What's the most exotic protein you've ever tasted?

(Stickin' with mammoth) #21

Henna, I’ve always wanted to taste whale blubber–is it good fried or do you eat it raw? I hear you have reindeer meat up in those northern climes, too, but I’m wondering how lean it is summer to winter.

When I was climbing in Colorado, there were Ptarmigans up above treeline but they are a protected species. We used to love to tease the wildlife officials about it.

Ranger: “Did you see any Ptarmigans up there?”
Me: “Yeah, they’re really good with a little garlic butter.”
Ranger: (horrified look)
Me: “Just kidding, I’m allergic to garlic.”
Ranger: (walks away)

(Steven Cook) #22

I ate a lot of alpaca when I was in Peru last year, didn’t find it leathery at all, very similar to lamb I found.
I also ate the guinea pig, which wasn’t that great to be honest but definitely an interesting experience.

(Henna Selnes) #23

We don’t get to much of the fat,you pretty much have to know someone on the boat. When a whale is caught, signs pop up everywhere,then you hunt down who has any left. That’s when it’s fresh,like less than a day up to a week. After that you get the frozen version. The fat is so oily all you need is a very small piece and tradition is to boil, but pan grill is better :+1:t2: I am a sissy and probably cast up if I ate raw. Up north rype, ptarmigan, are everywhere. Easy to get,but in the south where I am now,sigh,frozen food section. Rein is all over the country sold. We eat that at least once a week. It’s very lean, and not to strong of a taste,I love it,probably my favorite meat. I forgot to say,whale tastes like a mild liver taste. My husband could eat it everyday if he could.

Funny joke…garlic,haha

#24

I’ve had Kangaroo, which was a bit of a task where I am (had to have my sister bring back some from her trip to Australia years ago, along with some Vegemite, turns out I’m an American who loves both).
The Kangaroo I had tasted pretty much like Beef, just easier to chew actually.
I’d like to try a lot of other ‘exotic’ meats, but they’re not easily available (hence ‘exotic’), and expensive when they are.

A few things I have had that some have mentioned I just didn’t think were particularly exotic:
Goat (tastes like lamb, so great, a bit tougher maybe?)
Ostrich, ‘Wild’ Boar, Buffalo, Elk - All of these as ground meat in a Fudrucker’s Burger, they all pretty much taste like regular beef burgers. (I’ve had buffalo otherwise as well, as it’s not too hard to get around here, but I don’t get it as much anymore as it has less fat).
Shark, though I have my doubts as to how likely it was actually shark given the price of the place.

(Roxanne) #25

Only had alpaca once, and perhaps it wasn’t cooked well or an older animal? I couldn’t do the guinea pig but saw them being sold at roadside stalls, roasted on a stick. We were advised that if we DID order cuy, we ensure that it was served with the head on, so we knew it was guinea pig and not rat.

(Stickin' with mammoth) #26

Wow, I would have never guessed that. You’ve got great info, thanks for sharing!

(Steven Cook) #27

Not sure I could have told the difference after it was cooked, but I did get the upper part of the skull on my plate! There wasn’t a lot of eating on it… lol

#28

I’ve had alligator. Living in FL it is served in many places as an appetizer.

It sort of taste like chicken, but with a stronger flavor. It really depends on how it is cooked too.

(Jo Lo) #29

Rattlesnake.

It’s a long story. We were teenagers hiking the Appalachian Trail in Pennsylvania, many years ago.

Tasted like chicken in a membrane kind of way.

#30

I’ve eaten whale. On a short work/project up in the Canadian north, I was introduced to it. I didn’t find it tasted like much. They were small raw pieces of whale blubber. Just open the plastic bag, pick up a small piece, and eat. Purse bacon of the north I guess. Someone who was a member of the First Nations gave me some. When there is a “kill”, they divide it amongst the tribe.

(Stickin' with mammoth) #31

Awesome.

(Jo Lo) #32

While living in South Africa I developed a taste for Kudu biltong (jerky made from a deer-like animal), as well as ostrich (like turkey, dark meat), and crayfish (from the ocean, think lobster without claws). It is a great place to be carniverous.

(Stickin' with mammoth) #33

A friend is heading down to New Orleans for Mardi Gras and he promised to eat lots of hot, spicy crawfish for me but I’m jealous as hell.

(Jacquie) #34

How could I have forgotten uni, the Japanese name for the edible part (gonads) of the sea urchin? It seemed a bit slimy to me and I wasn’t crazy about it. I much prefer jelly fish with sesame seed oil and chili. :slight_smile:

(Stickin' with mammoth) #35

Oh, my god, I was just wondering the other day what that would taste like.

(Cheryl Meyers) #36

I love uni sushi! When it is fresh, it is sweet and tastes like butter.

(Jan) #37

I’ve eaten some weird stuff, with a Japanese husband, Hawaiian/Philipino son in law, spending a month in Zimbabwe 30 yrs ago.
With my Japanese family:
-Horse sashimi (didn’t know it at the time
Dried jellyfish - tasted like rubber bands
Sea cucumber in a Chinese restaurant owned by a karate student
Uni (sea urchin gonads) better if really fresh, but still eeeeewwwww
Raw giant clam (very much eeeeewwwww) but tasty when grilled
Chitons, strange looking segmented sea creepy-crawlies
Some kind of giant sea snails on Shikoku island, grilled over charcoal on the beach (excellent!)
In Zimbabwe:
Wild boar (yum), giraffe biltong, kudu, Nile crocodile (like lobster), and some kind of lizard (meh)
And with the Hawaiian in-laws - the normal things like squid, limpets (opihi) - raw very chewy, slightly grilled excellent. And all kinds of stuff they fed me (the lone white girl) just to see my reaction… most was pretty good, but the goat intestines…not so much.
And in Colorado: bison (Oh, yeah), elk (very good), ostrich (meh), deer (yum)
And all of it much easier to try with some good local sake!

(Stickin' with mammoth) #38

Just a weird thought, but anybody had an opportunity to taste that lab-grown meat they’re always talking about?

(Jennifer) #39

Alligator, ostrich and fried squirrel. The squirrel does taste like chicken…

(Stickin' with mammoth) #40

The furry little farts running around my yard are in real trouble, then.