Exotic defined

Sometimes, when people ask me if I'm adventurous enough to eat anything, I'd say that I draw the line on exotic food. Come to think of it though, what exactly is "exotic"?

If "exotic" means anything that uses un-conventional meat, meaning other than the widely accepted beef, pork, chicken, turkey... then even foie gras is exotic, le canard à l'orange (duck in orange sauce) is exotic, and even paella with rabbit meat. Yeah?

In those cases, I'd still give it a go. I'd re-phrase my answer then when someone asks me. I'd draw the line on wriggling worms, on raw brains and the like. The only raw thing I could eat would be sushi and sashimi, and kilawin.

This made me look back to the exotic things I have tried so far.

Sisig is exotic, when you think about it. It's a mixture of odd-looking meat parts from the pig's face to the liver to the backfat. It's like alternative music that went into mainstream. Exotic that has gone popular. Me, I love the corny versions: bangus sisig, tuna sisig, tofu sisig --- which would make lovers of the authentic sisig roll their eyes and say "nag-sisig ka pa!" (translation: "and you call that sisig!")

Above is a photo of Claude Tayag's sisig, which he himself prepared from his home in Angeles, Pampanga:


Bopis falls along the line of Sisig. Exotic that has become a bit widely accepted.

Below is a photo of something I refused to try initially. I mean, I have seen fried froggie legs in Manila bars, but they weren't, uh, as graphic. With this one, I could almost make out Kermit's form, and I adore Kermit! Can you see those tiny arms and legs? :-(

In the end, I had to try it. It tasted just like chicken, a little oily-er, but if you close your eyes, you could almost convince yourself it's chicken haha!


Then there were the crickets. One of the specialties of Everybody's Cafe in Pampanga. Surprisingly good, in adobo.

In several trips to other Asian countries like Bangkok, Saigon and Beijing, I have seen exotic dishes like crickets, scorpions and all sorts of bugs along the street. Squeamish then, I opted for the safer candied fruits, just like the ones my dad, brother and I had at Wangfujing hahaha!

But I promise to be more adventurous. Now that I'm 25. Right. Haha :-)