A traditional meal ...

[uwe]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jun/01/new-york-swan-stolen-eaten-three-teens



I guess that is what swans were introduced for in Europe (and later North America) - poultry for the aristocracy (they are initially from the Arctic and/or South America/Australia). But eating them fell out of favor with the upper class (you weren't allowed to eat them if you weren't) pretty quickly, their meat is supposed to be hard and tough (I've never eaten one, but at the end of the day it's just a large duck; their population declined in Germany after WW II when food was in short supply and people began to collectively remember ...).

I hope they used a decent recipe.



From a 15th Century English cookery book; as invariably with all English recipes not terribly elaborate, but do make sure to kill it first:

Swan rosted. Kutte a Swan in the rove of the mouthe toward the brayne enlonge, and lete him blede, and kepe the blode for chawdewyn; or elles knytte a knot on his nek, And so late his nekke breke; then skald him. Drawe him and rost him even as thou doest goce in all poyntes, and serue him forth with chawd-wyne.

[morrow]

There’s a traditional Eskimo (now called Inuit) bird recipe.
1  find bird
2  eat

[uwe]

I've eaten puffin breast in Iceland. But it was roasted/broiled medium-rare and not in the traditional raw style. Tasted great. As did the whale meat carpaccio (now that WAS raw) I had as starters. My wife (she chose other meals from the menu) commented at the time: "That must be the most low-pc dinner ever. Just awful." That was 16 years ago (and Icelandic whale and puffin populations are doing fine, thank you!), yet she is still holding it against me whenever some nature show on TV shows a freakin' puffin.



"And you ate one of those!"

[Pilgrim]

I've been reading the excellent Patrick O'Brian sea series with Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin (Master and Commander is the first book)  and IIRC they enjoyed a meal of puffin in one of their voyages.

I'm on book 20 of the 21.  It takes a while to get through them, but it considerably enlarges ones' vocabulary in terms of @1800 sailing verbiage and medical language from that period.  I probably looked up at least 40 terms I had never encountered before.

And I have learned of such seagoing staples as Spotted Dick and the popular pudding, Drowned Baby.

[morrow]

In Newfoundland they have a bunch of local delicacies. Cod tongues are popular. As is seal. You usually are asked carcass or flippers ?
The flippers are surprisingly handlike.  Often comes as a pie. And seal is dark ,greasy , fishy tasting meat.

[Ken]

I've eaten puffin breast in Iceland. But it was roasted/broiled medium-rare and not in the traditional raw style. Tasted great. As did the whale meat carpaccio (now that WAS raw) I had as starters. My wife (she chose other meals from the menu) commented at the time: "That must be the most low-pc dinner ever. Just awful." That was 16 years ago (and Icelandic whale and puffin populations are doing fine, thank you!), yet she is still holding it against me whenever some nature show on TV shows a freakin' puffin.



"And you ate one of those!"

I think we went to the same place as you.  They also had horse on the menu?  I had the lasagna.  We saw Susan Sarandon there, which was pretty cool.

[uwe]

It was up in the North-West, where those fjords are.

What you eat and don't eat, is 100% culturally acquired.

[Ken]

Oh, the place I'm talking about was in Reykjavik.

[gearHed289]

Since we're talking about international cuisine, I thought I'd mention that tomorrow, I'll be making a western European delicacy known as "French toast". Ooo la la!

[uwe]

Oh, the place I'm talking about was in Reykjavik.

I devoured whale and puffin somewhere here ...




Found it, Ísafjörður, very scenic.

[Dave W]

Are you pining for the fjords?

[uwe]

Yeah, I like fjords, best of both worlds. Beaches and mountainous regions tend to look samey all over the world, fjords are more rare and special.

[Dave W]

Yeah, I like fjords, best of both worlds. Beaches and mountainous regions tend to look samey all over the world, fjords are more rare and special.

I was referencing this.

[uwe]

LOL, I knew you had some kind of hidden agenda with your apparently innocent comment, but while the parrot sketch is of course entrenched in my mind, I had forgotten the "Norwegian Blue" reference.