Sunday, August 17, 2008

The Omnivore's Hundred

A little diversion, courtesy of the Very Good Taste blog (by way of Chocolate & Zucchini):
Below is a list of 100 things that I think every good omnivore should have tried at least once in their life. The list includes fine food, strange food, everyday food and even some pretty bad food - but a good omnivore should really try it all. Don’t worry if you haven’t, mind you; neither have I, though I’ll be sure to work on it. Don’t worry if you don’t recognise everything in the hundred, either; Wikipedia has the answers.

Here’s what I want you to do:

1) Copy this list into your blog or journal, including these instructions.
2) Bold all the items you’ve eaten.
3) Cross out any items that you would never consider eating.
I've starred the things I would like to try (I had to look a lot of them up). I've also explained in most cases why I wouldn't try what I've crossed out.

1. Venison
2. Nettle tea
3. Huevos rancheros
4. Steak tartare An interesting read
5. Crocodile
6. Black pudding
7. Cheese fondue
8. Carp
9. Borscht
10. Baba ghanoush
11. Calamari
12. Pho
13. PB&J sandwich
14. Aloo gobi
15. Hot dog from a street cart
16. Epoisses*
17. Black truffle*
18. Fruit wine made from something other than grapes
19. Steamed pork buns
20. Pistachio ice cream
21. Heirloom tomatoes
22. Fresh wild berries
23. Foie gras
24. Rice and beans
25. Brawn, or head cheese I could maybe be convinced to try this, but...
26. Raw Scotch Bonnet pepper
27. Dulce de leche
28. Oysters
29. Baklava
30. Bagna cauda*
31. Wasabi peas
32. Clam chowder in a sourdough bowl
33. Salted lassi*
34. Sauerkraut
35. Root beer float
36. Cognac with a fat cigar I don't smoke.
37. Clotted cream tea*
38. Vodka jelly/Jell-O
39. Gumbo
40. Oxtail
41. Curried goat I've had goat byrani, though; too much bone.
42. Whole insects
43. Phaal*
44. Goat’s milk But I love goat cheese!
45. Malt whisky from a bottle worth £60/$120 or more
46. Fugu Not sure it's worth the risk.
47. Chicken tikka masala
48. Eel
49. Krispy Kreme original glazed doughnut
50. Sea urchin
51. Prickly pear
52. Umeboshi*
53. Abalone
54. Paneer
55. McDonald’s Big Mac Meal
56. Spaetzle
57. Dirty gin martini
58. Beer above 8% ABV
59. Poutine*
60. Carob chips
61. S’mores
62. Sweetbreads
63. Kaolin
64. Currywurst*
65. Durian
66. Frogs’ legs
67. Beignets, churros, elephant ears or funnel cake
68. Haggis
69. Fried plantain
70. Chitterlings, or andouillette I had to look this up, and it looked/sounded disgusting.
71. Gazpacho
72. Caviar and blini*
73. Louche absinthe*
74. Gjetost, or brunost
75. Roadkill Why should I?
76. Baijiu
77. Hostess Fruit Pie
78. Snail
79. Lapsang souchong
80. Bellini
81. Tom yum
82. Eggs Benedict
83. Pocky
84. Tasting menu at a three-Michelin-star restaurant.
85. Kobe beef*
86. Hare
87. Goulash
88. Flowers
89. Horse
90. Criollo chocolate*
91. Spam
92. Soft shell crab
93. Rose harissa*
94. Catfish
95. Mole poblano*
96. Bagel and lox
97. Lobster Thermidor*
98. Polenta
99. Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee
100. Snake

So, 52 out of 100--not bad. There's some consistency with what I wouldn't want to try... Some of the stranger things I would try for culture's sake, but I wouldn't go out of my way.

2 comments:

Clay said...

bagna cauda... ..the description of it in that B5 episode was mouth-watering.

Do Cognac w/o the fat cigar. Though a good fat cigar isn't a bad thing.

As long as you are doing Malt Whiskey I would recommend specifically trying Single Malt Scotch.

Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee is ok. Try having a favorite roast made w/ a Clover machine instead.. better bang for your buck. Best cup of coffee that money can buy(in a store anyway).

oh.. and andouillette is actually pretty good.

Ayn said...

Thanks for the suggestions.

I have tried cognac, and found it enjoyable. More so than Whiskey, which was a sample from a friend (not something I was going to turn down, but I'm not a huge whiskey fan).

Not a big coffee fan, either, so while I might try something now that it's been recommended, I'll probably not order either for myself. The only coffee I ever order is Greek/Turkish/Armenian coffee.