I've eaten a lot of wild game before, but this was a first. The critter in the picture was quite a sight to behold. When we first met the man on the road, the hapless varmit was being carried in a paper bag and was not yet dead. Our friend was very proud of his catch and eager to show it to us as we met. We all congratulated him on his fine catch and joked among ourselves about the obvious fate of said critter. After our hike UP to the proposed coffee planting site, we went back to our host's house to rest and get ready for the evening meal. Low and behold, the bamboo rat was still alive and being admired by all those of the house and any neighbors who happened in as several did. For the next several minutes (almost an hour)we were entertained with the story of how supper's main course had been captured. During all of this the critter is being poked and prodded and still alive! "Just kill the thing!", we all groaned to ourselves and softly to each other. The host reveled in the glory of the catch. Finally, with supper time at hand, the coup-de-grace was delivered and things got serious about eating. If you have never seen an animal prepared over here, it is an astounding sight. If it's a chicken, everything but the cluck(feathers excluded) is put in the pot. No kidding! Head, feet, and everything is cooked. I was relieved to see that at least the rat's entrails were removed. It wasn't skinned, though, which made it really tough to eat. The hair was removed by being scalded with water and picked off the hide. I don't remember where the tail ended up. I would guess that it was in the pot. I didn't search around for it. When everything is ready, the critter was laid out on the block and "cleavered" from head to tail. This is standard procedure for everything. Every piece has a some meat and some bone. Spitting bones out on the floor in front of you is quite acceptable. After a few minutes in a very hot wok, presto, supper is ready. Dig in and make your host proud! He expects it.
1 comment:
COOL! I now have a favorite type of rat. I don't suppose those guys eat enough 'naners that the meat has a banana flavor. What does a banana rat taste like? Now I have yet another animal to add to my "to eat" list. Glad your getting your daily dose of excitement!
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