bull’s testicles… yummy

I like watching the Travel Channel, however I must be careful when I put it on, especially when I’m eating. When I started lunch, there was a program about Munich with lots of extra attention to Oktoberfest, beerhalls, and beer in general. They showed dino-sized pretzels to go along with tankards of ale of various shades of amber, larger than the host’s head. So it was a pleasant beginning to lunch that had me wondering what I was doing in September.

Then Andrew Zimmer’s show came on, the one called Bizarre Foods. The idea is he goes around the world sampling different things the locals call food. And the guy loves it (more power to him). So of course, this episode one of the foods he tries out, as I ate my beans and sausage, is bull’s testicles. The first time I heard that, I was like, “What? No way.” Yet there it was. A butcher casually slicing away the outer coating as Andrew happily looks on, dreaming of how wonderful it will taste. Naturally, I caught myself thinking, “Gosh, those are bi-“, right before I looked down at my plate.

I have to say, I really enjoy his show, but I really really should time it right.

It reminds me of the time I was in Italy. I was with some classmates in the northern region. We went out to a local restaurant for dinner. I read somewhere that one of the specialties of the region was tripe, so I ordered some.
“What did you just order?” someone asked.
“Tripe,” I replied.
“Really?”
“What’s that?”
“I think it’s like cow stomach,” I shrugged.
“What?”
“I read somewhere it was a specialty of the region. Want to try some?”
“No way.” Even the guy who I thought was more adventurous with food balked at the idea.
So the others got their pasta or whatever. When they finally brought my tripe out – let me tell you, if you never had tripe before, you would not realize the smell that accompanies it. So I had a blast slurping my tripe while the others held their noses, trying to, umm, stomach the stench.

And yes, it tasted pretty good.

I don’t, however, have any intention of finding out how it compares to bull’s testicles in the near future.