Weird Chinese foods

[ameriken]

At first I thought I would do a poll, but there are too many choices.

 

It took me a long time to adjust to Chinese food. I dont mean American style...but real Chinese.

 

I am not adventuresome with food....I dont like to deviate from my favorite foods......I order the same food everytime I go to a restaurant. It really took me a long while to adjust to China food.

 

But finally, after 2 years, several trips to China, and some home cooking, my taste buds and stomach can handle some of their more unusual foods.

 

I am sure we all have seen some wierd things over there, and maybe some of you are gutsy enough to try them right away. As for me, this past trip to Shanghai I finally left my boring routine....Jie got me to eat "jumping shrimp"......live shrimp served in a sauce.

 

I also ate uncooked lobster with wasabi mustard. Perhaps these are not the strangest foods out there, but they are definitely a strectch for me. I know there are a lot stranger foods out there that many of you probably tried.

 

So, whats the wierdest thing you have eaten in China?

Edited April 10, 2007 by ameriken (see edit history)

[C4Racer]

I am not sure I can answer that. My wife did the ordering many times while I was visiting. Sometimes I did not know what we were eating and at the time she didn't know how to tell me.

Let's list some I knew about, duck brains, pig tongue and snake wine (snake still in jar)

My father taught me variety is the spice of life. So I will try anything once, cause how do you know if you like it or not unless you try it?

[Dennis143]

Ken, the weirdest things I have eaten are things that I don¡¯t even know what they were and it was probably just as well.

 

I¡¯ve mentioned this in the past, but it¡¯s always good to refresh, eh?

 

I ate mostly food that was prepared daily by my former Nanning SO¡¯s mother. And, whatever was put in front of me I ate it with gusto. Even though there were some things that I wanted to gag on or had to chew forever to get down. Her mother would go to the streets every morning and return with the day¡¯s food. There were street venders with plastic sheets spread out with small animal carcasses laid out for sale. I remember one dish that Hua would prepare of small chucks of meat with little bones. The meat was very chewy and was difficult to remove from the bones. Never could figure out what it was. I really don¡¯t think she¡¯d serve me rat, but maybe squirrel?

 

Here in the states, I eat exclusively Chinese now. I have tried many friends¡¯ homemade dishes as well as restaurant food. One thing that comes to mind is the meat. It is usually boiled and seldom fried and never baked. The boiled meat has a different texture and there is often a distinct flavor from a popular sauce that I assume is added to the water when boiling. I cannot get used to the smell nor the flavor. It¡¯s been difficult for me to stomach, maybe someday I will. Until then, when it comes to meat, just toss my sirloin on the bar-b with some good ole Texas steak sauce and cook it till the blood starts to flow, thank you very much.

[Rakkasan]

I have no idea what I ate while in China. On both trips Zhen would order. On my first trip she would watch what I ate and make a mental note of what items I seemed to like more than others then make sure those items were present at the next meal. By the end of my visit every item served was food that I liked. Zhen did assure me that I was not eating dog, cat or rat.

 

On my recent trip as I was preparing to grab a piece of pork she stopped me because it was apparently a part of the pig that I would not eat if I knew what it was. True to form Zhen knows me and takes care and protects me at all times.

 

Another reason to love these wonderful ladies.

[esun41]

Three words...

 

PERSERVED DUCK EGGS...

[Randy W]

Silk worm cocoons. Actually one silkwork cocoon. Okay, a bite of one silkworm cocoon.

 

It looked like cotton candy http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_11_23.gif

[tywy_99]

No one knows the art of cooking like the Chinese do. They've been doing it for 5,000 years!

I always wanted to try some of those water beetles I saw in Guangzhou but I chickened out.

I had really good Shanghai dishes of fish and crab. I ate pidgeon in Shanghai one night. I really like that green leafy vegetable in GZ.

But I have to pass on the pink baby mice soup!...

[ameriken]

Silk worm cocoons. Actually one silkwork cocoon. Okay, a bite of one silkworm cocoon.

 

It looked like cotton candy http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_11_23.gif

I saw those being sold on the street.....I couldnt believe anyone could actually eat them....I am assuming they were silkworm, they were huge, perhaps 2" long and easily 1" wide.

 

I'll bet they didnt taste like cotton candy!

[Randy W]

Silk worm cocoons. Actually one silkwork cocoon. Okay, a bite of one silkworm cocoon.

 

It looked like cotton candy http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_11_23.gif

I saw those being sold on the street.....I couldnt believe anyone could actually eat them....I am assuming they were silkworm, they were huge, perhaps 2" long and easily 1" wide.

 

I'll bet they didnt taste like cotton candy!

 

 

 

http://smileys.smileycentral.com/cat/36/36_19_7.gif

Edited April 11, 2007 by Randy W (see edit history)

[whutthapho]

I had dog in Nanning...at a restaurant no less. Very tender meat, it's a delicacy...but my tummy told me later that it was something I've never had before.

 

Still better than the preserved duck eggs in Manila (balut?) or raw horse meat in Osaka Japan (sushi style).

[shaffej7070]

My wife doesn't eat strange foods, to me at least. She is from Xinjiang and she loves mutton and abhors pork products. I must admit, I'm quite partial to pork rinds; after all I grew up in the South. BTW, do you guys ever see chicken heads thrown in dishes here stateside? Everytime my wife orders chicken in a restaurant, her mischievous side takes hold, and she always places the head in my rice bowl. God, I love that woman!

[ameriken]

I remember my SO telling me about the black chicken (yes, black skin and meat). I couldnt believe it until I actually saw one being sold on the street. I dont know if I could get myself to eat it.

 

Good thing though, I think its more for women to eat as a sort of medicine......as she says.... "good for woman-time".

[SinoTexas]

Fruit bat (fanihi) boiled in coconut milk, and the fur is still on the bat...this was on Guam. In China, a raw freashwater fish of some type. I love sushi, but the raw fish is salt water fish, but raw freshwater fish, barf and I almost did.

 

As aye,

 

Jim

[jim_julian]

Hmmm ... went to a restaurant in China that only served frogs. I guess frogs are not too unusual but a whole restaurant devoted to them?

[tonado]

I had raccoon soup in USA.