Well, here’s an interesting little article I stumbled across. To tell the god’s honest truth, I wish I hadn’t, but I did, and so I thought I’d share it with y’s all.
I don’t see any reason, what-so-ever, why I should have to be burdened with this knowledge, whilst the rest of you get off scott free. NO WAY.
I felt obliged to make the article clearer with some commentary. It’s in BOLD
An Ode to Organ Meats
By Winnie Yang
staff writer
While some might recoil at the sight of Brussels sprouts Yup on their plates and others avoid broccoli like the plague Yup again, there are few foods as capable of provoking universal squeamishness (in this country, anyway) as offal Three yup’s in one sentence, it’s like the bloody stock exchange!. And that’s a damn shame.
Offal is very nearly a whole class of food in itself, encompassing everything from the heart, liver, lungs, and entrails of an animal, to the tail, feet, and head, each part with its own unique and yes, delicious, flavors. The word “offal” actually comes from the Old English “off” and “fall,” referring to the pieces that fall from an animal carcass during butchering. Various dictionaries refer to offal as “refuse” or “rubbish” or “waste parts,” when in fact they have much to offer nutritionally and gustatorially This surely isn’t really a word. And if it is and it is connected to eating offal, then I’m pretty sure it’s not a word I really wish to bump into again either.
In much of the world -- France, Italy, and China especially -- the tradition of preparing organ meats reflects resourcefulness read: poverty and economy read: lack of... on the cook’s part, as nothing is wasted. While offal has never been a big hit in the U.S. (and it certainly doesn’t help that the word is pronounced “awful&rdquo😉, viscera have gained a foothold in restaurants and kitchens in the past couple of years (which attests to the broadening tastes of American diners as well as the savoriness of the offal dishes themselves) Oh really? Haven’t we just established that 3rd world, poverty ridden, countries eat offal, and that basically, if consumption is growing in the US, that it really means that poverty is growing in the US and the fat can’t afford their burgers anymore...not that that’s NOT offal or awful. Or whatever the hell you want to call it . In fact, most of this country’s best chefs list offal as one of their favorite meals to cook and eat.
There are many ways to enjoy offal That’s a nighmarish sentence if ever I read one!. And, of the various types available, the liver is perhaps the most widely eaten. The most celebrated type of liver, foie gras (pronounced “fwah-grah&rdquo😉, or fatty goose or duck liver, is known by many people as a French delicacy, but its origins can be traced back to classical civilizations, and the Ashkenazi Jews are credited with disseminating the method of cultivation, as well as appreciation, for this justly venerated liver to Western Europe.
Admittedly, the cultivation process is somewhat less than humane: farmers cram corn through funnels directly into the birds’ gullet, overfeeding them to produce the grossly enlarged livers Isn’t this what they do to Americans as well? I mean, I saw a documentary on people living in Los Angeles, I’m sure they have pretty tasty livers too! . If that doesn’t bother you, then you should make haste to either Radius, blu, or Clio Of course it doesn’t bother me, neither does gassing gypsies, the pro-life lobby or Bush’s behaviour towards the Middle East...duh... ; all serve versions that render me speechless I wish it would affect your typing as well love.
Since fresh foie gras is both expensive and difficult to procure, you’re better off eating it at a restaurant. I usually prefer a whole lobe if I can get it, but I’m not one to pass up a terrine or pÂtÉ either (both are mixtures of foie gras with seasonings and other ingredients). Foie gras goes especially well with Sauternes, a French sweet white wine.
If, however, you’d rather spare the overstuffed fowl, you can always go with the less controversial chicken liver. After cooking a few rashers of bacon, saute some onion in the residual bacon fat over medium heat. Once those become translucent, add the livers in the oil, taking care not to overcook (they should still be very tender) and salt and pepper to taste. Calves’ liver yeah...calves’ meat. Like eating little cows, starved to keep the meat white, isn’t inhumane..., once sliced, can receive equal treatment and is especially prized for its smooth texture and delicate flavor.
Besides the usual land animals, many fish have tasty livers as well If I thought the sentence: “There are many ways to enjoy offal” was pushing taste to the limits of StarTrekdom, this one gets the prize as probably the least tasteful sentence ever uttered about food.. I recently had a fantastic monkfish liver dish at Prune Most foods are fantastic when you’re using as LSD as the person obviously is, a restaurant in New York, and let me tell you, those ducks have some serious competition See...I told you this person was spaced out..
More intimidating in concept perhaps is tripe, which always seems to receive short shrift, as far as offal is concerned I wonder why? Anyways, at least it’s not diabolically connected to the mistreatment of animals. Tripe is the stomach of ruminants, and that of cows is the most commonly prepared. There are several cuts of tripe, but my mother prefers to use the honeycomb kind (named thus for its appearance). After boiling it for a couple minutes in water flavored with ginger, she discards the cooking liquid and covers the tripe with water again, adding a couple tablespoons of soy sauce, a little anise, and some black pepper, and braises it over low heat for about an hour and a half, slicing it into pieces when cooked I can not think of anything more tasty than a nice juicy slice of braised stomach. Seriously, I can’t..
Specialty tripe dishes abound in Italy and France, but many people are more familiar with Scotland’s infamous haggis This is untrue! A Haggis is a rodent with shorter legs on one side of the body than the other. I know these things and they are inedible. In fact, I own a kilt and I had to catch my sporron (the little sack in front of the kilt, and sporron is gaelic for haggis) with my bear hands. A quaint and very dangerous Scottish tradition, which includes various chopped-up bits of sheep or cow offal mixed with oatmeal and suet, all stuffed into the stomach sac of the animal lies and jesture! I assure you. Alternatively, you can get your most benign introduction to tripe within Vietnamese cuisine at Pho Pasteur Yeah...I’ll be sure to try that the next time I’m running up Hamburger Hill, where it is a key component of their pho soups.
I’m also a big fan of sweetbreads, another name for the thymus and pancreas of an animal Sweet breads? That’s like calling dog poo “garlic” just to make it sound tasty. Dredged in flour and fried (in bacon fat or lard, natch), these have an almost nutty sweetness and a creamy interior. Radius is doing a great salad right now that features these delectable morsels that sounds like an alien race out Dr. Who, doesn’t it.. If thymus doesn’t sound so appealing, however, you should take a page from “Molto” Mario Batali -- a New York celebrity chef who hosts a couple shows on the Food Network. In the sweetbreads recipe in his Babbo Cookbook, he asks, “Is there really a difference between eating a muscle or a gland? Well, call me an esthetical old fool...BUT YES!!!”
Another great way to sample all kinds of offal is to go out for yakitori (yaki, “grilled,” and tori, “fowl&rdquo😉 Bollocks. Yaki is Japanese for disgusting...everyone knows that! . While you can get marinated bits of non-offal chicken parts grilled on skewers, places like Kiyoshi Sushi House in Brookline offer a vast array of giblets (or the offal of fowl). My favorites include chicken hearts, chicken bone BONES??? Are you supposed to suck or chew them? Yaki to the max., and chicken skin (not really giblets, but for some reason, shunned nearly as much). Cow tongue is also excellent. All of these somehow taste much meatier and juicier than ordinary cuts, so if you have to, just pretend you’re eating kebabs I have one hell of an imagination, but seriously...there are limits.
With offal, the challenge is really only in your head. So before you summarily dismiss one of the most delicious foodstuffs animals have to offer, I urge you to give them a shot. Who knows, you might find them offal-ly tasty What a tastefully good joke to end the article with.
It’s a living bloody nightmare!
You think this is bad?
You want to go to the Philippines & try the local delicacy called Bolut.
Its basically a hard-boiled duck egg.
"That's not so bad," I hear you say.
EXCEPT...
Bolut eggs are fertilised eggs containing a fully-formed duckling!
Yep, they're boiled right at full term, so as well as the yolk (yummy), you get a whole duckling in there too (apparently also yummy, although I can't say it tempts me).
These are eaten warm, and all parts are eaten (except the shell, obviously; that would be gross!).
Wonderful stuff... Get into a slow cookery society now...
In our rural town we have a bi monthly Tripe and Onions Club where we meet to eat and talk tripe. (none of us like to handle and cook tripe but love it...when someone else cooks it.
Liver (Lambs fry) is also served with bacon in a rich gravy... sometimes devilled kidnies or lamb brains mmm.
My favourite is the Italian braised mix of sweetmeats, liver, kidneys, ox hearts done in red wine with lots of herbs. Delicious!
Hannibal Lecter was a regular til he ate the cook for not soaking the tripe over night. :'(
Originally posted by bambeeYou should read the chapter in George Orwell's 'The Road to Wigan Pier' about the tripe store in the boarding house ... hilarious and disgusting
I always look for your threads Shav, as I know they will either make me laugh or feel sick. This did both !!! You paint a wonderful picture, thank you.🙄