Monday, March 03, 2008

List #3 How Bizarre, How Bizarre

Frankly, I am a bit surprised at the aspersions cast on my reading! I don't know where this list came from but it does weigh heavily with Oprah book club selections and science fiction rather than the kinds of books I enjoy reading. I may not have read the two Dickens novels on here, but I have read four others; is that good enough for you? I am a proud product of progressive English literary edumication, one that moved away from canonical literature so quiz me on the Caribbean lit I know. But don't get hung up on the fact that I haven't read Anna Karenina. Actually, I did read a paragraph or so of that in my Russian class in Russian. [raspberry] (I have had to edit the list slightly; I missed a couple the first go round.)

One of the series of lists that I planned for this month was a list of older projects from 1990 until I started this blog because I don't think I've shared that many (if any) with you. Unfortunately, I didn't have a chance to scan the photos to accompany those. Instead I offer you a list I made while I was sick on the couch watching loads of Travel Channel.

Things Andrew Zimmern has eaten that I have too:

  • Haggis—I liked it, but then I had it battered and fried at a fish shop in Berwyck. I’m pretty sure that it wasn’t just the frying that did it. It’s just meat parts and meal. They do that in other cultures too.
  • Deep fried pickles--I can’t wait ‘til Tulsa!
  • Cracklings—I really should have been southern!
  • Conch
  • Chopped chicken liver—this is a bizarre food? It’s my favorite thing from the deli!
  • Gefilte fish
  • Sea cucumber—the dude and I can’t agree on this. We used to have it in a soup in Chinatown. He said it was unlikeable. I hardly remember it being in the soup!
  • Blood sausage—Zimmern had black pudding in the UK and I think he’s had other types of blood sausages in other places. I used to have it all the time; it’s a French Canadian staple. Very different from black pudding, though, which I have also eaten. The canuck version is much more like a blood bratwurst. Black pudding contains meal and is more like an American sausage patty.

Things Andrew Zimmern has eaten that I want to try:

  • Turducken (which I don't think is bizarre at all. I've had turkey, duck, and chicken and find them all pretty innocuous)
  • Boudin
  • Baby eels at Casa Botín
  • Criadillas--and other testicles, I love organ meat.
  • Grasshoppers
  • Scorpion
  • Cha Ca at Cha Ca La Vong

Travel Channel tells me I'm daring. Are you?

13 comments:

Jennifer said...

My mother puts the gizzards and the neck (cooked and chopped up) from the turkey in her stuffing at thanksgiving. Along with sausage. My DH HATED this - he hated her stuffing. Me, on the other hand, I loved it, but I grew up eating liver and onions with my grandmother.

mainely stitching said...

Ack, ack!

Unknown said...

My office has discussed the idea of getting a turducken for our annual holiday party. P is also very keen on this idea, especially since you can get the makings of one from our local butcher. I'll let you know if we go forward with this idea.

Anonymous said...

Did you see the episode of "Dirty Jobs" this weekend when they were making Boudin?

I haven't tasted it so I'm not commenting.

dd

Casa Pearl said...

Well.... not as daring as you in the food department. I'm off to see what boudin is...but I'm pretty sure I dont' want to try it.

Anonymous said...

Yeesh, I just re-read yesterday's comment and I sure sounded like I was being snotty about your booklist. I meant something more along the lines of "unfortunately I was forced to read them in school" rather than "my school was better because they taught me lit", which is the way it came across.

I will, however, go on record with a big giant "ick" at your food list. Except the pickles... I love, love fried pickles :)

robin said...

The bizarre thing about the turducken is that they are all STUFFED INSIDE EACH OTHER. That's what's bizarre to me. I will eat turkey, chicken and duck, they're all pretty tasty, but somehow stuffing them inside each other seems to cross the line. Haha!

(PS adding you to my list of NaBloPoMo people I'm reading this month)

Anonymous said...

Travel Channel would indeed not think me daring at all. I tend to be somewhat picky in the food department. I try to stretch my boundaries every once in a while, but there's a huge difference between that and the foods that Andrew Zimmern eats.

glamlawlib said...

Mmm I like haggis, never had it fried though, not sure about black pudding. My gran used to eat chitlins and tripe...no wonder I was veggie for years. Very bold.

I thought the book list was intriguing, but Jeffrey Archer, really?! ;)

Anna van Schurman said...

Redwitch, I read Kane and Abel when I was a teenager. I believe there was a beach involved! LOL!

Katrina said...

If I took the right quiz I am tough enough to eat roadkill, LOL. I am not as daring as you, that's for sure :-).

staci said...

Me food daring? NOT! I have never tried any of those things on your list~I'm not really sure I want to...hmmm, I never realized I was picky about food!

Anonymous said...

My dear husband has challenged me to make a turducken. I do not know. I'm only daring if you don't know I'm southern (chicken liver, fried pickles, cracklins), the rest of it ... erm... hmm.