Speaking of eggs, balut is a soft-boiled duck egg, where the embryo is almost fully formed--feathers, bones, and all. The egg is cracked open, the soupy liquid drunk, and the fetus dug out to eat. It's popular in the Philippines, Laos, and other Southeast Asian countries.Why should this be a problem? Don't we know from our political debate that there is absolutely no distinction between an egg at day one of fertilization, and an egg about to hatch?
What's being done: Thanks to domestic foodie demand, this "snack" is available in the U.S. too. Dekalb Market in Brooklyn hosted its first ever balut-eating contest this summer--and the winner downed 18 embryos in 5 minutes.
What to eat instead: Regular eggs (organic, cage-free, preferably my-farmer-sold-them-to-me eggs, that is) will give you a protein fix without the feathered fetus.
Besides, you'd eat the adult duck, and you'd eat the egg in an earlier state. Why so queasy about eating the almost-hatched fetus? What makes it the one phase that's worthy of protection -- or that makes it the one phase that it is revolting to kill and eat?
20 comments:
I can't speak for anyone else, but biting an egg and getting a crunchy mouthful would be rather off-putting. I'm too well conditioned that cooked eggs are to be firm yet non-crunchy. (Or slightly runny, but now those are supposed to be bad for you.)
LittleRed1
It's the feathers....
Long pig is reputed to be quite tasty. Although an opposing view has it that a major part of the reason we survived in the millenia after we fell out of the trees and bumped our behinds on the savannah is because we tasted so bad to the predators.
Eric Hines
We don't like to be reminded of realities. That isn't just a fetus-thing. Most Americans don't like to contemplate Bossie when cooking, either.
AVI, I managed to gross out a bus full of high school seniors by eating jerky on the way back from a field-trip to meat-packing business. My protests that the jerky had come from a different cow than the one we'd seen slaughtered did not seem to matter.
LittleRed1
My nieces and nephews can be chased right out of the dining room by a cooked fowl that has to be carved at the table.
I rarely eat viscera myself, but I've grown right fond of chicken stock made from the heads and feet. Still, you wouldn't see me plucking out one of the chicken eyeballs and eating it in its identifiable state. A very messed up food upbringing. I guess we'd have to be closer to starving to get back to being more sensible.
When our daughter was a toddler and just learning to eat--and like--meat, my wife had fixed an especially delicious meal, and our daughter was really tucking into it. I asked her whether she liked the meat, and she said yes, it was great.
I said, "Good. That's Peter Rabbit."
Our daughter looked at her plate for a bit, and then pushed it away. She went back off meat for another six months.
If looks could kill, my wife would have murdered me all those years ago.
It worked, though. When she did go back to eating meat, whenever I'd see a couple of enormous jack rabbits in our yard, I'd comment to the effect of, "Cool--breakfast and a pair of slippers." She'd challenge me to do the skinning and cleaning, and no amount of child gross-out attempts in the school lunch cafeteria could disturb her.
Eric Hines
I guess we'd have to be closer to starving to get back to being more sensible.
A silver lining for Obama's second term!
"I guess we'd have to be closer to starving to get back to being more sensible."
That is the truth...
I should point out that the embryo is fermented as well.
Well, a little fermentation never hurt anything.
If you have Chinese relations, or spend time either in China or with Chinese who eat authentic Chinese cuisine, you'll have been exposed to all sorts of delicacies that would be off-putting to many Americans. That my Mom and her siblings would compete for the fish eyes always struck me a bit odd, but I learned that the Chinese eat just about anything that's edible. Of course, all cultures did, until they got prosperous enough to put some things aside and pick only the choicer bits. I think it's healthy that we have seen some movement to be more efficient with what we raise for food, and that we use more of it for food. That said, there's nothing wrong with diverting some parts that might be considered less tasty to things like pet food and glue or other products.
I've always been very matter of fact with my kids about what we eat, and I have to say that while they might not want to eat lots of more adventurous foods, they don't get spooked at the carving of the Thanksgiving turkey.
Having had several Filipina girlfriends way back, I have to admit I never was interested in trying Balut (yes, mostly the feathers, but also the fermented smell), but I certainly did like many other dishes, including Dinuguan.
"Nose-to-tail" eating is a way to respect the animal we chose to kill. There's something repulsive about killing an animal, using a tiny bit of it, and throwing the rest away.
First of all, Douglas, yes: China was very eye-opening. It is a cultural point of pride that they eat everything that is not actually poisonous. (The Japanese take this one step further, and eat a few things that are.)
The Philippines has the best food I've ever tasted.
Tex:
I think that's right. In fairness, though, if you don't want to eat it all yourself your dogs will be happy to assist with the parts you don't want for whatever reason.
But if I take a deer, I want to tan the hide, which uses the brain; and I want to eat the flesh; and I want to feed the dog any of the offal that dogs ought to eat. I haven't gone as far as making venison haggis, but I might.
If you kill an animal and leave some portion of the kill where it lay, is it really 'thrown away'? There's no doubt that it will be utilized by the various residents of the forest (or where ever you are). Surely there is a point where you are being wasteful, but I think that point is well short of 'everything'. Not to take anything away from those who make use of it all, that's great.
I was actually thinking of something like that, too, when I was writing, and wondering if I was off-track. Something recycles everything that dies. In fact, my husband has very strong feelings against being embalmed or buried in anything elaborate for just that reason, and I'm inclined to agree with him. I'll take the minimum the law requires.
But that has to do with what happens to a body that's already going to die anyway. I guess I feel differently about depriving an animal of life prematurely, just to let the bugs eat it. Anti-bug bigotry, I suppose.
That's what Clint Eastwood's character says to the nun in "Two Mules for Sister Sara." Except he's speaking of vultures. "Aren't they God's creatures?"
"That's what Clint Eastwood's character says to the nun in "Two Mules for Sister Sara." Except he's speaking of vultures. "Aren't they God's creatures?""
Astute observation that seems to have been a made in a few of his movies. IIRC his character in Josie Wales said much the same. Here it is, buzzards gotta eat, same as worms.
On that note I have to say that I've yet to see a gut-pile last more than a day or two in the wild.
Little goes to waste in the wild, even if the hunter does not eat or otherwise make use of all the assorted bits and pieces, other than the meat and the hide.
But as observed above, abundance allows folks to make more discriminating choices in their food and assorted, even while hewing closely to a waste not want not* practice in behavior.
*The theory of relativity applies here too, granted the theory is, in this case, more what you'd call a guideline than an actual rule. Argghhh.
Fair enough, Tex, and to be clear, I'm not for 'trophy' hunting if that's all it is, and you did say "using a tiny bit" and "just to let the bugs eat it".
"But that has to do with what happens to a body that's already going to die anyway. I guess I feel differently about depriving an animal of life prematurely, just to let the bugs eat it.
But a deers purpose in life is to grow, propagate (preferably a few times), and then at some uncertain time, become a meal. I don't think there are too many deer that die of 'old age'. Cougars, wolves, coyotes, bobcats, bears, wolverines, fishers, probably even raccoons, possums and other midsize critters when a deer is young, weak, injured or old. Heck, it's even been documented that a bald eagle can kill a fawn.
Then, they also have to find enough food to not starve to death (which can kill up to 30% of a given herd in harsh circumstances). There are worse ways to go than getting shot, I think, and either way, the deer is destined to become food for some predator or scavenger, and probably several in most cases. Neither should we waste what we kill, nor should we self-flagellate if we don't use every bit.
Hmm, I get a little preachy sometimes...
True enough. There are many good reasons to kill deer, not only for food.
Post a Comment