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So I was browsing through OTC and noticed we don't have any threads dedicated to food. I figured this was a shame since food is an important aspect of life and culture that helps people connect with each other. Plus, we kind of need it to live. So I figured, why not start a thread to let people here talk about food related topics?

I'll start things off by asking this: what is the most "disgusting" food you ever ate and enjoyed despite its reputation?

Personally, I've eaten things like organs including chicken testicles, stinky fermented tofu, and most recently durians. And I've enjoyed all of them. Especially the durian. Maybe I'm just one of the people who isn't bothered too much by the smell, but it really is just as good as its fans claim. The taste really is remniscient of almonds too. Now I want to try eating it in a cake or icecream.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#1: May 6th 2018 at 8:53:42 PM

So I was browsing through OTC and noticed we don't have any threads dedicated to food. I figured this was a shame since food is an important aspect of life and culture that helps people connect with each other. Plus, we kind of need it to live. So I figured, why not start a thread to let people here talk about food related topics?

I'll start things off by asking this: what is the most "disgusting" food you ever ate and enjoyed despite its reputation?

Personally, I've eaten things like organs including chicken testicles, stinky fermented tofu, and most recently durians. And I've enjoyed all of them. Especially the durian. Maybe I'm just one of the people who isn't bothered too much by the smell, but it really is just as good as its fans claim. The taste really is remniscient of almonds too. Now I want to try eating it in a cake or icecream.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Demongodofchaos2 Face me now, Bitch! from Eldritch Nightmareland Since: Jul, 2010 Relationship Status: 700 wives and 300 concubines
Face me now, Bitch!
#2: May 6th 2018 at 9:10:36 PM

I'm willing to try just about everything except Surstrumming.

I also love anchovie pizza, especially since anchovies are considered to be too salty and oily by most people.

edited 6th May '18 9:11:10 PM by Demongodofchaos2

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M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#3: May 6th 2018 at 9:13:02 PM

Ooh, a fellow anchovy aficionado. I confess to enjoying the salty little buggers myself.

I've actually made it one of my life's goals to sample the most "gross" foods in the world to see if they really are that bad or if there's a reason they have become delicacies in their local cultures. Next up on my list: balut and haggis.

As for Surströmming...that actually sounds like something I might like. I also want to try lutefisk someday.

edited 6th May '18 9:22:19 PM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
Ominae Organized Canine Bureau Special Agent Since: Jul, 2010
Organized Canine Bureau Special Agent
#4: May 6th 2018 at 10:57:57 PM

The one thing I will not eat. Durian.

"Exit muna si Polgas. Ang kailangan dito ay si Dobermaxx!"
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#5: May 6th 2018 at 11:12:47 PM

I ate it half expecting I'd be one of the people able to enjoy it since I also enjoy fermented stinky tofu. I was glad to be right.

That said, it isn't something to be eaten often. It's not cheap and you gotta put it in the fridge for a little while before eating it. Still, I look forward to eating it again.

And while I ate my first serving of durian by itself, I've heard that it's even better when paired with other tropical fruits. It is called the "king of fruits", and what is a king without its subjects?

edited 6th May '18 11:16:31 PM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
Kiefen MINE! from Germany Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
MINE!
#6: May 7th 2018 at 1:01:06 AM

My grandpa was big into pigeon racing and we often ate his breeding rejects in spring. Squab is a delicacy in some countries and I find it a pity that it isn't the case in Germany because I love me some gamey-chicken. The liver is also delicious, slightly saltier than chicken liver but ever as good.

While absolutely common here in Germany, the rest of the world usually is freaked out by Mett. When they hear that we eat raw pork most wonder how the hell we are not all dying of parasites.[lol]

Also it's asparagus time! Had a nice asparagus creme soup with my family this weekend and my sister brought some asparagus dip with onion bread. Yum! Coming to think of it I never ate green asparagus...

edited 7th May '18 1:58:40 AM by Kiefen

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#7: May 7th 2018 at 1:07:26 AM

[up] Hmm...

Pigeon: I've heard of squab, but I've never actually eaten it. I am a fan of gamey meat. How does it taste compared to duck? Did you just eat it roasted or did you do fancier stuff like making pigeon pie? And the livers do sound scrumptious. I've never understood people who dislike liver.

Mett: Raw minced pork? Interesting. Closest I have ever had to that is steak tartare — raw ground beef mixed with raw egg yolk and Worcestershire sauce.

Asparagus: One of my favorite veggies. By green asparagus, do you mean to say you'e never eaten the actual vegetable by itself outside of a creme soup or dip?

edited 7th May '18 1:14:56 AM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
Kiefen MINE! from Germany Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
MINE!
#8: May 7th 2018 at 1:52:57 AM

[up] Pigeon: I never had a whole duck before, only slices as part of some Asian dishes but Squab is basically like chicken meat in consistence but red and thus gamey tasting. My grandma usually roasted them with some gravy or made a soup which was basically a chicken soup but with pigeon meat and a stock made from the bones.

Asparagus: In northwest Europe asparagus is blanched by basically growing the whole thing underground so it never photosynthesizes. It makes the whole thing white with a yellow tip and supposedly less bitter and more tender.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#9: May 7th 2018 at 2:00:47 AM

Never had white asparagus before, so I wouldn't be able to compare the two.

The way you describe pigeon makes me imagine it'd be like a gamey Cornish Game Hen or something.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Kiefen MINE! from Germany Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
MINE!
#10: May 7th 2018 at 2:23:46 AM

When it comes to disgusting food, one thing I am curious of trying is Kiviak. While my ornithophobia would prevent me from peeling the birds myself, I must say that the deep red color looks very appetizing and if it really tastes like Gorgonzola it could actually be very yummy.

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#11: May 7th 2018 at 2:28:51 AM

I confess to having a bit of a taste for rotten and fermented stuff. Although that last bit of the Wiki article describing an incident where people died eating it due to it being prepared with the wrong bird does make me wary of eating a dish like this.

It's rather interesting how much food can tell you about a culture when you start to ask yourself "why would anyone make and eat this?"

And since cheese was mentioned: Limburger. Heard of it, never eaten it, want to try it. In particular I want to give Limburger cheesecake a shot.

edited 7th May '18 2:32:09 AM by M84

Disgusted, but not surprised
KazuyaProta Shin Megami Tensei IV from A Industrial Farm Since: Jan, 2015 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Shin Megami Tensei IV
#12: May 7th 2018 at 4:00:38 AM

Oh, Food! Is time to let my Peruanity go wild.

Watch me destroying my country
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#13: May 7th 2018 at 8:20:42 PM

I gotta admit I've never had Peruvian food. Come to think of it, I don't think I've eaten much South American food in general.

Disgusted, but not surprised
KazuyaProta Shin Megami Tensei IV from A Industrial Farm Since: Jan, 2015 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Shin Megami Tensei IV
#14: May 7th 2018 at 8:27:02 PM

[up] Peruvian food is mostly from the colonial era. Mixing everything at some level.

For examples, the classical anticuchos were created for Black slaves who used the rests of the animals that their owners didn't want.

Chaufa rice come from the Chinese workers, Chifa food is essentially a mix of food from several asian inmigrants.

And there also the more "rural" food, la pachamanca, the guinea pig (the most popular of rural food, mainly for how it scares non-peruvians) and charqui that is basically Llama meat

We like cute animals too, but we also eat them

edited 7th May '18 8:29:22 PM by KazuyaProta

Watch me destroying my country
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#15: May 8th 2018 at 9:29:56 PM

[up] Ah, cuy. I've heard of that too. It's probably not to my taste. Not because I'm disturbed by it. I just think that it'd be too bony for me. Then again, I do appreciate rabbit meat and rabbits are rodents too. Do you have any idea if rabbit is similar to cuy?

Disgusted, but not surprised
KazuyaProta Shin Megami Tensei IV from A Industrial Farm Since: Jan, 2015 Relationship Status: [TOP SECRET]
Shin Megami Tensei IV
#16: May 8th 2018 at 9:54:40 PM

[up] Is certainly like them. Albeit some compare it to duck meat.

What do you mean with "bony"?

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M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#17: May 8th 2018 at 10:22:45 PM

I don't particularly like eating smaller animals since it's more of a hassle to debone them. Granted, I've eaten worse in that department than things like guinea pigs.

You ever had snake? The bones are particularly annoying.

Disgusted, but not surprised
Kiefen MINE! from Germany Since: Nov, 2010 Relationship Status: It's not my fault I'm not popular!
MINE!
#18: May 11th 2018 at 3:00:26 AM

Sooo.... potato chips. Since I occasionally travel through Europe for my job I noticed some very interesting trends when it comes to potato chip flavors:

  • Netherlands: Baguette with herb butter
  • Belgium: Pickles
  • France: roasted chicken

Makes me wonder what flavor visitors notice in Germany...probably the currywurst flavored ones...

M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#19: May 11th 2018 at 3:08:26 AM

In East Asia we've got things like seaweed flavor chips. They're pretty damn good.

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Ominae Organized Canine Bureau Special Agent Since: Jul, 2010
Organized Canine Bureau Special Agent
#20: May 11th 2018 at 4:55:57 AM

I second that. Liked the ones made by Calbee.

"Exit muna si Polgas. Ang kailangan dito ay si Dobermaxx!"
Millership from Kazakhstan Since: Jan, 2014
#21: May 11th 2018 at 7:43:13 AM

I know it's irrational, but I actively avoid eating potato chips after my initial encounter with them when I was little ended in a disagreement. To add insult to injury I really didn't like the flavor (can't recall which flavor it was, though). Despite that, I really like the salty сухарики (sukhariki, dried bread. Crackers? Pretzels? Don't know how it translates properly) that are sold here, strangely enough.

Unfortunately I arrived to a stage in my life when I'm discouraged to eat certain kinds of food (mostly spicy) or it will negatively affect my general health. When it comes to food that I won't eat as opposed to can't, then it's definitely the food that is outright dangerous to eat: the aforementioned kiviak, bear liver, fugu fish, etc. I'm of the opinion that people in general eat fugu not because it tastes particularly well, and I'm not that thrill-seeking kind of person.

Rodents are fine, as long as they were fed well (this is also true regarding pigeons, I heard the ones that live on the grain elevators taste the best), haggis is something I'm actually looking forward to try, not the least because of the importance of offal and other meat products in the cuisine of my culture. Canines and felines are a no-no.

It is a bit ironic that I've developed a taste for sea and oceanic fish recently, while living in the middle of a landlocked country. grin

Spiral out, keep going.
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#22: May 11th 2018 at 7:46:31 AM

While I'm not averse to trying fugu once, it's probably too much of a hassle to get the authentic stuff that still has the toxin in it. And yeah, I've heard it's not actually that tasty. If you want expensive and relatively tasty sushi, get the sea urchin.

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M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#23: Jun 12th 2018 at 5:43:57 AM

So a few days ago the US politics thread got sidetracked by a fast food joint comparison talk. I just realized that this is the sort of thing I started this thread for in the first place.

So...thoughts?

I've already mentioned that In-N-Out is my fave.

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Millership from Kazakhstan Since: Jan, 2014
#24: Jun 12th 2018 at 6:16:13 AM

Recently I've became something of a regular of the local Burger King joint across the street from my office. It's good enough for a quick 10 o'clock snack when I miss my breakfast for one reason or another.

Speaking of which, for non-US tropers out there, what is the most popular kind of street food originated from your country?

We have our own variation of Shawarma: beef, lamb or horseflesh (but not pork) fried on a skewer, with vegetables (usually onions, salad and tomatoes) and some kind of sauce inside a pita (then it's called shawurma) or rolled in a lavash (then it's called doner).

edited 12th Jun '18 6:22:36 AM by Millership

Spiral out, keep going.
M84 Oh, bother. from Our little blue planet Since: Jun, 2010 Relationship Status: Chocolate!
Oh, bother.
#25: Jun 12th 2018 at 6:50:48 AM

I work overseas in Taiwan. One popular street food is jianbing.

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jianbing

You can get it in China too, of course.

It's a popular breakfast food, but you can pretty much eat it any time.

edited 12th Jun '18 6:52:38 AM by M84

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