EJJI THE OMNIVORE
............AND I'VE EATEN 'EM ALL!!!!
I've always been fascinated by food, among other equally pleasurable things I fancy. As the wise person proclaimed, "The best things in life are immoral, illegal or fattening". Pardon me if you find all three true in my case. In some cases the source is from the black market and is illegal. More often than not, it is legal, normal food in way out of civilization places in different parts of the world. In India, most of these food items I have shared with tribals living inside dense jungles. Insect as food is being actively recommended and promoted all over the world today as an alternative to food scarcity and malnutrition. There are exclusive insect restaurants in many parts of the world. Eating of insects is called "entomophogy". The list of strange foods I've eaten may make some people squirm. But remember that food is a sociological habit formed by local availability in any civilization. Tell someone in the U.S. of A that you drink buffalo's milk, and chances are that the person will think it rather strange. Many cannot believe that milk from a buffalo can be imbibed! Non-veg. list: Scorpions (USA, India), snakes (Singapore, Japan, Thailand, India and many other places) raw snake blood (Macao), pickled snake in wine (Viet Nam, Cambodia), kudu, elephant, giraffe, zebra (Southern African countries), crocodile (Singapore, Australia, Africa), termites (India), green frogs (Malaysia, India), mopane worms (Botswana), monkeys (India, Africa), crickets, locusts, water beetles, grasshopper, cockroaches, emus (India, Australia), ostrich (Africa), kingfisher, woodpecker, cranes, stork, water fowl, jungle fowl, snipe, partridge, turkey, guinea fowl, pigeon, assorted wild birds (almost everywhere in the world), dogs (India, Korea), earthworms, bamboo grubs, bees, beehives (India), cats (Singapore, Hong Kong), crows (India), iguana or monitor lizard, squirrels, civet cat (India), escargot snails (Europe, India), giant African snails (Andamans, India), white mice (Chettinad, India), silkworms and silkworm pupae (Cambodia, Viet Nam, India), mealy grub (US and Australia), ants (Canada, India), bees (India), birds nest (Hong Kong, Nepal), turtle (Singapore, Australia), turtle eggs (India), tortoise (Australia), camel (India, Western Sahara, Mauritania, Mali), camel milk (India), yak (Bhutan), fruit bats (India), horse (Italy, Hungary), fossilized Tuna called Masi Karuvadu or Maldive Fish (India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia), bison (India, USA), deer (Europe, India), clams and sea shells (India, Singapore and many other places), reindeer (Europe), whale (Japan), wild boar (Hungary, India), rabbit (India and many other places), antelope (Botswana, South Africa, Zimbabwe), kangaroo (Australia), oyster, abalone, octopus (Japan), peacock (India), goose, pheasant, sandpiper, (Europe, India), Tarantula spiders: The Asian Tarantula spider is one the deadliest and venomous spiders, which is huge and grows as big as an adult human palm. One bite from this spider and you are dead. There is no known anti-toxin to tarantula venom. They are available all over Cambodia and in some neighboring countries. The headquarters of tarantula spider farming is a Cambodian Village near Angkor Vat, now named "Spiderville". Commercial farms produce millions of them. It is perhaps the best tasting exotic food I have had till now. The taste comes from the eggs and excrement inside the spider, which is eaten whole. Veg. list: Kandali Ka Saag: Strobilanthes wallichii, commonly known as Kashmir Acanthus, Hardy Persian Shield, Wild Petunia, or Kandali grows wild in the Himalayas. Touch any part of the plant, and you have get a sting that stays painful for days on end. The locals harvest the leaves of this plant with protective gear. The leaves are boiled and made into delectable dishes. I have also tasted Kopi Luwak. Kopi Luwak is the world's most expensive coffee. It may not be everyone's cup of tea. A Palm Civet eats Arabica coffee cherries in a coffee plantation. Sometimes in controlled production, the fruits are fed to civets bred in cages and their droppings collected to make a brew enriched by the civets' stomachs that sell for as much as $770 a kg in London. It is also available in India!!! Some of the rarest foods I have tasted: Tea leaves chutney: Tender tea leaves are harvested in Myanmar (Burma), and made into chutney by grinding it raw with ginger, grams and chili. It is a standard food for locals and is used as a relish. Smelly cheese of Sikkim: A food item like the durian that is banned inside hotel rooms and aircraft, this cheese stinks to high heavens. But it is a regular part of Sikkimese diet and is available everywhere on the streets and shops all over Sikkim. Bamboo shoots, marula fruit, sea weeds, durian fruit, you name it and I've tried it. Many fruits, vegetables and other plants are endemic to specific regions in the world. I search for things I have never seen or eaten before. One warning! You do not know what you'd be allergic to. Always keep Prednisolone with you. I also eat mutton, chicken, duck, beef, pork, fish, prawns, crabs and other things that normal people eat!! I have no favorite food. I eat anything. But I love Magali Kizhangu in Tamil (Decalepis hamiltonii) the best. It smells and tastes like crushed bed bugs!! In Moreh, Manipur, India, on the border with Myanmar, I always serve my car rally group, minced, spiced and fried dog meat stuffed in dog intestines when we are there. A real Meiti Tribe delicacy!! (Meiti are the majority ethnic group of Manipur)
AND THE LATEST DURING THE LONDON MOSCOW DRIVE 2019- AT TALLINN, ESTONIA.
Bear, Giant Elk, European Wild Boar, Himalayan Lamb at Olde Hamsa Restaurant in Tallinn Old Town Estonia. The medieval restaurant Olde Hansa is the home of a rich merchant, whose guests enjoy delicious, authentic Hansa-era meals and drinks, true period music. All of the dishes on the menu, including many wild game delicacies, are cooked using 15th century recipes and methods.
Pictures of Olde Hamsa Restaurant at https://mega.nz/folder/lFUBgQgC#7niAQahtZn1wtuBdN8trMw
VIEW PHOTOS OF EXOTIC FOODS AT Ejji's Exotic Foods Pictures
THE ULTIMATE CULINARY EXPERIENCE IN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD
Carnivore Restaurant, Gauteng | Johannesburg
The Carnivore Johannesburg, adjacent to the Misty Hills Hotel, is the ultimate in eating experience. It is situated in natural surroundings overlooking the Krugersdorp hills. The entrance to the restaurant is by way of a thatched walkway through indigenous gardens and a spectacular water feature. The restaurant is laid out like a Masaai Village dwelling.The central attraction of the restaurant is a large circular open fire with 52 converted Masaai tribal spears holding a variety of 10 different types of meat such as pork, lamb, beef, chicken, ribs and sausages and including such game meats. The meats available are hartebeest, warthog, sable, blesbok, gemsbok, rhinoceros, wildebeest, eland, springbok, kudu, crocodile, zebra, giraffe, impala, ostrich, etc, gently roasting and waiting for you to begin your feast!!! All meats are legally procured. The focal point of the restaurant is its huge open fire. Joints of meat skewered on large Masaai spears are roasted to perfection. The waiters are dressed like Masaai warriors.
Waiters circulate the restaurant with the Masaai spears and the meat is carved directly onto the diners' hot cast iron plates. This "Beast of a Feast" is a case of "eat as much as you can", with each table having a flag that is lowered to indicate that you surrender when you have had your fill.
Delicious and unusual African vegetarian dishes and a good wine list are also available. This banquet is rounded off with a choice of delicious desserts and coffee or tea.The meal starts with the homemade soup of the day and fresh, daily baked honey bread.
A lazy Susan is then placed on the table, with the bottom layer containing six assorted salads and the top layer holding six sauces to compliment the meats. A very hot cast iron place is placed in front of you, followed by two potjieskos pots containing "pap and sauce". A baked potato is also offered. To me, the zebra meat was unique. It is pure white! Shyamala a vegetarian was offered “diced vegetable in coconut gravy with pancake”, the only vegetarian dish their chef knew how to make. It turned out to be our own Kerala style “vegetable stew and aapam”. Shyamala had the honor of naming the dish, which soon became a staple on their menu. Carnivore now serves a few herbivore dishes too.
VIEW PHOTOS OF CARNIVORE ON MY "Ejji's Exotic Foods Pictures" PAGE.
EATING INSECTS & GRUBS IN CHINA- see video at EJJI EATING INSECTS & GRUBS IN CHINA
Reading material- click on links below.
ENTOMOPHAGY BY FOOD & AGRICULTURAL ORGANIZATION