to dress it with, on a bed of salad leaves. Delicious!
https://food52.com/recipes/307-white-asparagus-with-black-garlic-vinaigrette?utm_source=cj&affil=cj&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=Food52+Outdoor+Goods+Page&company=Skimlinks&website=8248019
for me I prefer to try new food when I'm not hungry , :p
I have eaten couscous in an African restauant in Tokyo. It was very exotic but very good to me, with its drier texture than rice and a good match for meat and vegitables. Is it common in your country? @mouna