Guyana - Iguana Recipe...

(All Photos by Tavarua)

 After having some really delicious curry Labba one evening,
one of my friends went to make an Iguana dish - Although this recipe was not followed here is one for you to try.

1 Iguana
5 Tbsp. Lemon juice
1 Tbsp. Curry powder (Special Madras)
5 Cloves garlic, crushed
1 onion, chopped
Leaves from 1 stalk celery, chopped
1 small hot pepper, chopped fine
2 chicken bouillon cubes/powder
2 Tbsp. Vegetable oil
2 tomatoes, chopped
salt and pepper

Bamboo Chicken...

It is easier to skin if you boil it for a few minutes.

Bon Voyage!

Exotic Foods - Entomophagy - Chapulines - in Mexico City....

(All Photos by Tavarua)

Eating insects are very common in the most parts around the world.

Chapulines (grasshoppers)are hatching in early May until late summer in the region of Oaxaca.  Toasted on a clay cooking surface with garlic, lime juice and salt -  it is a great snack with cold beer. 

I mix them with roasted garlic, peanuts and some guacamole in a corn tortilla.

Where Will Life Take You? Well, at the moment - Monterrey, Mexico...

(Photos by Tavarua)

Located in Northeast Mexico at the foothills of Sierra Madre Oriental it is here I have the most famous and delicious Cabrito.

 Cabrito Asado Al Pastor - have a look of game animal more than goat.

These young baby goats retains their milky hew.

In the kitchen...

... were the famous Cabrito asado al pastor is prepared. 

Baby goat slowly grilled  over firewood for hours after been marinated in a mixture of lime juice, onions, garlic, pepper, and sugar.

  

The dishes in Monterrey still have an influence from the jewish, Spanish and Pre-Hispanic cultures.

Wild Game Recipe - White Tail - Back Strap at The Traveler's Nest...

 Tonight - White Tail Deer Back Strap with Boar Sausages and Game Sauce...

"Food is our common ground, a universal experience".

- James Beard

"The Art of the Tea Ceremony"...in 57 seconds

A cup of tea in solitude and company...a journey into an imagenary world
Poetry in a cup...
Tea a ritual...
Tea a part of life...
A cup of wisdom...
A journey in stillness...
Stillness of heart...
A cup of memories...
A divine pleasure...

"In my own hands I hold a bowl of tea; I see all of nature represented in its green color. Closing my eyes I find green mountains and pure water within my own heart. Silently sitting alone and drinking tea, I feel these become a part of me."
 Soshitsu Sen, Grand Master XIV, Urasenke School of Tea

Exotic Foods - Hungry?

(Photo by Tavarua)

Crocodile has white and delicious meat - delicate in flavour so use fresh tropical fruits which will compliment the taste of the meat.

Cook it from frozen for two minutes on either side and then allowed to stand for a few minutes.

Remove excess fat after cooking. Use only herbs or spices - Three different is recommended. If frying, use olive oil - and do not forget it is best served medium rare.

Crocodile with Sliced Mango and Guava - served on Banana Leaves... 
 
300 g crocodile meat, cut into thin slices.
Heat peanut oil in a frying pan, sauté seasoned crocodile pieces for about two to three minutes then set aside and keep warm.
30 g peanut oil
20 g basil leaves
20 g parsley
5 g garlic, chopped
20 ml white wine vinegar
200 ml olive oil
Blend basil, garlic, vinegar and olive oil in a food processor until smooth, set aside.

1 Mango - peeled
3 Guava fruits - each sliced in four
Seasalt and pepper
Slice Mango and Guava - arrange and decorate on (banana) leaves.  Place Crocodile slices in the centre, drizzle the sauce and garnish with fresh herbs.

Exotic Foods - Look No Further

Gene Rurka

Exotic Food Expert Gene Rurka - for the Explorers Club - could help out with some recipes for that special night, trust him he has been preparing the Explorers Clubs Annual Dinner for 6 Years;

Rotten/Fermented/Herring

If you have a taste for adventure but ...there is nowhere to go at the moment.

I have had Central American river turtle, green turtle, Iguana and Iguana eggs, ants eggs and ants, frogs, snake, silk worms in Korea, Raw whale meat, Muskox and Mattak which is raw whale skin with a thin layer of blubber cut in small cubes in Greenland, Seal Meat in the Arctics as well as the Swedes fermented herring (If you can call rotten fish exotic)and their Moonshine........Crocodile, Emu and Kangaroo, to name a few (not so rare and exotic - but extraordinary) - so what about a recipe from Gene Rurka.If not - you could fly to try deep-fried scorpions in Singapore, or have fruit Bat Soup in Guam and go for a drink of bat’s blood in Saigon.

Succulent Scorpion on Endive with Herb Cheese

Ingredients
12 scorpions (preferably 2” or larger)2 cups of Cabernet Sauvignon
1 lemon
2 tablespoons of honey
12 endive leaves (3 inches in length)6 oz crème fraiche (can substitute crème cheese)
1/2 cup of fresh chopped basil (can substitute parsley)

Preparation;Marinate scorpions in Cabernet Sauvignon, and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Blot excess wine with paper towel. Add lemon zest or spice of your choice or lightly glaze scorpions with honey and lemon.
Transfer scorpions to baking sheet and slightly dry in oven at 250 degrees for 3 to 5 minutes (smaller scorpions will require shorter drying time). Be careful not to bake or over dry. The scorpions should remain supple. Remove from baking tray. Allow to cool.
Wash and dry endive leaves. Mix basil into crème fraiche. Add a dollop of cheese mixture to each endive leaf and gently place a scorpion on the bed of herb cheese.

Or Not so Exotic BBQ Alligator

This is a Killer - Fugu Puffer - Sashimi would be nice.

This is one of the most dangerous dishes you can ever put into your mouth. The Fugu fish is a pleasant looking little fish - a puffer fish, - Lethal -The Fugu fish organs has a deadly venom —tetrodotoxin - a natural defense system that renders its attackers paralyzed - A delicacy and one of the most dangerous dinners you can have, ingest a little bit to much of the Fugu and you will die a slow death from conscious paralysis and asphyxia. There is no anti-venom but if you are an adrenaline junkie, Why not try it?