Have you ever tried an 'unusual' food?

@Scindhia (1906)
India
April 12, 2016 5:58am CST
In Tamil Nadu, the goat and chicken have a special place in chettinad cuisine. What really surprises me is that they don't waste any part of the goat. In a traditional restaurant, every part of the goat would have been converted into a recipe and priced separately starting from the brain to the hooves. Two such famous dishes are 'aatu kal paaya' and 'Ratha poriyal'. The first recipe is made of goat's leg. The goat's leg has a lot of hair. So it is burnt first and then cleaned thoroughly. Then a gravy type dish is made with it. The recipe is rich in calcium. The second recipe is goat's blood. I don't know the actual recipe, but it has something to do with reducing the blood to thicken on a slow flame. The end product looks a bit like scrambled eggs. I have many friends who relish these recipes and prepare this at home too. For me, it looks a bit extreme. Food is a highly subjective topic and what works for one might not work for another. I have heard that the north-east part of India has a variety of unusual recipes like frog's leg soup, red ant chutney and snail chutney as they are not something we regularly hear of in my part of the country. Have you felt any food was 'unusual' or too extreme for your tastes? Image Credit: Kitchentantra
20 people like this
17 responses
@Lucky15 (37374)
• Philippines
12 Apr 16
here in our region, we have those bizarre food :)
2 people like this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
I know. Give me a list of your favorite bizarre foods.
1 person likes this
@Lucky15 (37374)
• Philippines
13 Apr 16
@Scindhia we have insects, innards of animals :))
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
14 Apr 16
@Lucky15 And you have them regularly?
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (344821)
• Rockingham, Australia
12 Apr 16
I would have trouble eating the crickets and insects that you sometimes see displayed on the internet in Asian shops. I think I could try most other foods.
2 people like this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
Even within Asia there is a lot of cultural differences and huge differences in food habits.
1 person likes this
@JudyEv (344821)
• Rockingham, Australia
13 Apr 16
@Scindhia I can understand that. Every region is a little bit different wherever you go.
1 person likes this
@Sreekala (34312)
• India
12 Apr 16
I heard some variety of frog's legs (green one) are eaten by many but red ant chutney and snail chutney, hearing about these first time now. Honestly I can't try these dishes for sure
1 person likes this
@Sreekala (34312)
• India
13 Apr 16
@Scindhia My goodness!!!!!! I can't believe the invention done by Indians
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
14 Apr 16
@Sreekala Yes! We surprise ourselves at times
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
And we consume it in India. Can you believe that we invented those innovative chutneys?!!
1 person likes this
@salonga (27775)
• Philippines
12 Apr 16
lol, I don't have the guts to taste unusual food. I would throw up for sure.
2 people like this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
Some foods don't look appealing at all.
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Apr 16
Really the most unusual food I have tried over here is buffalo meat. Thats as far as it goes here for me. Not anything too unusual really.
2 people like this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
14 Apr 16
Lots of food is too extreme for me - I'm very picky and only like plain food.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64354)
• United Kingdom
18 Apr 16
@Scindhia I'm afraid I wouldn't even try it!
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
18 Apr 16
Then you should be careful about our food. We love spicy food!
1 person likes this
@kaka135 (14934)
• Malaysia
16 Apr 16
I don't think I'd like to try unusual food, especially from animals.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
18 Apr 16
Have you never eaten anything out of your comfort zone?
@SIMPLYD (90721)
• Philippines
13 Apr 16
Our father when we were younger would let the maid cook the pig's brain and we were made to eat that . And it tastes good indeed . But now that i am older , i swear i will not eat one like that ever again .
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
14 Apr 16
I have heard of goat's brain, but pig's brain is new to me. Did it have any special nutrients that convinced your father?
@vhpsandi (358)
• Mumbai, India
14 Apr 16
I have heard of crazy dishes, but never had the guts to try them myself. But my kids are quite adventurous and go for it if we visit a place where they serve these weird food.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
18 Apr 16
Have they tried anything in particular?
@gudheart (12659)
12 Apr 16
My dad has had some odd things before and I just stay away from it as it does not sound appealing most of the time. He has liver, kidney and all types of sea food.
1 person likes this
@gudheart (12659)
13 Apr 16
@Scindhia no Lamb or cow.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
Liver, kidney of goat you mean?
1 person likes this
@antonbunot (11093)
• Calgary, Alberta
13 Apr 16
O, I did! It is not that unusual but it was not the usual foods we eat in the Philippines and here in Canada. It is called goat curry and fried rice. O, I love it!
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
Was it spicy?
@DianneN (247184)
• United States
15 Apr 16
I am still thinking about visiting India. I'm not so sure now! Lol! I can't eat frogs legs or rabbit, but did have rabbit in a meal, along with alligator. They tasted like chicken. However, I tried blood pudding, yuck, but loved haggis. Go figure. I also gagged on turtle soup.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
18 Apr 16
Alligator? You have conquered the non-vegetarian world with alligator.
1 person likes this
@saurabhrmp (2283)
• Hyderabad, India
14 Apr 16
As I am a vegetarian, so I never tried unusual food until unless I am more then 100% sure about that item to be vegetarian.
1 person likes this
• Hyderabad, India
14 Apr 16
@Scindhia ; That is because we are restricted to eat. Over that I belongs to Jain religion, where we are very cautious about Food.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
14 Apr 16
Normally vegetarians are very cautious about what they eat. Even my friends are the same.
1 person likes this
@rina110383 (24492)
12 Apr 16
Yes, I've tried some street food here in my country that are considered as unusual for some. We also eat goat here in my country.
1 person likes this
@Scindhia (1906)
• India
13 Apr 16
What type of street food do you get there?
1 person likes this
@rina110383 (24492)
13 Apr 16
@Scindhia Grilled chicken blood, chicken feet, three-week-old fertilized duck embryo or "balut", pork/chicken intestines, chicken head and pig ears are just of the street food here.
1 person likes this
@simone10 (54187)
• Louisville, Kentucky
10 Jul 16
Any kind of exotic food is too extreme for me. I am not as adventuresome with food as my sister is. She will try just about anything at least once.
@just4him (318927)
• Green Bay, Wisconsin
18 Apr 16
I don't often go out of my comfort zone when it comes to food.
@CRK109 (14556)
• United States
29 Apr 16
When I was younger, I didn't mind trying different kinds of foods. These days I stick with what I enjoy, which is mostly fruit and vegetables. They keep me healthy and make me happy. :)