Friday, October 17, 2008

That Food Meme

The Very Good Taste Ominvore's 100: stolen from Chall!

Rationale and Methods (can you tell I've been working on grants?)

These are the original instructions from the list's creator.

"Here’s a chance for a little interactivity for all the bloggers out there. Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers".

"Here’s what I want you to do:
1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
4) Optional extra: Post a comment here at http://www.verygoodtaste.co.uk/ linking to your results".

Results

1. Venison hel-lo, I used to live in Scotland. One pub we went to had a herd of deer hanging around outside, waiting for scraps, and lots and lots of venison on the menu. Coincidence?
2. Nettle tea I think it was actually raspberry and nettle or some such
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare in France
5. Crocodile - no, but I've had alligator, twice. The first time I enjoyed it, the second, not so much.
6. Black pudding hel-lo, I'm from Northern England... although I did stop eating this for a while after I learned what's in it. Then I got over myself and remembered how tasty it is.
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses
17. Black truffle - a shocking omission that I hope to correct some day
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese I see this in the deli sometimes and give it a wide berth. I don't know what's in it, but the look and the name are enough to put me off for life.
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper I like spicy - within reasonable limits
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava

30. Bagna cauda
31. Wasabi peas by the bagful!
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl Mmmmm, San Francisco
33. Salted lassi
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
not a big fan - I'm not sure why some people like to drink something that tastes like cough medicine
36. Cognac with a fat cigar
37. Clotted cream tea
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo ­
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat
goat is TASTY
42. Whole insects but never intentionally, cycling will do that for you
43. Phaal - I would probably have a tiny taste, but no more. My husband would love it!
44. Goat's milk
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth $60/$120 or more at a wrap party, of course!
46. Fugu I've seen the Simpsons - "poison, poison, tasty fish!"
47. Chicken tikka masala national dish of England these days - more units sold than fish'n'chips. And quite rightly so.
48. Eel I like sushi so much, I named one of my cats after my favourite kind
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi
53. Abalone - it's possible, as part of some kind of mixed sushi roll, but I'm not sure.
54. Paneer
55. McDonald's Big Mac Meal - even just a Big Mac by itself is too much for me!
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV there are other kinds? ;-)
59. Poutine - another shocking omission, you can get it here but I'm saving it for my next trip to Quebec
60. Carob chips - never again
61. S'mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin WHY??!!
64. Currywurst
65. Durian I don't want to eat anything deemed too stinky to be allowed in certain buildings. Oh, and the durian ice cream at our local gelato place is kept separately and very well sealed - not a good sign
66. Frogs' legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
I refer you to my answer to #1. I actually really really like haggis.
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini
73. Louche absinthe
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill - never tried it, but then I've never hit a deer or other tasty mammal.
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong - never heard of it before but the Wiki entry makes it sound yummy
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant - one day maybe!
85. Kobe beef - would love to try it
86. Hare in France
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
as a kid
89. Horse in France, in sausages
90. Criollo chocolate
91. Spam spammity spam, wonderful spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa - again the Wiki page makes it sound great!
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano
96. Bagel and lox
hel-lo, I live in Vancouver
97. Lobster Thermidor - lots of regular lobster when I was in Nova Scotia though. Oh, and at wrap parties, obviously ;-)
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

It's interesting that I'll happily eat black pudding and haggis, but refuse to eat any kind of internal organ-based dish that I didn't grow up with!

9 comments:

  1. I answered also. Thanks for the blog bragging rights too!

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  2. I will have to do this one! Oh, and I too love black pudding and many of the things you love :)

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  3. haha, "any organrelated food you grew up with". I soooo hear you. Oxtail soup, sure! We had it when I was a kid. Black pudding? I loooove it ;)

    Even consider kidney pie -nope nope nope. Something that cleanses things in the body is probably not for eating. I know, liver is good for yuo but I just cant.,,, only as pate but then it is more cream than anything else....

    I thought "wrap party" was what I would call "slattparty" - i.e. Bring any bottle that has been opened and finish it with your friends. THen I remembered what your husband does for a living and the jelousy of Battlestar galactica..... ;)

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  4. Ok, I had to laugh because I ate a venison burger today for lunch when I went to the Borough Market.

    Also, the other day I went to a pub which served traditional English food such as:

    Steak and Kidney Pie
    Fish and Chips
    Chicken Tikka Masala

    I swear, if Enid Blyton were writing now, The Famous Five would have been feasting regularly on curries and aloo parathas in addition to their hard boiled eggs and cucumber sandwiches and various puddings!!

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  5. Wow, you are quite the culinary adventurer!!

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  6. My culinary palette outside of southern/asian cuisine is woefully small I'm sad to say after seeing this list.

    That said, you GO girl:P

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  7. it's a rather european leaning list isn't it? Other then the sushi perhaps. Huh. We used to have this potluck in Fairbanks every year on the Icelandic New Year where everybody would try and bring the national dish that they thought other people would find the most revolting. And it was a goal to try everything. Luckily it was helped down with lots of alcohol. There were definately things that were banned from being opened inside so you would have to go out in the -40 weather to try it!

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  8. Dr J, you're welcome!

    ScienceGirl, black pudding RULES. Preferably with scrambled eggs, bacon, mushrooms and HP sauce.

    Chall, I used to eat steak and kidney pie but stopped when my biology teacher first taught us what kidneys actually do. Liver is even worse! Imagine all the growth hormones and antibiotics and whatever that most animals get exposed to, all concentrating in the liver... I never liked the stuff anyway, I have very traumatic memories of the liver and bacon casserole my Mum used to make. My Dad loved it, but my sister and I HATED it. Not finishing your dinner was never an option in our house though!

    Ruchi, I'm glad you're exploring the rich cultural heritage of my homeland. The beer is better up North though.

    UR and Hermitage, I'd never eaten some of these things (and in some cases never heard of them) until I moved to Vancouver. This is a great place to be an omnivore!

    Wayfarer, I have heard tales of traditional Icelandic food that make lutefisk sound positively delightful. Something about rotten shark that has been buried in the ground for a few months. Yikes. I would need more than alcohol before I'd eat that stuff!

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  9. speaking of memes... you've been tagged lady! check it out: http://goingtohellforthis.blogspot.com/2008/10/meme-time.html

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