Exotic Meats

[Mellow Ezlo]

Hey y'all.

A recent discussion in the shoutbox in which we were talking about dinosaurs and such evolved into discussing various different types of exotic meats. So I'm here to ask you all today, what are some kind of exotic meats that you have tried or some that you would like to try?

For the purposes of this thread, let's consider "exotic" meat anything that isn't chicken/beef/pork/common seafood.

The price of exotic meats can often turn people away, but sometimes we just get bored of eating the same three types of meat all the time. So sound off below!

 

[Commander_Has]

I once ate fried squid leg. It didn't taste very good though

 

[Daku Rinku]

I crave and love Rattlesnake.. it is so succulent and sweet tasting! Think the texture of wonderfully grilled Shrimp with chipolata sauce or something on it, but the taste of chicken but richer more like what they say Peacock tastes like.

 

[Jimmu]

It's not exactly exotic here but probably would be considered to people overseas but I've tried Kangaroo before - sadly I wasn't a huge fan.

On a recent holiday in Far North Queensland I tried crocodile which was actually quite delicious - would recommend.

 

[ExLight]

here in brazil some places eat fried ant butts and i kinda want to try it

and chicken hearts are a beloved snack in bbqs

 

[Daku Rinku]

The other one I liked was Alligator, it is less sweet than Rattlesnake. Still good though.

 

[Dio]

I guess you could say I have tried a fair share of exotic meats and seafood.

In terms of reptile meat:
Crocodile

Mammals:
Bear, kangaroo, zebra, wild boar, camel, reindeer, venison, rabbit

Birds:
ostrich, goose, duck, guinea fowl, pheasant, partridge, peacock, pigeon

Mollusks:
Snails, clams, mussels

Insects:
Ants, scorpions, crickets, locusts

Fish:
pufferfish, parrotfish, anglerfish, shark, stingray, octopus, cuttlefish, swordfish, bream, bass, sockeye salmon

Crustaceans:
Lobster, crab

Of all the meats, goose and duck are my favourites but I also love seafood. My favourite fish is bream and I prefer a big juicy crab to a lobster.

In terms of my least favourite. I am not a fan of snail and I find rabbit is too lean for my liking.

In terms of meats I would like to try. I would like to try water monitor lizard which is often eaten in Malaysia. I would also like to eat snake and swan.

 

[Mellow Ezlo]

I really love bison as an alternative to beef and if it wasn't super expensive I would probably replace beef with it entirely. I have also had elk before, once at a high-end restaurant in Vancouver. The meat was really tasty, but seemed somewhat difficult to cook.

I have had duck before. It tastes sort of like chicken but a little more tender and significantly fattier. I liked it, but I far prefer turkey. On the bird side, I've also had foie gras, which is a morally ambiguous dish that is essentially the liver of overfed geese. Sounds disgusting, but it was surprisingly tasty. I probably wouldn't eat it again though due to the inhumane feeding practices required in preparing it.

My grandma cooked up a rabbit for Easter dinner once. I always found it a bit funny and symbolic that we were effectively eating the Easter Bunny. The meat was delicious, absolutely recommend as something to try.

Seafood wise, I'm a big fan of takuyaki (popular Japanese street food that is deep-fried octopus balls). I've also had Mediterranean-style Octopus tentacles braised in marinara sauce, which was delicious. Also had grilled squid once, which was literally just an entire squid grilled and plated. If it counts, since I'm not sure how exotic it is considered, escargot (sea snails) is one of my absolute favourite dishes.

I have yet to try anything bug-related apart from snails but I know that some can be surprisingly tasty and very nutritious. I would also like to expand into trying many different kinds of meat that I haven't before, such as snake, alligator, and kangaroo, but I'm sure if I ever travel to places like Australia then I'll get a chance to.