A world where all is free
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
 
Not for the tender hearted
Have you ever wondered why sausages look the way they do? Perhaps the following definition will answer that

A sausage consists of ground meat ... and possibly other ingredients, generally packed in a casing (traditionally the intestines of the animal, though ...), and ...

Now that I have your attention, let me warn you, this post is likely to put some of you off. Honestly, that is not my intention, since this post is actually a socio-psycho-puko peek into the world of certain delicacies which, in other cultures, would be downright offensive. Unfortunately, I don't have a complete answer to the obvious question that must crop in your scientific mind; why is it that one man's meat is another's shoe. I aim to share my observations that have led me to ask this question in the first place.

Carrying on from the sausage example, if you thought that was a creative leap in the history of mankind, think again, for the sheer number of experiments performed by man on animal body parts will convince you that man intrinsically is a pervert, or from another point of view, curious.

Consider Haggis, a traditional Scottish dish.

"Although there are many recipes, it is normally made with the following ingredients: sheep's 'pluck' (heart, liver, and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and traditionally boiled in the animal's stomach for approximately an hour."

I am not quite sure which preceded which, or if indeed they were independent inventions, but I would really like objective research to be conducted on which is the more hideous concept - sausage or haggis. Interestingly, Haggis isn't the only one of its kind, there are variations available from different parts of the world. Drob from Romania, Balkenbrij from the Netherlands, Pölsa from Sweden, Saumagen from Western Germany, Švargl in Croatia, Kokoretsi in Greece all prove Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs and Steel theory about culture easily spreading across a continent that is wider spread on its east-west axis.

If that isn't gross enough for you, how about Þorramatur from iceland which consists of many different types of food - sour ram's testicles, rotten shark, burned sheep heads, sheep's head jam, blood pudding, dried fish (often cod or haddock) with butter and many other courses that are considered delicious among some Icelanders.

And if you were a vegetarian and were thinking in your patronising heads that "these philistines will be treated appropriately in the ultimate court of law," well, think again. For offensive cuisine is not restricted to meat alone.

Durian, a fruit, is to the Indonesians what the mango is to the Indians - it is considered a most outstanding delicacy and is often quoted as the king of fruits. But there is a problem. It stinks. A much quoted description

"A rich custard highly flavoured with almonds gives the best general idea of it, but there are occasional wafts of flavour that call to mind cream-cheese, onion-sauce, sherry-wine, and other incongruous dishes"

may be considered gentle when compared to some other descriptions

"its odor is best described as pig-shit, turpentine and onions, garnished with a gym sock. It can be smelled from yards away."

It possesses such a strong smell that it is officially prohibited in public places, even if you try to break the law by carrying it completely wrapped in a bag into a hotel, well, you've given the cleaners a good month long employment. The general belief is that it is very difficult to provide an accurate description, thus comparisons with sewage, stale vomit, skunk spray, used surgical swabs. But in the end, it is a delicacy, and locals swear by it.

But don't let the above cloud your impression or kill your appetite. It really is a cultural thing. Its all in the mind. Why, there's even a coriander haters club with a strong presence on the net. Its quite shocking, really, for coriander rates amongst the top few spices/garnishes used in Indian food, it adds such a spectacular flavour to simple food, its astonishing. And here are people that call it "smelly/stinky grass."

And thats it for just now. I haven't included some of the really "gourmet stuff" on purpose - like cobra blood in wine laced with leech hormone to stop it from coagulating - since these are not commonly consumed by people across an entire region/community. If i did that, you would really send me hate mail.

Footnote:
The above would realy not have been possible without the contributions of discovery channel, wikipedia and lonely planet. Many thanks.
- posted by Rallix @ 8:00 AM
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