My first ever Friday Five is dedicated to Nikki MacDonald, sister RevGal, who was hungering for an opportunity to write about Haggis. With that introduction, today’s FF is all about food!
1) Is there a food from a foreign land whose reputation led to trepidation when you had a chance to give it a try? Did you find the courage to sample it anyway? If so, were you pleasantly surprised or did you endorse the less than favorable reputation that preceded it?
Growing up in the middle of the midwest, anything remotely "Oriental" sounded exotic and strange. I remember reading about and seeing people in "New York" eating "Chinese food" but never having the guts to try it myself. Until I got to college and actually smelled the aromas wafting away from the Imperial Palace in the Union. First time I tried it I was hooked, completely. Now I love the stuff.
2) What food from your own country/culture gets a bad rap?
I love many of the delicacies that come with my ethnic heritages: German and Swedish. I'm not sure if potato sausage and pickled herring are authentically German/Swedish or if they're an American development, but I love them both, particularly around Christmas.
3) Of what food are you fond that others find distasteful?
My campus pastor introduced every board member to his favorite pizza: Canadian Bacon & Sauerkraut. It sounds disgusting, but it's actually wonderful. Add in some black olives and onions and it's a wonderful pizza if you're not going to be speaking in close proximity to anyone in the near future.
4) Is there a country’s food, not native to you, that you go out of your way to eat?
My ex-wife introduced me to Korean food when she was a student at the Defense Language Institute in Monterey, CA, and I still love the stuff. Bibimbap, bulgogi, and kimchee, which makes my father wince because he remembers seeing it made and buried to ferment when he was stationed in Korea in 1968. Thanks to Christina, I'm also able to remember to thank my host in Korean when I order and receive my food. "Kam sa ham ni da" is guaranteed to make any Korean restaurant worker smile in delight.
5) What is your guilty pleasure food?
Ice cream. Love, love, love the stuff, but we don't keep a lot of it around as I find it hard to resist. We've limited the girls to weekend treats only, and so far that's keeping everyone's sweet tooth at bay.
Bonus: What was your most memorable meal (good or bad), either because of the menu, the occasion, the company, or some other circumstance that makes it stand out?
I've blogged and preached about this before, but the wedding banquet for our friends Sven & Eva at a castle outside Coburg, Germany was the most incredible meal we've ever experienced. It was four hours long, your wine glass/beer stein never went dry, no one got hammered, and everyone laughed, cried and had a wonderful time.
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| Yeah. It was as good as it looks. |
Wonderful play, Scott! Your castle meal sounds amazing, and indeed, memorable. And I can believe that sauerkraut on pizza might work. I have a recipe that puts a beef roast, tomatoes, sauerkraut and brown sugar together that is to die for!
ReplyDeleteoh yes, ice cream. the only reason I didn't list that? I don't feel all that guilty about it. hahaha.
ReplyDeleteLove the wedding story and pictures!
Ah those Germans they sure know how to eat and drink. I too thoroughly enjoyed eating and drinking in Germany. Canadian bacon and sauerkraut pizza sound interesting too, might have to try that sometime.
ReplyDelete