Fear Factor food?

[miniplum]

One of my friends is hosting a "Fear Factor" sort of dinner where every guest brings a food so unusual it "brings fear" to eat it. The rule is as long as some sort of culture eats it, its game.

Since a lot of us are Asian and have grown up eating pig's blood, intestines, liver, etc, those ideas are out...

Does anyone have any ideas or recommendations? Are there any small grocery stores I can go and check out? The closer to San Jose the better although San Francisco is fine. Thanks!

[Sixy Beast]

Marmite
available British specality stores and even some Safeways in the Bay Area, also Mollie Stones.

Link: http://becksposhnosh.blogspot.com/200...

[Dave S.]

Balut. Available in any Ranch 99 or Lion asian supermarket.

"The wayward nature of the itik (native Filipino duck) must be the reason for an unusual Filipino delicacy - balut - a fertilised egg with a partially developed duckling, which is eaten boiled. Balut is a very nutritious snack food, which most Filipinos appreciate. However, non-Filipinos generally take a bit of convincing before taking their first bite."

Also to try: the noble durian, pork brains with milk gravy, fried bull testicles (Prairie Oysters), Lutefisk, Kumiss (fermented milk vodka).

Of course, depending on your crowd, this may be overkill. ;)

Link: http://www.asiacuisine.com.sg/Nacws/1...

[oakjoan]

Ah, the charming memories these posts recall. The post about the beer made my day!

When dining at a place in L.A. years ago, called Cafe de Paris, my parents and their friends ordered brains. The plate came to the table looking like a small dome covered in a pinkish may dressing. As I watched, however, the dressing sank into the crenolations, exposing the whole brain.....EWWWWWWW!

But I LOVE tongue tacos and liver...go figure.

Best, Oakjoan

[nja]

Great description!

That reminds me. Goat Brain (or was it Sheep Brain) Curry at Shalimar in the tenderloin. It's actually very good.

[Krys]

Maybe there should be a Fear Factor food post on the General Board, but I think it's been done a lot. I may be wrong. I had considered it after that special yam.

Anyway, if anyone has some general special memeories maybe it would be fun to start a thread on the General board.

[Krys]

Have I got some suggestions for you. So I lied a little ... it hasn't been all great food ... and you can get these beauties in San Jose

First, at the Café Docanto on Alum Rock and 33rd (near 101) you can get the world's worst beer ... really ... no kidding. Bet you can't drink one ...sip. Link Below. If you follow the thread to the OP, you can read how the beer smelled and a website link to the world's worst beers on which Preta Doce gets a mention.

For a cola - Renata's Bakery amd the Kbac Kvas, a dark brown molasses colored soda from Russia. It in fact does have molasses in it as well as coffee powder, chicory root extract, St. John’s bread extract, prune juice, carbonated water and the usual sweeteners and preservatives. I think that description says it all.

You might try Island Market on Santa Clara across from the church which has some unique canned goods from Australia, New Zealand and the South Pacific. Will post about that soon.

And finally ... ta da ... I haven't posted about this yet ... the Portuguese Yams at Five Star Bakery also on Alum Rock (2247)

I saw these evil black looking baseball sized objects under a clear plastic cover. Learning they were Portuguese yams and trying to further my education, I said "I'll take one".

She lifts the cover and a swarm of flies desparately try to escape. These were major flies. OK, I think. How much is Portuguese food, fifty cents. So I buy the yam.

I knot the plastic bag in the car so nothing living escapes from the bag. I'm thinking, I can do this. I'll cut it in half and try a tiny bit of the center.

I didn't want to ruin the weekend by dying. so the plasic embalmed yam sits on the counter a few days. Now I'm afraid to open the bag. Have the maggots hatched yet?

And still, I think, well, maybe the inside is ok.

So yesterday I have a sip of the putrid Preta Doce beer and think, "Well, foodwise, this day is shot". So I gingerly open the bag ... in the sink.

No maggots, but there was a lovely mold garden growing on the skin. Now I use a plastic knife ot cut the yam in half. I'm convinced that even an antibacterial soap would never clean one of my regular knives.

Inside it looked ok. Like a regular yam. I think, well, I know what a yam taste like, so I carefully knot the bag and toss it in the trash.

If you could get the bakery to give you these on the tray with the plastic cover, I'm sure the presentation would impress all.

Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/...

[cc94103]

Reading this definitely brings up a lot of unpleasant images. Don't know if I want lunch now. However, damn good read. Really enjoyed your post.

[Trevor]

Good old Scottish Haggis would do it for me. Yuck! Recipe below.

Link: http://kyhana.echoechoplus.com/burns/...

[Joan Kureczka]

You'd have to make it yourself from the recipe though... the commercially available ones I've seen are mostly so-called "gourmet" and quite palatable (sometimes nice). The "authentic" versions with all the liver and other organ meats are nasty.

[Sixy beast]

I grew up as a a squemish, picky eater. Certainly didn't like anything made of innards. But on all the occasions I've had haggis in the UK I've loved it. It really doesn't taste "offal" at all. It IS palatable, there is nothing yucky about it whatsoever. In fact, it hardly tastes any different from the veggie version which is also tasty. It's just like a pile of savoury oatmeal stuff.

I don't think you can but real Haggis here. I was led to believe it it not legal. I could be wrong.

[Joan Kureczka]

I suspect from the ingredients that this haggis is toned down, and it currently comes in cans. But apparently they are trying to get clearance for the more authentic casing for a version to be sold frozen.

Link: http://www.caledoniankitchen.com/cata...

[try this]

from last year, where to buy fresh, was it good?

Link: http://www.chowhound.com/topics/show/...

[The Chowhound Team]

Please confine the discussion here to places in the Bay Area where one can find Food Factor-type food. Recipes should be posted on the Home Cooking board. General discussion about unusual food items belongs on the General Topics board.

Thanks, everyone.

[Anne in SF]

It seems to me that a lot of the food on Fear Factor is grubs...you know... worms, cockroaches, maggots, grasshoppers, bugs, that type of thing...and that they blend it and require the contestants to drink the concoction. Since these are extremely protein-rich drinks, of course there is going to be a certain amount of time that it takes to consume it (the body and stomach can't process it that quickly unlike water or a soft drink).

I would imagine you can get a lot of the ingredients for a fear factor shake at a bait shop on a freshwater lake or a petstore that sells live food for rats/mice or lizards. There are plenty of cultures around the world that eat grubs...in some they are considered a delicacy, and in others they are considered a necessity.

[Robert Lauriston]

Oriental Lucky Mart at 535 8th St. in Oakland is a great source for that sort of thing. They have foods from various countries without enough immigrants here to support a separate store. The Ugandan (?) smoked fish is particularly scary-looking.

[nja]

The taco window on 21st Street in the Mission serves eyeball tacos.

[Windy]

I've tried and tried to order these, but they've never actually had them.

Have you?

[nja]

Can't say that I have. I'm a Fear Factor Flunkie.

[lavalamp]

any taco bell will do.