Duck Eggs

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I just got back from an Asian market. They had duck eggs in the window. I asked about them "Are those duck eggs?" and she said "no no no, little baby duck inside".

I am not sure what to make of that.
 
I'm sure that is exactly what they are. My sil is Vietnamese and I can plainly se her eating something like that. I guess some foods just don't cross cultures very well.
 
If they are Balut I do have all sorts of questions about them.

And I do wonder what they are like.
 
omg, why,:blink: oh why did I open that link. *thud*:huh::sick:

That was pretty much my first reaction too, but I realize it's a food prejudice on my part. Started me wondering, "Why does it seem so disgusting?"

It's partly because I remember an egg that had a chick with feathers, beak, etc. I guess it would be okay at the appropriately younger stage. I won't be rushing out to find it, but I would probably try a bite if a friend ordered it.

We have a :sick: :yuk: reaction to those eggs, but think about cheese: take some milk, add the scrapings from the inside of the stomach of a cow (goat, sheep, ...), mix it with the milk and let it curdle. Do some other stuff and let the curdled (rotted) milk sit around for several months. No wonder a lot of Asians won't try it. :LOL:
 
That was pretty much my first reaction too, but I realize it's a food prejudice on my part. Started me wondering, "Why does it seem so disgusting?"

It's partly because I remember an egg that had a chick with feathers, beak, etc. I guess it would be okay at the appropriately younger stage. I won't be rushing out to find it, but I would probably try a bite if a friend ordered it.

We have a :sick: :yuk: reaction to those eggs, but think about cheese: take some milk, add the scrapings from the inside of the stomach of a cow (goat, sheep, ...), mix it with the milk and let it curdle. Do some other stuff and let the curdled (rotted) milk sit around for several months. No wonder a lot of Asians won't try it. :LOL:

I remember watching a show on Discovery many years ago about different foods around the world (the shocking and weird). While the show was more sensationalism than documentary (surprising coming from Discovery, especially at the time) one line has always stood out for me. They said "People view animals in the way they can afford to, some places an animal is a pet animal because they can afford it, other places the same animal is food." (A paraphrase).

I suppose in the end the cost of food determines what people are willing to eat, and what they throw away. I would imagine Balut started with someone finding the eggs already fertilized and were still hungry.
 
I remember watching a show on Discovery many years ago about different foods around the world (the shocking and weird). While the show was more sensationalism than documentary (surprising coming from Discovery, especially at the time) one line has always stood out for me. They said "People view animals in the way they can afford to, some places an animal is a pet animal because they can afford it, other places the same animal is food." (A paraphrase).

I suppose in the end the cost of food determines what people are willing to eat, and what they throw away. I would imagine Balut started with someone finding the eggs already fertilized and were still hungry.

Well put.

I figure cheese was an accident with an improperly cleaned stomach, that was used to store some milk. Someone got brave and tasted it. Then when fresh cheese was considered food, someone tried the bit of fresh cheese that got misplaced for several months. And, someone got brave about cheese with mould: Camembert, blue cheese, etc.
 
Well put.

I figure cheese was an accident with an improperly cleaned stomach, that was used to store some milk. Someone got brave and tasted it. Then when fresh cheese was considered food, someone tried the bit of fresh cheese that got misplaced for several months. And, someone got brave about cheese with mould: Camembert, blue cheese, etc.

In the 12 boxes of cookbooks I got at an auction for $12, there was one called: A Salute to Cheese by Betty Wason, (c) 1966. Libray of Congress Catalogue Card Number: 66-15356

She has a whole chapter about the "Birth of the Blues" and one of the stories re: the birth of the blues is just that, a young shephard left his cheese sandwich and found it months later and ate it. This story is not confirmed. If you stumble across this book (or maybe it is available on amazon as a used book), it is a fascinating read about cheese (and there are a number of recipes in it as well).
 
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...a young shephard left his cheese sandwich and found it months later and ate it. This story is not confirmed...


...and it cannot be confirmed.

The discovery of blue cheese has to be unknown. The story offered by Betty Watson is as good a guess as any but nobody can know for sure. Blue cheeses were most likely discovered by chance by some adventuresome or very hungry person or persons who came across moldy cheese and tried it. Most likely on several places over time.

There are always stories of how certain classic foods came about. It's impossible to verify most because there is no reliable on the scene verification. We are left with educated guesses.
 
I suspect that a lot of the first tastings of food were born of necessity. I have a Cambodian friend that went from princess to prisoner in 1 hour. Lost 2 young children to starvation. She tells stories of one person becoming the taster for the group of unfamiliar foods. Some worked out, some didn't make it.
 
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I enjoy, and prefer, ice cream made with duck egg yolks; about 8 yolks to 6 - 7 cups, combined, half whole milk & half heavy cream, a cup of sugar and a teaspoon of salt. I added 1+ cup of stewed & partially pureed strawberries to the last batch I made.
Using 7 duck egg whites should be adequate for at least 2/3rds of your 12 egg white angel food recipe.
 
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Okay--I have 7 duck eggs in the fridge. Debating what best to do with them--bake a cake--would there be enough whites for an Angel food cake? I usually use 12 egg whites...what to do, what to do? Use the yolks for homemade ice cream? What to do, what to do...I looked at this recipe:

Duck Egg Sponge Cake recipe @ Not Quite Nigella

What is custard powder?
Here in Canada you can get something called Bird's Custard Powder. I don't use it because it has weird chemicals in it. Bird's Custard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 
I enjoy, and prefer, ice cream made with duck egg yolks; about 8 yolks to 6 - 7 cups, combined, half whole milk & half heavy cream, a cup of sugar and a teaspoon of salt. I added 1+ cup of stewed & partially pureed strawberries to the last batch I made.
Using 7 duck egg whites should be adequate for at least 2/3rds of your 12 egg white angel food recipe.
Once I decide what to do with the whites, I'm thinking I'll repeat the rhubarb ice cream using duck egg yolks instead of chicken. The source probably will be done soon--ducks don't lay all year like chickens do. A curling buddy lives down the road and happens to raise ducks...and geese...and goats...and sheep...tempting to get some ducks of my own...
 
Once I decide what to do with the whites, I'm thinking I'll repeat the rhubarb ice cream using duck egg yolks instead of chicken. The source probably will be done soon--ducks don't lay all year like chickens do. A curling buddy lives down the road and happens to raise ducks...and geese...and goats...and sheep...tempting to get some ducks of my own...
A- I thought you were back in the city?
B- I seem to recall that we only get duck eggs in the cooler weather (October through May), but since our source doubled the asking price for their duck eggs ( from 50 cents ea. to $1 ea.) , we have not been buying any.
 
I am back in the "City" but the "City" is the size of Prince Edward Island, so has urban and rural components. We live in the rural part (in other words, the City moved to us, we didn't move to the City when amalgamation happened). All we got from this brilliant decision was higher property taxes and fewer services (ditches get mowed less often, roads are plowed later in the day, garbage collection is later and now going to be bi-weekly). I paid $1.50 for my 7 eggs. He did say that the ducks were pretty much done laying.
 
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I remember watching a show on Discovery many years ago about different foods around the world (the shocking and weird). While the show was more sensationalism than documentary (surprising coming from Discovery, especially at the time) one line has always stood out for me. They said "People view animals in the way they can afford to, some places an animal is a pet animal because they can afford it, other places the same animal is food." (A paraphrase).

My husband tells me when he was stationed in Korea, a friend thought he was odd to be appalled that they ate dog. On the other hand, this friend was appalled that he'd not think twice about eating rabbit. They both thought, how can you eat an animal that is a pet??
 
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My husband tells me when he was stationed in Korea, a friend thought he was odd to be appalled that they ate dog. On the other hand, this friend was appalled that he'd not think twice about eating rabbit. They both thought, how can you eat an animal that is a pet??
My friend with the ducks did suggest that maybe I baby my chickens and that is why Rocky attacks me...he might have a point re: babying/pampering the girls...nay--no way, oops, I think the pasta I was making for their breakfast is boiling over...
 
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My friend with the ducks did suggest that maybe I baby my chickens and that is why Rocky attacks me...he might have a point re: babying/pampering the girls...nay--no way, oops, I think the pasta I was making for their breakfast is boiling over...
My great aunt's chickens really seemed to enjoy a treat of pasta.
 
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