[mudbug]

Originally Posted by Jayme

...I have to jump on the brussel sprout bandwagon- everytime I have tried them, they were bitter. Same goes for okra.

As an avid vegetable gardener, I can say that anyone who does not like brussels sprouts has not had home grown, freshly harvested sprouts which have been nipped by frost to make them sweeter.

Quickly sauteed with butter or olive oil along with a bit of cardamom is the classic secret. They should be crunchy, sweet, and stunning. Not bitter and mushy.

[castironchef]

Ah, the Haggis!

I cooked up a couple of authentic Haggises (spelling?), or at least as authentic as I could make them, including lungs etc. This was for my Boy Scout troop's Scottish Games.

As my son put it, the Haggis was "underwhelming." As he had actively participated in the cleaning of the innards and preparation of the Haggis, he was acutely aware of the "yuck" factor with regard to the color, feel and smell of said innards. He explained that if it tasted great, it would have been "cool" and if it had tasted horrible that would have been "even cooler."

However, it simply tasted bland.

That, of course, didn't stop the Scouts from digging in, if for bragging rights if nothing else.

[Austin_]

Its a love hate sort of thing. I also like Boston market's ham. I feel embarassed- but I don't live in the south so I can't really tell what's a "good ham" and what's a "bad ham". Or Fried chicken, catfish, mashed potatoes, okra, or whatever. All i know is that its 10x better than deli ham, something that is dear to my heart.

[MikeLM]

Well, I was a Brussels Sprout hater too, until I found this recipe...

MUSTARD AND HONEY-BRAISED BRUSSELS SPROUTS

1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1-1/2 TBSP honey
3 shallots, halved and thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 TBSP unsalted butter
1 TBSP olive oil
1/2 cup dry sherry
1-1/2 lbs brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved
1 cup chicken stock, preferably home-made
S & P to taste

Combine the mustard and honey and set aside.
In a large saute pan (actually, we usually use a wok), cook shallots and garlic in the butter and oil over moderate heat for 3 minutes, stirring frequently. Add sherry and cook 5 minutes, or until it has almost evaporated.
Add sprouts and chicken broth and bring to boil over high heat.Reduce heat to moderate, cover with tight-fitting lid, and cook 13 to 15 minutes, until sprouts are tender.
Remove lid, add honey-mustard mixture and cook 1 to 2 minutes over high heat, stirring frequently until the sauce coats the sprouts and is heated through.
Season with S & P and serve immediately.

It made a sprouts lover out of me.

Mike

[allie]

Originally Posted by Blade55440

Now crawfish is a staple down here in the south. I couldn't imagine finding somebody who grew up down here going "I can't stand those things!". Would probably get a gasp or two in the right crowd heh.

I think it depends on what part of the south you live in. I lived the first 24 years of my life in Southeastern Georgia (Vidalia area...where the onions are grown), and crawfish were not eaten around there. We used to catch them in the creek and in ditches as kids but we released them later. lol I had "heard" of people eating them but never saw and tried one until I moved to Indiana. lol

[Chermarpa]

Me too, seafood specially ones with shells.

[blueschef]

Ok my 10 cents on brussle sprouts. I cut them in 1/2 and blanch them in boiling water with suggar added (i also do this for broccoli rabe). Drain em and shock them. Then I chop some applewood bacon, onions, garlic, black pepper and salt. cook that down a bit in whole butter, toss in the sprouts and slow roast em in the oven till carmalized. I actually have to make a ton of these now for my non veggie eating frends at christmas time.

[dougiezerts]

One man's poison is another man's meat; I happen to love lamb! In fact, it's probably my favorite meat.
Brussel Sprouts--I've had it a few times, and actually liked it!

[texasflute]

I'm not a big vegetable lover to start with. I'll try most any vegetable raw. I like the veggies raw. The one veggie I can't stand is the food I despise the most. I can't stand broccoli. I don't like the taste, cooked or raw, and I absolutely can't stand the smell.

I love a country ham, and it has got to be hickory smoked and really smokey tasting. That is ham. When I moved away from the south, I tasted some ham, and couldn't figure out for the life of me what they had done to the ham and really couldn't figure out why it was sweet. I don't like any kind of sweet stuff on a ham. But then again, I don't like sweet stuff on meat, period. Sweet is for dessert and breakfast breads, not for stuff like meats.

Cheers,
Texasflute

[MikeLM]

'flute-
Get ahold of

Esicar's Old Hickory Smokehouse
1157 N Kingshighway St
Cape Girardeau, MO 63701

(573) 335-9283

and order a Christmas ham. They're very reasonably priced and, boy, they are SMOKED! Make sure to tell them to cook it for you, because cooking them is a real chore. They have to be completely submerged in water, and that takes a pan nearly as big as your bathtub, because what you get is not a dinky little ham, but the hind leg of a hog.

Right now they offer Christmas hams which have been hung up for as long as five or six months. The rest of the year, they just have hams hung for a couple of months. They are delicious, too, but not nearly as knarly as the long-hung Christmas hams.

They send them with preparation instructions, but if you or anybody else want a little explanation, PM me and I'll fill you in - I've been getting one every year for the past 20 or so.

They also have bacon, sausage, and smoked cheese (though the cheese is a process cheese, it's still pretty good.)

There are great country hams from Virginia, Maryland, and most southern states, I know, but I've got a soft spot for the Missouri hams, because my father's family farmed for generations near there and until a few years ago my uncle continued to dress his own pigs and cure them. That's where I got my first tast of MO country ham, when I was about two years old. I still clearly remember thinking there was no reason to eat anything else for the rest of my life.

I understand that in New Hampshire, they smoke their hams with corn cobs. Frankly, I do not know how to relate to this.

Mike

[Grumio]

Don't think I've seen this one yet - eggplant. Don't like the texture. Same for okra. Pickled okra is fine, but then it doesn't taste like okra, it tastes like a pickle. I don't like slimy food.

Can't see much point to raw octopus.

Liver I like ok, but the few times I've tried kidneys it tasted like liver that'd been peed on. Not my cuppa.

Turnips - blech.

The ultimate horror food would have to be Icelandic putrefied shark. I've never tried it, & if the opportunity arises, I will politely decline.

[Blueicus]

I find that I only like eggplant if it's been cooked until it's really soft or if it's been vigorously deep fried... this removes the strange spongey resilient texture of an undercooked eggplant (which I see a lot with respect to grilled eggplant). If course that may be the texture you dislike in the first place.

[firiki03]

Eggplant happens to be one of my favourite vegetables. There are so many ways of preparing it. In Mediterranean dishes, it is best to deep fry it in batter and serve with a garlic dip, make a spread or to add to a mixed vegetable stew. In Asian cooking, it is used in vegetable curries and in stir fry dishes.

[Stephanie Brim]

I'm hard-pressed as well to find foods I genuinely don't like. I'm not a fan of canned vegetables. I'm not a fan of liver unless it's cooked correctly. I HATE liver & onions together. I LOVE liverwurst. I love almost all fresh vegetables, even eggplant and brussel sprouts. I love seafood, but hate store-bought fish sticks. Parsnips are food of the gods.

One thing I really don't like is meatloaf. I make one with tomatoes that I can eat, but I end up using more crackers and it ends up more crackery than meaty.

[Free Rider]

Originally Posted by dougiezerts

What are your least favorite foods--foods your groan at when you see on your plate?

Pickles. They're usually not offensive and easily removed, but I feel like they're just a vinegary garnish not meant to be enjoyed at all and sometimes the vinegar spoils they dish they're with.

Thank you for the opportunity to complain.