1. Pattypan Squash
2. Beets
3. Eel
4.Wahoo
5.Lychee
6.Quinoa
7. Raw Oyster
8. Octopus
I think I mentioned before that this list item would be a bit of a challenge to me because there are a lot of foods I have already tried (for a 25 year-old with a modest income and relatively unadventurous parents) and there are a few foods I refuse to try-- okay, maybe just veal.
There are a lot of foods I didn’t see myself ever eating, and this was one of them. Namely because I happen to care a lot about animals and know that octopi happen to be very smart. Remember Paul? (btw Ronnie wants me to inform you that it is pronounced Pa-oool, not Paul)
But sitting at dinner with three friends, I was confronted with two foods that I had never tried before, and one of them was veal. So sorry Paul, I ate your little relative. Don’t worry, I probably won’t be eating any more of them any time soon.
I had enough self-awareness to know that I wouldn’t eat a whole plate of octopus, so luckily my friend Chris was willing to share a leg with me. And I’m glad, because it was much less intimidating in piece-meal form.
I cut off a piece from the burnt end of the tentacle first, where the smallest suckers were. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. I had expected a worse texture, but it turned out to be a little like chicken. The taste was much fishier than I imagined though. I guess I was comparing it in my head to calamari (which I hate), and it was nothing like that. I was even bold enough to take another, larger piece- after which I promptly handed the rest over to Ronnie.
I’m guessing that nearly everyone reading this will fall into one of two categories- totally grossed out, or unsure of what the big deal is because they’ve had octopus a million times. I may have been in the former category a week ago, and now I find myself somewhere in the middle. I’m learning a lot about myself through this whole experience, including that things may not be as black and white as I’d like them to be. I encourage you all to to challenge your own conceptions as well. You may surprise yourself.
But I’m still never eating veal.
There are a lot of foods I didn’t see myself ever eating, and this was one of them. Namely because I happen to care a lot about animals and know that octopi happen to be very smart. Remember Paul? (btw Ronnie wants me to inform you that it is pronounced Pa-oool, not Paul)
I had enough self-awareness to know that I wouldn’t eat a whole plate of octopus, so luckily my friend Chris was willing to share a leg with me. And I’m glad, because it was much less intimidating in piece-meal form.
I cut off a piece from the burnt end of the tentacle first, where the smallest suckers were. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. I had expected a worse texture, but it turned out to be a little like chicken. The taste was much fishier than I imagined though. I guess I was comparing it in my head to calamari (which I hate), and it was nothing like that. I was even bold enough to take another, larger piece- after which I promptly handed the rest over to Ronnie.
I’m guessing that nearly everyone reading this will fall into one of two categories- totally grossed out, or unsure of what the big deal is because they’ve had octopus a million times. I may have been in the former category a week ago, and now I find myself somewhere in the middle. I’m learning a lot about myself through this whole experience, including that things may not be as black and white as I’d like them to be. I encourage you all to to challenge your own conceptions as well. You may surprise yourself.
But I’m still never eating veal.
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