Do you eat weird food?

[3acres]

Some of my friends are repulsed by my love of fried chicken gizzards and hearts. I've been enjoying them since I was a kid. I used to think Dad and I competed for them, but of course, the truth is that I only got a gizzard or a heart when he let me. Chicken feet and necks? Oh, yeah. And after I was on my own and found out I could get a whole box of fried gizzards at Lee's Famous Recipe Fried Chicken, I was in hog heaven.

Speaking of hogs, BBQ snoots and pickled pigs feet were culinary delights that grossed out my school mates. And on the bovine side, there was scrambled eggs and brains, brain sandwiches, and tongue sandwiches too. They don't sell brains these days - BSE, I guess. But you can still get tongue.

Do you like this stuff? Or maybe something that'll make me say "icky!"?

[Anacanapuna]

Mmmmm, gizzards, hearts and livers ... best part of the chicken! Baked beef heart with stuffing, calf's liver with onions, kippered herring on crackers with beer, creamed corn with oysters ... I grew up on that stuff, man.

[Jaglavak]

Just because you were savagely abused as a youngster doesn't mean you have to keep doing that to yourself, you know.

[3acres]

Originally Posted by Anacanapuna

Mmmmm, gizzards, hearts and livers ... best part of the chicken! Baked beef heart with stuffing, calf's liver with onions, kippered herring on crackers with beer, creamed corn with oysters ... I grew up on that stuff, man.

Liver and onions! Dad loved that but I hated it. And the onions made it smell so good - I'd go see what Mom was cooking and be crestfallen. But my best friend loves the stuff. And Mom would use the chicken livers to make chopped chicken liver; that I liked.

I've never had kippered herring - those are smoked, right? But pickled herring with chopped onions on a kaiser roll, that's delicious!

[Dazzling White Diamonds]

Chicken livers from Lee's IS THE SHIT.

I grew up eating chicken livers, gizzards, and hearts. Necks were too much work, but made/make great broth. And my mother made the best damned liver and onions... she knew how to prep the liver so that it was damned tasty.

Now I'm hungry. *sigh*

[C2H5OH]

Except for the brains, which I never had an opportunity to try, I've had and enjoyed everything mentioned in the thread so far. Unfortunately, I can't eat the hearts or gizzards anymore 'cause you need teeth for that shit.

[Solfy]

I've only had livers. Beef liver is okay but not something I make and serve in adulthood. I wouldn't mind having some chicken liver pate again. Grandma used to make it at the holidays.

[Borborygmi]

I confess to being turned off by the sort of foods being talked about here... of everything listed, I think I've only had chicken livers and that was from being unawares at a buffet. I didn't think too much of them before I learned what they were anyway, though, so I don't feel like I'm missing out by avoiding them now.

I do enjoy scrapple, which Pennsylvanians think of as a Pennsylvania thing, but it has so much corn meal in it that any bravery associated with consuming offal is pretty blunted.

I would like to try authentic haggis sometime, which is kind a surprise to myself given my squeamishness about this kind of stuff.

[Rebo]

My husband and I eat chicken livers all the time, sauteed in butter and olive oil. With mac and cheese, and steamed spinach. Is it weird that for lots of meals, we have the same sides with the protein? We like beef liver and onions, but I don't serve that as much. I only use gizzards in giblet gravy at Thanksgiving.

I like Velveeta! Not as a snack, but it has its place in casseroles, and in queso. Somebody accidently put Easy Cheese in my grocery cart one day, and I ended up with it at home. Mr Rebo was overjoyed to see it! We ate it in two days. And Kraft singles make the best grilled cheese, no matter what the sandwich snobs say.

[Sputnik]

There's this stuff called Miracle Whip. It's a mixture of elephant ejaculate and rooster poo. I've heard that there are actually people who buy it and put it in their families meals. May Og have mercy on their otherwise worthy souls.

[Rat Diva]

Don't be hatin' on my Whip, buddy boy :: jabs Steve in the putnik with her tiny scythe ::

[kayaker]

My favorite liver is calf liver. A Turkish restaurant we love serves Arnavut Cigeri (calf liver and onions) as an appetizer and it is outrageously good. The owner's daughter gave me the recipe, but I'm having trouble finding culinary sumac.

I cook turkey gizzards, hearts, and livers every week, but I serve them as treats for our dogs.

[Miracle Whip]

Originally Posted by Sputnik

There's this stuff called Miracle Whip. It's a mixture of elephant ejaculate and rooster poo. I've heard that there are actually people who buy it and put it in their families meals. May Og have mercy on their otherwise worthy souls.

Yeah? Well fuck you, clown!

[Sputnik]

Can't hurt me, I'm wearing PPE, like everyone near that bio-hazard should.

[Wolf Larsen]

Chicken hearts are excellent. My grandmother used to make chicken soup and get a package of hearts and gizzards to throw in.

[Guinastasia]

I thought this would be about weird combinations. Uugh. I have tried bear jerky, though. It wasn't that bad.


I have a cousin who likes scrappel. *shudder*

[FairyChatMom]

My classmates waaaaaaay back when used to think my cream cheese-and-peanut sandwiches were weird. They, of course, were wrong. How can anyone resist a think layer of cream cheese spread on soft white bread, sprinkled with salted peanuts and topped with another slice of white bread, smashed together so the peanuts don't fall out.

OMG!!! It's heaven!!!

[3acres]

Originally Posted by Guinastasia

I thought this would be about weird combinations. Uugh. I have tried bear jerky, though. It wasn't that bad.


I have a cousin who likes scrappel. *shudder*

Feel free to throw in some weird combinations!

Originally Posted by FairyChatMom

My classmates waaaaaaay back when used to think my cream cheese-and-peanut sandwiches were weird. They, of course, were wrong.

That's like when I attended Lily-White Elementary School here in Missouri and I'd bring noodle kuegel or a thermos of matzoh ball soup or kreplach for lunch. My friends were like "that's weird". Mark once tried the kuegel and started gagging. Gotta admire his bravery though.

[Monstera deliciosa]

My family used to think I was a picky eater* because I wouldn't eat pigtails, pigs' feet, head cheese, and a number of other "delicacies". They knew better than to try me with chitterlings. I do love chicken livers wholeheartedly, and like the other giblets well enough.

The weirdest thing I've ever eaten was a few bites of raccoon. Gamey and stringy. Not a fan. I've also tried sweetbreads. Not awful, but I wouldn't go out of my way to eat them again.

*I'm not really a picky eater. I learned that after reading posts by truly picky eaters on the Durp. There are three things that I avoid: Eggs, except that I will eat one hard-boiled if I absolutely must, fatty meat, and overripe fruit (my standards of ripeness are kind of stringent.) I disliked raw tomatoes as a kid, but am fine with them now. Otherwise, I'm pretty adventurous.

[Dazzling White Diamonds]

Originally Posted by Rebo

My husband and I eat chicken livers all the time, sauteed in butter and olive oil. With mac and cheese, and steamed spinach.

Gaw, that sounds devine. :: drool ::

And Kraft singles make the best grilled cheese, no matter what the sandwich snobs say.

Woman after me own heart. I like the Kraft Deli Singles - American. They're soooo good.

Originally Posted by Sputnik

There's this stuff called Miracle Whip. It's a mixture of elephant ejaculate and rooster poo. I've heard that there are actually people who buy it and put it in their families meals. May Og have mercy on their otherwise worthy souls.

But I like Miracle Whip. And mayonnaise, too. Just not at the same time, of course. Some things do go better with the great taste of Miracle Whip.

Originally Posted by Rat Diva

Don't be hatin' on my Whip, buddy boy.

Go get 'im!

Originally Posted by Miracle Whip

Yeah? Well fuck you, clown!

I loves ya, baby.

Another "weird" food I like to eat but don't do very often because it's a heart attack in a meat tube: North America's version of Braunschweiger. Again, my grandfather would eat this on a regular basis, and I loved it. Still do, but lawdy it's the last thing I need to be eating.

ETA: Braunschweiger is not what I grew up eating, it's just what it was/is packaged as here in the states. In reality, it's liverwurst. Still good though.

[Jaglavak]

Is there no treatment or therapy that can help you poor suffering wretches?

[Dazzling White Diamonds]

You no likey? 'Sok... more for us!

[Dazzling White Diamonds]

I like to put thin-cut potato chips on my cold ham-and-cheese and cold turkey-and-cheese sandwiches.

I like peanut butter and cherry jam sandwiches. I also like toast with peanut butter and honey.

[C2H5OH]

Originally Posted by Guinastasia

I have tried bear jerky, though. It wasn't that bad.

Now that you mention it, I've had alligator jerky, kangaroo burgers, and alpaca burgers. All of 'em were good, although the alpaca wasn't very much different from beef, taste-wise. The kangaroo was very different, and incredibly good.

[Iori_Yagami]

If tongue is weird, I don't want to be 'normal', whatever that means. I mean, what not to like? Meaty texture, meaty smell, soft, falling apart fibers. Maybe if you're cooking it wrong... Now, kidneys I don't like, it's just smells wrong no matter what you do with it.
I love most vegetables - raw, boiled, fried, stewed, in salads, soups, pies. Why there is so much hate, I will never understand. Wrong upbringing, I guess? My only disliked are beets and broccoli (love cauliflower, though). I would still eat them occasionally if served somewhere, but won't buy myself.
But seriously, just a generation ago, this food was 100% normal, because it was more affordable. My grandma loved it, my dad and mom a bit less so, and I less still.

[thylacine]

A generation or two ago nothing of the animal was wasted, that was how my mother was raised and I have eaten it all though prefer to leave the offal aside these days. I do adore those cuts of meat that used to be very cheap before the hipsters discovered slow cooking and jacked up the prices, beef cheeks, lamb shanks etc.

I had excellent timing and won an online competition for $750 of gourmet frozen meals from a company in Sydney just as our meat processing plants here in Melbourne were being forced in to slow down due to the COVID lockdown. We dined splendidly for 6 weeks or so but all the meat was the stuff that would have been given to dogs in my youth.

[SmartAleq]

I'm not much a fan of organ meats, although I'll nom pate until the cows come home--preferably with truffles in. The only time I really enjoyed beef tongue was at a Basque restaurant where it was served boiled, sliced wafer thin and dressed with a mild vinegar, olive oil and fresh herbs. That was tasty. I've had chicken and beef heart and chicken gizzards and found them mostly meh. Tough and barely worth bothering with.

I've had some odd meats in my time, endangered sea turtle (it was at a restaurant in Cancun and I didn't order it but I did try it. Not bad, kinda like veal) and kangaroo steak, which was awesome. I had 'possum taco once, didn't ask where the hell they got the 'possum though because I was afraid they might tell me. I've had wild boar and most of the common game meats, venison, elk, moose. Pigeon, duck and goose. Bison is very good, I'm glad that's become common in grocery stores. Lamb and mutton I'd eat in preference to any other meat if I could afford it. Goat is good.

I lived in Japan so had the opportunity to try all kinds of weird stuff. Probably the oddest was fried grasshoppers. Okay so long as they're salty but I wouldn't go out of my way for them. Lots of varied seafood, many of which I never asked what they were so I still don't know. I've had chitlins in Japan, it's usually pork and they called it "hormone" which I still dunno why. To this day shrimp chips are still my favorite salty snack in a bag.

I'm pretty open to food experiences, I'm dubious about raw stuff from critters and I won't eat brains (they're basically just wrinkled cholesterol lumps and no thanks even before we knew about prions) but other than that I'll try most anything once. Don't like fish roe though, just can't reconcile the texture.

[Anacanapuna]

Originally Posted by 3acres

Liver and onions! Dad loved that but I hated it. And the onions made it smell so good - I'd go see what Mom was cooking and be crestfallen. But my best friend loves the stuff. And Mom would use the chicken livers to make chopped chicken liver; that I liked.

I've never had kippered herring - those are smoked, right? But pickled herring with chopped onions on a kaiser roll, that's delicious!

Crown Prince kipper snacks, $1.44 at Walmart. Yummm!

[krisolov]

Originally Posted by Borborygmi

I would like to try authentic haggis sometime, which is kind a surprise to myself given my squeamishness about this kind of stuff.

I had it last year for the first time; we were in Scotland so I think it's required.

I had my reservations, but boy did I love it! The only reason I didn't have it for breakfast every day was I felt my arteries hardening as I ate it.

Black pudding was more hit or miss. Some of it was too gamey, but others were surprisingly creamy and delicious.

[Anacanapuna]

Been a long time since I ate a liverwurst sandwich. They're OK. Drove my mom batty that I'd peel the lard trim off and eat it first.

Never had beef tongue, but would like to try it. MsPuna, despite being a farm girl, abhors the "good stuff" like beef liver, beef heart, etc., so I've never had the opportunity to try tongue. Not sure how to fix it.

[Oxirane]

I don't do gizzards, never have, but Dad and Grandmom loved them...ugh...not a fan of liver at all, so no pate as well. Nor caviar - maybe I've never had the really good stuff, but the stuff I tried was salty and fishy in not a good way.

I traveled for years in China for work, so I'm sure I ate stuff I wouldn't normally had they been identified. The baby octopuses in Hong Kong were flat-out gross, no flavor, slimy consistency, and you had to chew the damn thing, so imagine baby octopus tentacles on your tongue as you chew. But I like sashimi octopus and I like calamari.

In certain places in China, they deep fry the whole chicken leg, feet and all, and they love to chew the skin off of the toes. Could not bring myself to try that one.

Near Tai Hu Lake, one of the delicacies are frog legs (good!) and frog intestines, sauteed, and served over vegetables with a delicious sauce. Wasn't a fan of the consistency, but they weren't bad and the sauce was excellent.

Mrs. White grew up in a mayo house, I grew up in a Miracle Whip house, so I love Miracle Whip and was grossed out by mayo. At first, we'd buy both and make separate tuna salads, sandwiches, etc., but that got old after a while and I got lazy, so I've adapted to mayo and quite like it. Haven't had Miracle Whip in years, but might need to get a small jar to make tuna with relish served with potato chips pressed between the tuna and the bread.

[SmartAleq]

My mom used to cook beef tongue and it was pretty simple, just bung the whole skanky mess into a stock pot, cover with water and boil it until done. Then you peel the prickly skin off and the stuff under that you eat--she mostly just sliced it and had it on sammiches. It looks pretty gnarly at every stage of preparation and it's best not to think about it too much.

[Flying Saucerian]

I was and am a very picky eater. I did finally give in and eat some of the fried squirrel my grandma cooked up from the squirrels my dad and brother shot that year.

[3acres]

Originally Posted by SmartAleq

My mom used to cook beef tongue and it was pretty simple, just bung the whole skanky mess into a stock pot, cover with water and boil it until done. Then you peel the prickly skin off and the stuff under that you eat--she mostly just sliced it and had it on sammiches. It looks pretty gnarly at every stage of preparation and it's best not to think about it too much.

We had a party once with lots of deli meat - corned beef, pastrami, salami, tongue, etc. A woman eating a sandwich she'd made asked me what the tongue was, as though it was just a name, like salami. I told her "it's tongue" and stuck out my tongue. She laughed, and said "no, really". So I pushed the slices together to show their original form and said "cow's tongue, really". I should not have told her that.

[mjmlabs]

I have some rules.

1) No mammalian CNS. (Prions. Eeeesssshhh. )

2) No meats other than skeletal muscle. (No offal for me, thanks. There's a reason that those bits were what the poor folks got. Also, the homophone obtains.)

3) No filter feeders. (This is a relatively new rule. A bout of Paralytic Shellfish Poisoning in December 2001, from some scallops in a pasta dish, is responsible for it. That was a thoroughly unpleasant experience. It's a damned good thing I only ate half the entrée, or I might well have died. No, REALLY.)

4) Nothing that's particularly cruel to a sentient being. (No veal, no foie gras, etc.)

5.) No rodents, reptiles, insects, or arachnids. Hardly any crustaceans, for that matter, but I'm from New England so I'm required to eat lobster even if it's creepy as hell. (Shrimp cocktail = always good, unless spoiled.)

6.) No roadkill, I don't care how fresh it is or how eco-friendly it would be.

Boring? Perhaps. But when we have the "Do you drink adventurous/weird booze?" thread, be sure to nudge me.