Balut

[jadegil6]

There ia one food in the Philippines that stands out from the rest. It is balut, which is a duck egg incubated almost to the point of hatching, and then boiled. Although I was offered balut on several occasions, I had to pass. If you have tried it, then you can sheare with the rest of us what your opinion of balut is.

Here are a few photos of balut.

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[Edwin]

No thank you! Of course for some people eating Balut is like us eating pie and icecream. Growing up I have eaten a lot of cow tongues and hearts, and a lot of people would think that was gross. I also love to eat chicken gizzards. Some people make head cheese out of cows brains, but I never ate that and never wanted to also. Some people also eat blood pudding, and am not going to down them for that, but according to the Bible we are not supposed to eat anything that has blood. The blood is supposed to be bled out before cooking and eating.

Peter, being a Jew was not supposed to eat a lot of things that were prohibited in the law, but he had that one vision, and was told to slay and eat. He said not so, but he was told that God had cleansed it. It was actually an object lesson God gave him, telling him that salvation was not only for the Jews, but for the Gentiles as well.

Our granddaughter has a friend who is a Seventh Adventist. When he comes here to visit all of us he often violates his rules of eating from his church. He holds to it somewhat, but he makes exceptions also when he wants to eat something he is really not supposed to eat. We all butchered these 2 pigs withing the last month or so; one pig for us and one for our kids. Maybe they are supposed to be called hogs because they were fully grown and large. Well, our granddaughter who is friends with the Seventh Day Adventist fellow, informed her parents that she wouldn't be eating any pork. Now they have all this pork, and their daughter is telling them that she won't eat any of it!!!! I don't eat as much meat of any kind as I did when I was growing up. I have not eaten very much pork, because I don't think eating a lot of pork is good for a person, and it has to be cooked thoroughly or you can get worms from it. So, now we have a lot of pork that was raised right here and I am eating it now. It is really good meat, but I just think it is good not to eat too much of any pork, but I do love pork chops!!!!

[chaychay644]

I would never and ever eat balut..its totally gross...and I'm sure my tummy wouldn't love the idea of eating it even if I'm starving..lol..my friends says its yummy but i don't have the guts to try..for me it looks so scary...lol

[HappyDave]

So many people miss out on really nice stuff by letting their head rule. I never miss the opportunity to try anything food. My view is that if others are eating it then it ain't going to kill me.

I have experienced some amazing tastes over the years with the only thing I can recall as being not to my liking was what looked like a knotted cheep's intestine. It was so bitter, I almost had to spit it out. Unfortunately I was in the back roads of Indonesia and "feasting" along with the tribe elders and it would have been bad form to spit at that point. Although the elders were watching me intently and I suspect it may have been a joking test.

I have eaten cooked rat-head crushed up into an almost paste (bone and brain) on the blade of an axe. I have eaten bugs including scorpions, my favorite bug is the Cricket. Really nice delicious creamy unique taste. I didn't like grasshopper so much as the legs have hundreds of little hooks that kind of stick to your tongue and throat as you swallow. Best if you hold them by the legs and bite the good bits off.

I have eaten Witchety (sp?) grubs in Australia, raw warm slightly writhing snake in Vietnam, a still-pumping Cobra heart. The eye ball of a butchered calf which I bit out of the socket, also from sheep and Salmon. I have eaten sea urchin-slug type things that looked and felt like congealed snot. Tasted like watery cucumber.

The thing is to take control of your mind and enjoy the experience. I don't mean that you keep saying, "this is just chicken, this is just chicken" I mean take control and stop the mind deciding what you may enjoy just because your eyes are showing you something unfamiliar.

I have never been to the Phils, but Balut is on the list for when I get there. Bring it on.

[Edwin]

My Dad told me that many bakeries get dried eggs that were from chicken hatcheries that did not hatch, so they used them in the pastery goodies! How many of you will still each pastries knowing that? Well it was his story, but knowing my Dad it was either true or he thought it was true. I still ate pastry goodies. He would not eat hotdogs or balogna because he raised cows and sold them, and he told me the cows that went to make that stuff, and I still eat that stuff on occasion, but they were not healthy cows, let me tell you. Still enjoy your balogna and hotdogs; my wife does! I'm not fond of eating that stuff, but I do on occasion. When we were on the ranch I used to hatch out baby chickens in an incubator, and I would not each the ones that did not hatch! If you all want to eat that gross stuff be my guest, and I will enjoy watching you, but I won't partake with you! I shouldn't say that should I because, who knows I may partake some day. My uncle cooked a porkypine, and I think he and I were the only ones that actually dug in and ate it, while the others gently tasted and didn't think they should eat!

[chaychay644]

The thing is to take control of your mind and enjoy the experience. I don't mean that you keep saying, "this is just chicken, this is just chicken" I mean take control and stop the mind deciding what you may enjoy just because your eyes are showing you something unfamiliar.

I have never been to the Phils, but Balut is on the list for when I get there. Bring it on.

I admired you for having that kind of attitude, you are able to control your mind just to ate those kind of stuffs..hehehe ..it simply means that you can always survive wherever your feet takes you.someday I'll try to control my mind also..lets see if I can..hehhe

[edeline]

I really don't like eggs but when I saw people on the streets eating baluts, I just enjoyed looking at them. I wanted to try it but looking at them having hairs already, it looksed ticklish, hehehe. I didn't have the courage to try. There are different kinds of baluts that is why the baluts have numbers on it.I am not familiar with it what those numbers indicate and these and that. It just the appetite of the people eating on the streets that amuses me so much.

[Edwin]

I am surprised that the animal rights people, and the people for the prevention of cruelty to animals don't get onto the Balut eaters! How could anyone eat such a cute little animal with its large bill, and as edeline said, hair already on the body! Actually I'm just kidding; they can eat them if they want, but not me, thank you very much! If you can control your mind some of those things might really taste good, but who knows. If a person were desperately hungry a lot of things would no doubt taste good. I will pass on the Bulut for now!