Author Topic: Blubber, snake, bugs and other exotic meats? (Read 2141 times)

Questor · « **on:** January 06, 2010, 04:33:50 AM »

Have you ever tried any so-called exotic meats? With me, it's all a matter of what you mean by "exotic". I think of deer and wild boar as normal. I have tried rattlesnake and 'gator. Not bad.

I've had some things at San Francisco Chinese restaurants that may not be known to science.

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #1 on:** January 06, 2010, 04:44:27 AM »

Gator it was nothing speical.
frog legs did not taste like chicken .
crawdads YUCK.
Conch ok in fritters taste good .
Squid nothing speical either .

slim rem 7 · « **Reply #2 on:** January 06, 2010, 05:41:32 AM »

i understand you gotta get your cradads dn louisianna way in that gumbo or what ever it is..
enough spice an any thing taste good if you hungry i guess..slim

Buckskin · « **Reply #3 on:** January 06, 2010, 06:08:07 AM »

Quote from: SHOOTALL on January 06, 2010, 04:44:27 AM

Gator it was nothing speical.
frog legs did not taste like chicken .
crawdads YUCK.
Conch ok in fritters taste good .
Squid nothing speical either .

Awe man, I've tried all of those and enjoyed them all. Especially the mud-bugs. I order up to 100 lbs every year from LA for a craw boil, they are delicious! I guess all depend on how you cook them. You did cook them didn't you....

Add on to that list with octopus (which I caught in Alaska last summer fishing for halibut), snapping turtle, blood sausage, deer heart, goat. None of the above I would consider very exotic, but I get strange looks from people when talking about eating any of them...

Zulu · « **Reply #4 on:** January 06, 2010, 06:36:14 AM »

I'm with you Buckskin. All that sounds pretty good to me.
Zulu
Texas

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #5 on:** January 06, 2010, 07:04:06 AM »

Buckskin , All were eaten in resturants whick might explain the so so taste . Like Dundee said you can live on it but it taste like #@%$^&

rex6666 · « **Reply #6 on:** January 06, 2010, 07:17:01 AM »

Buckskin

+1

I have seen folks turn green talking about blood sausage.
Oakgroove La. resturant makes the best mud-bug fritters in captivity.

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #7 on:** January 06, 2010, 07:51:54 AM »

then they would puke if they saw blood puddin !

swordfish · « **Reply #8 on:** January 06, 2010, 07:56:41 AM »

Yum, nothing like snake blubber in bug sause.

Funny how nothing is exotic when you're real hungry.

rockbilly · « **Reply #9 on:** January 06, 2010, 07:59:15 AM »

After spending 23 years in the military and attending survival schools in several different places around the world I have been exposed, at some point, to most everything a human can eat.

The rice bugs and grubs would not be my choice at a restaurant, but you can survive on them. I have tried monkey, lizard, camel and others where I didn’t know what I was eating. I think the one that grabbed my attention was at a graduation ceremony in the Philippines. A little gray haired lady (Negrito native) about four feet tall and at least 75 pounds ask for a cigarette, I gave her one and she volunteered to bring me a plate of food. She came back with a plate of meat and rice, the meat that looked like roast beef, I asked what it was she said, “Perro.” I didn’t know what perro was but dug in; I later found it was dog. At an event in Panama we were given wine made by the locals. Later we were told the wine was made by the native ladies chewing berries and spitting back into a urn until it was full, when it fermented it was served to guest.

I guess I am lucky, growing up my Mom tried to encourage us to eat what ever we were served, I carried that practice through life and have never turned away from any meal, although some I did not truly enjoy.

guzzijohn · « **Reply #10 on:** January 06, 2010, 08:02:00 AM »

Quote

Funny how nothing is exotic when you're real hungry.

Makes me think of the book Bat 21. He states that he has a great fear of snakes. Well, after several days with nothing but a candy bar he is floating down a river on a log and is approached by a python. He said if that snake had just got a bit closer he would of had lunch.
GuzziJohn

mcwoodduck · « **Reply #11 on:** January 06, 2010, 08:39:33 AM »

One quick question first;
why is french exotic food stuff you played with as a four year old?
Frogs and snails.
On that.
Mud bugs (crawdads are good) Blue crab is better.
I tried the roasted grass hoppers some of the Mexicans were eating. If I were starving...
Aligator- not real impressed
Deer -Good had it many ways
wild boar (my first one was lousy second one was great
elk - good - I guess that is an under statement.
Antelope/ Speed goat- good.
bison-Had it when I was reall young for the first time but have had it a bunch of times since and they even sell it as burger in the grocery store but I have had a bunch of it. Steaks, whole rib roasts, burgers (there is a place in Ontario CA called the wooden Nickel that only has Buffalo on the menue and makes a bunch of different burgers. MMMM now I am hungry for a good burger)
Dove Good
duck- Depends- Some good some fishy depends on what they are eating
wild Turkey- the bird not the kick'n chicken burbon was really good.
Grouse- was great.
goat- pretty good but would prefer lamb or beef. (the mexican place around the corner has it on the menue)
lobster- Awesome.
Snails- good. would rather have oysters.
Frogs legs- the time I had them they were was way too much garlic and you could barely eat them. Once I washed off the garlic in my water gobblet (the head waiter at the molly pitcher inn in Red Bank was mot happy about it) they were OK but I would rather have had sea scallops or shrimp.
Rattle Snake- good but may be more how I made it than the meat.
Blue fish- I actually like bluefish.
Marlin- great grilled
Sword fish- also great.
Mako shark- Good.
Thresher Shark- would rather have Mako or Marlin
Having grown up in NJ I have had most seafood and do not look at it as exotic, especally the clams, oysters, Squid, octapus (great marinated in Italian dressing and grilled) the big game fish, have never been a fan of small fish till reciently.
OH and Bait- You may call it sushi. But I have tried all of it Like most and do not like the Sea Urchin. After an ex girlfriend explianed what she thought it tastes like I will never order it again. She likened it to .... How do I say this with out offending anyone or being vulgur? - OH the stain on Monica's blue dress.

Oldshooter · « **Reply #12 on:** January 06, 2010, 09:07:00 AM »

Gentlemen, I was raised on some of the things that have been mentioned above! We ate crawfish cause they were available it was not a cool thing! We ate aligators before they ate US! I have eaten sushi and sashimi and liked it! Still order it when possible! My opinion of whats good to eat is in my taste buds and my belly, thats how i was taught, you did not turn your nose up at nuttin or you went without! I dont care where it comes from or how it got there, if i can chew it and eat it i will. My mind does not control my stomach my stomach is the boss! They say a hungry dog will eat feces! I will eat most anything, and if push came to shove I'd eat one of you as well!

No brag just fact!

Sourdough · « **Reply #13 on:** January 06, 2010, 09:22:09 AM »

I've been around the world several times and have eaten what the locals ate. Frogs, bugs, snakes, different types of goat and sheep, fish that if the wrong part is eaten you are dead in just a few minutes. It's all protein, it's the vegetable matter that taste bad.

Buckskin · « **Reply #14 on:** January 06, 2010, 10:06:00 AM »

Forgot to mention that my boys (4 and 6 yo) love the blood sausage. They call it black sausage, I suppose they will find out what it actually is soon, since the 6yo can read now. Hopefully they like will still like it. They have tried more meats than probably 95% of the world population. They actually think it's cool when Dad comes home with something different to eat from yard-bird. They especially liked telling their freinds that they had bear for dinner and that their Dad killed it with a pointy stick....

bilmac · « **Reply #15 on:** January 06, 2010, 10:23:42 AM »

In Viet Nam our mountainyard scouts ate lots of stuff they found along the trail like ants, and grasshoppers and minnows. They had C rations just like everybody else, I think they did it just to watch the GIs turn green. I wasn't hungry enough to eat any bugs with them, but I had some of their snake, not bad. I did get them to show me some of the plants that you could eat. C rats had no veggies at all, and I got hungry for them.

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #16 on:** January 06, 2010, 10:26:46 AM »

I have been in some resturants that served stuff that would look worst that gator or such.

Beers · « **Reply #17 on:** January 06, 2010, 11:38:18 AM »

MMM Blood sausage... My favorite part of butchering a pig. My wife loves it, she just cant watch me make it.... I don't really consider it exotic though.

I've had snake, gator, snapper... all tasty to me.

Buckskin · « **Reply #18 on:** January 06, 2010, 04:42:31 PM »

How do you collect the blood? We butcher hogs every year, just got done with it a couple weeks ago, but still have to make my bacon and sausage. But haven't made blood sausage yet, but would like to.

billy_56081 · « **Reply #19 on:** January 06, 2010, 04:48:10 PM »

Cottontail rabbit is Number one on my list, porkupine is at the bottom.

briarpatch · « **Reply #20 on:** January 06, 2010, 06:26:29 PM »

I still have somewhat of an income. I feel sorry for you guys, maybe times will get better. Keep your heads up.

Sourdough · « **Reply #21 on:** January 06, 2010, 08:13:18 PM »

A few years ago I was working a Musk-Ox project on Nunavak Island. We found a Walrus washed up on the shore. The Natives pulled it up above the high water mark, and left there. It was really bloated when we found it. That evening the leqader of the group decided to spend the night on that side of the island instead to going back to the village. The young men went down to the waters edge and started butchering the Walrus. The Vet I was working with had been born and grow up in Alaska. He quitely came up and said we need to take a long walk. What ever you do do not eat any of the Walrus meat or blubber. It will kill you, and if it does not it will make you wish you could die.

So we went for a long walk and did not return till well after dark. We got our sleeping bags and entered the Dugout shelter, only because the wind had came up and was so strong we could not sleep outside. That was one of the worst nights I ever spent. All those guys all sleeping, snoring, and passing gas, that stunk so bad it almost gagged us. Glad I did not partake of the Blubber.

GH1 · « **Reply #22 on:** January 06, 2010, 11:55:31 PM »

Buffalo is good, but like venison it is very lean & easy to over cook.
Rattle snake tasted like alligator to me, but both were very good.
Frog legs I can eat but I'm not crazy about them.
Rabbit is good.
I find crawdads to be not worth the trouble.
Blutwurst is nasty.
Fried snapping turtle is delicious.
GH1

bilmac · « **Reply #23 on:** January 07, 2010, 04:51:36 AM »

Sourdough Have "the people" talked you into trying a little seal oil yet? I took a fire crew of Eskimos to California once and they had brought little bottles of the stuff with them, I guess as a kind of sauce to make the local fare paltable. DON"T try it. It takes a long tome to get the taste out of your mouth.

Oldshooter · « **Reply #24 on:** January 07, 2010, 05:00:56 AM »

Quote from: briarpatch on January 06, 2010, 06:26:29 PM

I still have somewhat of an income. I feel sorry for you guys, maybe times will get better. Keep your heads up.

Brett · « **Reply #25 on:** January 07, 2010, 07:15:09 AM »

Hmm. 'Unusual' things I've eaten (things generally not found at the grocery store).

Escargot (snails)
conch (big ocean snail)
frogs legs
blue crab
shark
monk fish
bear
goose
duck
alligator
venison
octopus
squid
squirrel
bison
rabbit
sea weed
turtle
goat

And the most unusual (and nastiest) was jellyfish. Tasted like salty rubber bands.
I'm sure I've missed some but that's most of it.

schutzen · « **Reply #26 on:** January 07, 2010, 07:48:33 AM »

No one mentioned the southern favorites of raccoon and possum. Actually they are not bad if you remove the fat kernels from behind the legs. Moving further north we find muskrat, ground hog, and beaver. Muskrats and ground hogs are best when they are young and fried. Beaver (the little furry kind that waddles through the streams, not the furry kind that sashays across the room) tail is split and the center section removed and fried. Now down to the river. Mississippi River clams (actually mussels) of most types are quite edible (similar to oysters/mussels). I am not sure I would eat them today with all the pollutants in the river, but 50 years ago they were good. Lamprey eel has a very white almost tasteless flesh. Another river dweller is the big head carp. They are a staple fish in Europe, and can be quite tasty when properly prepared. Canned in lemon juice (to dissolve the bones) they can be fried in small cakes like salmon. Do not forget the Southeast Asia specialty of rat.

Almost any animal flesh can be eaten, but those animals whose diet consists of mainly fish tend to have an oily, greasy taste/consistency and are not palatable.

MGMorden · « **Reply #27 on:** January 07, 2010, 08:16:46 AM »

Nothing TOO weird. Naturally most of the normal meats (chicken, turkey, beef, pork, fish, shrimp, crab) I've tried.

As far as anything else, I've tried:

Deer - Ate it all my life. Just a normal meat to me that tastes vaguely like beef (better than beef if slow cooked, not as good when grilled)
Elk - Only tried it once, but not much different than deer.
Duck - Honestly, I don't care for it that much. Tastes like liver to me.
Bison - It's OK. Like beef with a funny taste. I'll eat it, but not over beef.
Crayfish - Love the little buggers fried

.
Lobster - Tastes like a rubbery shrimp to me. Enjoyable, but not nearly as good as shrimp and certainly not worth the price.
Gator - Tastes like *fishy* chicken. Don't like it.
Octopus - Good, but very, very chewy.
Squid - VERY good fried with some lime juice. Just a tad chewy, but not as bad as the octopus.

As far of PARTS of an animal, I've tried tacos made with beef tongue and beef cheek meat. Both were decent.

myronman3 · « **Reply #28 on:** January 07, 2010, 08:20:56 AM »

hunt-m-up · « **Reply #29 on:** January 07, 2010, 08:51:45 AM »

Not too many things I won't try at least once.
My favorites--
Frog legs
Crawdads--boiled or really like the tails fried in Po' Boys
Rocky Mountain Oysters--pigs,sheep,calves--like pigs the best, very rich though
Pheasant gizzards--same as the chicken variety
Pickled Northern(Pike)--have some in the fridge now, as good as the Herring variety
Smelt

Once had lion/cougar jerky, suspect they had to mix it with beef/pork, really didn't see much difference from other jerky