Bizarre Foods
February 3, 2011 7:45 PM   Subscribe

I finally tried balut! I don't think I'll be trying that again, but I'm so thrilled that I could get past the gross (for me) factor and actually think about the taste and texture... So, what's next, and available in grocery stores or preferably restaurants near San Mateo, CA?
posted by hammurderer to Food & Drink (19 answers total) 6 users marked this as a favorite
 
Durian. Though I find it delicious--a good one tastes like an onion custard....that just happens to smell like methane gas.
posted by availablelight at 8:04 PM on February 3, 2011 [2 favorites]


There's a durian ice cream at Poly Ann in SF. I do not recommend getting it with the licorice. Trust me.
posted by kcm at 8:10 PM on February 3, 2011


How about grinding together a medley of lamb suet, the lungs and windpipe of a sheep, oatmeal (wtf?) stuffed into a sheep's fourth stomach (not the second, not the third, and whoa...never the first because, well...), and when you can't cop a sheep's delicate tummy, there's always an ox bung. Put it all together and you have Haggis. If you're real good, you might get a couple of Scots in kilts serve ya with a bagpipe or two playin' fer ya.
posted by ~Sushma~ at 8:23 PM on February 3, 2011


Well, bizarre is always relative.

You can get a nice fresh locally made natto from Megumi (either their Megumi or Tezukuri) at three places in San Mateo:

Nijiya Market San Mateo
1956 S. El Camino Real, San Mateo, CA 94403
Tel 650-212-7398

Suriki Supermarket
71 E. 4th Ave.
San Mateo, CA 94401
Tel 650-347-5288

Takahashi Market
221 South Claremont St. (off 3rd Ave)
San Mateo, CA 94401
Tel 650-343-0394

My husband, who loves natto, thought the Tezukuri was a little too tame, but since frozen natto is pretty eh, it might be worth a try. Various places online will tell you how to eat it.

If interesting substances in your drinks look fun to you, check out a Hong Kong dessert cafe. The ones over here in Fremont have all sorts of interesting stuff, like snow frog jelly. I don't know about any in San Mateo specifically, but you can poke around Yelp.
posted by wintersweet at 8:42 PM on February 3, 2011


Thousand Year Egg! I got some at my local Asian Supermarket! They are definitely something you won't (want to) eat every day!
posted by troublewithwolves at 8:56 PM on February 3, 2011


Steve, Don't Eat It! is full of great suggestions.
posted by Mister Fabulous at 9:11 PM on February 3, 2011


Ortolan.
posted by sanko at 10:18 PM on February 3, 2011


Blood sausage, chicken feet, pig's feet, chitterlings, mealworms or other insects, octopus, natto, vegemite, alligator, sashimi, horned melon (tastes like kiwi, feels like mucus), haggis, bitter melon/gourd, pork/cow brains, and a burnt martini (I count this as bizarre since it burned so badly I can't understand why you would imbibe it. It's jet fuel.).
posted by Logic Sheep at 11:55 PM on February 3, 2011


Eh, natto is delicious. Do you like the texture of okra (or boogers)? If so, and if you happen to not be among the people who are disgusted by its smell (what smell?), you might like natto.
posted by halogen at 11:57 PM on February 3, 2011


If you can get up to SF, they've apparently got grasshopper tacos in the Mission now.
posted by mhum at 2:18 AM on February 4, 2011


Thousand year eggs are delicious- especially w/ tofu, green onion and some sesame oil.
posted by wongcorgi at 2:23 AM on February 4, 2011


Something with pork bung (rectum). It's available at many Vietnamese and Chinese butchers.

Here's a recipe:

ឆា​សណ្ដែកកួរទឹកម្ទេស
cʰaa sɑndaek kuə tɨk mteih

Stirfried Snake Beans with Chilli Sauce

Snake Beans, cut short 1 cup
Pork Bung (Rectum) 1/2 cup
Salted/Pickled Daikon, cut into fine threads 1/4 cup
Yellow Chillies, minced 2 pieces
Chilli Sauce (any will do, Sriracha works well) 2 tablespoons
Fish Sauce or Soy Sauce 1 tablespoon
Water 1 tablespoon
Oil for Stirfrying 2-3 tablespoons

1. Wash the pork bung thoroughly in alternating changes of salted and vinegared water until no “bum” smell remains. Do a final rinse in fresh water. Cut into bite sized pieces. Blanch in hot water until just cooked. Repeat the blanching in a change of water if you notice a fecal smell while cooking. Drain well.

2. Pour oil into wok and heat until hot. Add the bung, pickled radish, snake beans and stir fry together. Add the water and stir fry, tossing, for a moment.

3. Add chili sauce and fish sauce. Stir fry together. Add the yellow chillies and stir fry to combine. Remove to a serving dish and serve.
posted by Ahab at 3:16 AM on February 4, 2011


I don't mind Natto that much but Durian is truly foul if you have a functioning olfactory system and can be found frozen in many asian markets.
posted by The Violet Cypher at 7:21 AM on February 4, 2011


Hey, pig's feet and chitterlings are delicious. Don't hate on the pork offal.
posted by shoesietart at 9:00 AM on February 4, 2011


Not hating on them, just listing something that could be considered "gross" that the OP could expand their tastes by trying.
posted by Logic Sheep at 9:19 AM on February 4, 2011


Sea slug.
But don't try it.
Worst thing I've ever eaten.
(Actually, dunno if available in San Mateo; had my one bite in China.)
posted by fivesavagepalms at 11:07 AM on February 4, 2011


I'm pretty sure I've seen sea slug on at least one menu here on the other side of the bridge.

And yeah, finding whole durian, durian gelato, durian shakes and so on is trivially easy around here. (Unsurprisingly, that's also one of my husband's favorite things. I can't get over the smell. He has to eat it on the porch with the door closed. King of fruits indeed...)
posted by wintersweet at 1:52 PM on February 4, 2011


After balut, huitlacoche should be easy-peasy.
posted by zinfandel at 4:55 PM on February 4, 2011


Why, why, why did I have to look up balut. Thanks for the nausea!
posted by tatiana wishbone at 5:24 PM on February 4, 2011


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