Food Preparation
October 14, 2008 5:14 PM Subscribe
When preparing or eating an ortolan what do chefs/diners do about the... you know... poop?
I've been reading about the ortolan as a bird, as a food, how to cook it, the history behind eating it etc. The one question I have that lingers is what do chefs and diners do about the poop? I know organs are traditionally left in the bird to add flavors and texture, but does the chef try and squeeze the waste out first? Do diners just munch it up knowing it's part of the flavor as well? Willingly ignore it?
I've read a bit about the biology of the bird and similar species and I know some birds can ingest food and pass waste in a very short time (~30 min), especially compared to humans, so do the preparers just withhold food the night before and know it will all be passed? From my bio classes I know that bird poop can be some pretty nasty stuff even compared to other poop, who could just ignore that flavor and smell?
Most websites I've found are just copy/pasted from one another, I listened to the TAL episode, watch a youtube video, read some cookbooks, but none addressed this issue.
For clarity's sake, I have no desire to obtain or eat an ortolan. I've just been reading about weird food and could not find an answer to this question.
I've been reading about the ortolan as a bird, as a food, how to cook it, the history behind eating it etc. The one question I have that lingers is what do chefs and diners do about the poop? I know organs are traditionally left in the bird to add flavors and texture, but does the chef try and squeeze the waste out first? Do diners just munch it up knowing it's part of the flavor as well? Willingly ignore it?
I've read a bit about the biology of the bird and similar species and I know some birds can ingest food and pass waste in a very short time (~30 min), especially compared to humans, so do the preparers just withhold food the night before and know it will all be passed? From my bio classes I know that bird poop can be some pretty nasty stuff even compared to other poop, who could just ignore that flavor and smell?
Most websites I've found are just copy/pasted from one another, I listened to the TAL episode, watch a youtube video, read some cookbooks, but none addressed this issue.
For clarity's sake, I have no desire to obtain or eat an ortolan. I've just been reading about weird food and could not find an answer to this question.
You do this with edible insects, too. Feed 'em good food for a while before eating, so as much of the nasty-nastiness as possible is flushed away before cooking.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 5:31 PM on October 14, 2008
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 5:31 PM on October 14, 2008
I always had the understanding re ortolan that even the poop is digested in the big birdy bite.
posted by pineapple at 5:41 PM on October 14, 2008
posted by pineapple at 5:41 PM on October 14, 2008
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by Cool Papa Bell at 5:30 PM on October 14, 2008