I thought the noodles, pork and onions thread could use a bit of hijack relief from the raw foods discussion, plus it interested me enough that I thought it would make for a decent thread of its own.
So, it seemed like things started when I mentioned it was now considered safe to cook pork to an internal temp of 145F, to which @Jackmannii replied:
Then the discussion went on to eating stuff like steak tartare in foreign countries where they now realize they were playing Russian Roulette with their gut, and food safety issues in general.
I myself mentioned eating beef carpaccio in the past, which is basically steak tartare in appetizer form, as well as tons of sushi over the years. Also, years ago I worked in an office that had a really great Middle Eastern restaurant nearby, and I got a taste for Kibbeh Nayyeh: raw ground lamb mixed with bulgur wheat, you scoop up with pita bread. I kind of liked getting takeout, bringing it back to the office and grossing out my coworkers with it-- “sure you don’t want a taste”?
Of those, I’m definitely going to continue to eat sushi. Beef Carpaccio I would get again-- maybe not Beef Tartare as a whole meal. Kibbee Nayeh…eh, these days I think I would pass, unless I really trusted the restaurant or the person preparing it.
This thread doesn’t have to just be about raw or undercooked food-- ate Surströmming or Lutefisk? As a dare, or did you actually like it? Ever try Casu martzu on vacation in Italy? Did you like it, or did the taste kind of bug you? Did you eat Balut, and are brave enough to admit it here?
My daughter brought Hakarl home from a trip to Iceland a few years ago. It’s Greenland shark, which is poisonous fresh, so they bury it for a few weeks to let it ferment, then hang it to dry for a few months. Basically one of those “We need to figure out how to prepare this inedible animal so we don’t starve” recipes. I ate some with a side of Brennivin, it was to quote Anthony Bourdain, " the single worst, most disgusting and terrible tasting thing I’ve put in my mouth."
Some consider Sushi gross: “Raw fish ewww”, I consider it delicious.
Though the amount of wasabi I add to it and the way I do it would probably horrify an Itamae.
Ah, I mentioned Surströmming and Lutefisk, but forgot about Hakari. The trilogy of rotten fish dishes
I used to like to make what I called ‘wasabi bombs’-- I’d use chopsticks to stuff a tuna roll with way too much wasabi, and ‘enjoy’ the sinus-clearing pain.
These days, as you mention, I’ve heard that it’s a bit of an insult to the sushi chef to use too much extra wasabi, since they have already created what they consider the perfect balance of flavor in each piece, so I’m much more sparing in my use of the extra wasabi. Plus, I’m kind of a pain wimp nowadays
Then use that to refuse to eat sushi made with cooked fish.
We love the sushi counter at Harris Teeter, particularly on $6 Fridays. One Friday featured some sort of beef sushi which was really good (and cooked). Haven’t seen it since.
I also ate Andouillette sausage in Paris a few years ago. I foolishly saw it on the menu and thought it would be similar to Andouille. It very much was not.
Though on an absolute scale it wasn’t nearly as bad as Hakarl, in other ways it was worse, since I wasn’t expecting a sausage made from a large intestine, and our host at dinner was my wife’s recently deceased mother’s best friend, so I felt I had to pretend I was enjoying it.
While some still do, I feel like the days of sushi as a shorthand for “gross food” are long past now. Especially when you can get sushi at a supermarket.
I put a lot of wasabi inside the small soy sauce container and mix it with the soy sauce, then sink the sushi piece there and let it soak before eating it.
All of this with a fork, mind you, because I can’t get the hand of chopsticks.
I expect to be assassinated by angry ninjas any night now.
Yeah, I can’t really do organ meats, especially when it comes to any part of the digestive system.
Years ago, in my 20s, one Sunday a friend asked if I wanted to go to lunch at a Mexican restaurant in Detroit’s Mexican Village. I was a wee bit hungover, and I had heard that Menudo was good for a hangover, so I ordered a bowl.
They brought me a big bowl of soup with large rectangular pieces of stomach or intestine floating on top, with the honeycomb lining facing up for me to see. The aroma wafting off the soup smelled faintly of sewer.
I’m not insulting the restaurant-- it was an authentic Mexican restaurant with delicious food, and I’m sure what they brought me was the very example of high quality Menudo. But I couldn’t bring myself to even taste it. I told them I’d pay for it, but to take it away, give it to someone who worked there if they wanted, since I didn’t touch it. Then I ordered a burrito or something else ‘safe’.
…or angry Itamae. I used to do that too, but I’ve heard that is one of the biggest sushi bar faux pas you can make. Not to criticize your practice of it, just FYI. If you get your sushi at a table, NBD. But if you eat at the sushi bar, you might get some disdainful looks.
I’ve had balut on the streets of Angeles. Didn’t particularly like it, but it didn’t gross me out. I ate a Century egg in Singapore, and while it did visually gross me out, it was tasty. Carpaccio is delicious. Sushi is delicious, but I find it unsatisfying as a meal. In Turkey there are several dishes made from sheep intestines and stomach which I have enjoyed. I never did get a taste for ayran - too much like buttermilk.
ETA: in reference to the OP, I have always cooked my pork chops and tenderloins to 145* - I can’t stand dry overcooked pork any more than overcooked beef.
I’ll eat any variety of raw protein. Raw is my preference for any large fish and I like the middle of my steaks bloody as hell. Poultry is the only one I really haven’t tried, but I would if it was prepared by a trusted restaurant. It’s vegetables I generally dislike eating raw.
I was wondering if anybody would mention eating balut. From that and the other dishes you mentioned, you are clearly quite the adventurous traveler and eater.
I’ve eaten all forms of raw protien, fish, pork, chicken, horse and beef…mainly in my travels throughout asia. I’ve only tried one thing that I couldn’t stomach and had to spit it out - - hongeo a local favorite in South Korea.
I’ll be in Tokyo in October. I looked for raw chicken (and whale) on menus the last time I was in Japan and never saw it. I guess you have to do your homework first.
When I was in the Navy I made a promise to myself based on advice given to me by my surrogate father to experience as much as possible when I was in places most Americans don’t get to see. That extended to food as well. While my shipmates were getting snockered in dive bars in the port, I was out exploring and tasting because I knew I’d probably never have another chance. I’ve never regretted it.
Someone mentioned mett is the other thread. It’s seasoned raw, ground meat on an open face roll. I ate it every morning when I was in Berlin. It was only later that I learned it is made of ground pork; not beef.
Surprising how many cultures have a type of cuisine that is basically rotten fish. As @muldoonthief said, I’m guessing it’s probably another example of ‘starvation food’ that people eventually developed a taste for.
The chicken sashimi article I linked to above listed 3 Tokyo restaurants that serve it. If you do end up trying it, post back here and let us know what you thought of it!
Wow, I thought I was taking a chance back when I often ate kibbeh nayyeh, raw ground lamb.
