Posted on 08/03/2008 7:34:26 PM PDT by JACKRUSSELL
There is a Cantonese saying that the Chinese eat everything that flies, except aeroplanes; everything with four legs, except tables; and everything that swims, except submarines - and visitors to Beijing's fast-food market during the Olympic Games will be left in no doubt of that.
A stroll among the food stalls of Wangfujing Snack Street, not far from Tiananmen Square, reveals delicacies of every conceivable kind.
Laid out in trays and boiling in cauldrons are everything from goat lungs with red peppers to scorpion brochettes, seahorses on skewers, iguana tails, dung beetles and silk worms on a stick, by way of fried sparrows, grilled snake and turkey vulture schnitzels.
The locals insist that Western visitors shouldn't be put off the food on sale on this street - after all, it is mostly 'conventional' Chinese cuisine and great for lunch or dinner.
Indeed, even though dog meat is off the menu for competitors during the Games - they'll be filling themselves up with high-protein drinks and masses of carbohydrates - tourists can still sample dog brain soup or dog liver with vegetables.
As the official Beijing travel guide points out, Westerners should not turn up their noses at these dishes.
'While you might consider things eaten in China to be distasteful, you must bridge the cultural gap and look at it with an open mind,' it advises.
And an open mouth come to that - for as the guide also points out: 'There have been times of severe famine (in China), even as recently as the late Sixties, when tens of millions died of starvation in the Great Leap Forward. Back then, you would have been glad to have had what's on today's menu.'......
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
That T-shirt upset Pamela “The Vegan” Anderson, apparently.
I’ve eaten seahorse and fried grasshoppers. Liked the former better than the latter. Ate horse and fried calves brains while in France. And yes, Alligator DOES taste like chicken, albeit very TOUGH chicken.
The Ramapo Mountain Indians (aka Jackson Whites) in northern New Jersey have been hunting squirrel since they were chased up into the Ramapos. True Kentucky Berdoo also makes use of said rodent.
Alligator is more like a fish flavored pork chop
Burgoo?
One thing you can get right here in Oakland’s Chinatown is deep fried chicken feet. I was gonna try ‘em but I couldn’t get anyone to tell me if you’re supposed to eat ‘em bones and all or just gnaw off the meat.
Burgoo. I was thinking about the stuff that keeps landing on my windshield. ;-)
I have had them. You can keep em.
You dont eat the bone
I tried gator nuggets at the Miccousoukee restaurant on Tamiami trail several years ago, and they tasted like tough chicken. Maybe the Injuns lied to me and gave me bad chicken instead.
L0L! I bet the chinese fry that up too!
All I have had is gator tail tasted like fish to me
PAGING ANDREW ZIMMERN...PAGING ANDREW ZIMMERN. PLEASE CALL YOUR OFFICE as they MAY have found some crap you haven’t eaten yet.
Problem with chicken feet is you get tired before you get full.
These are pretty much Chinese American dishes. You're not going to find these dishes in China, any more than you'll find fettucine alfredo in Italy. Having had both Chinese American and Chinese food, I have say I prefer the American variant (which appears to be mainly Cantonese style dishes with an American flavor) - the Chinese stuff is too weird and in some cases, an acquired taste.
If you go to Flushing, NY, not too far from LaGuardia airport, you can get many of these “mainland delicacies”, moreso than in any other Chinatown in the hemisphere.
Nice tagline!
In all seriousness, she is a smart woman with extensive knowledge of natural resource development. Her gender and expertise help her.
:)
Food Ping with pictures. You might want to leave the pets at home...
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.