As I ate my chicken broccoli alfredo for dinner tonight, I craved something else I haven't eaten in a few years. That something was jellyfish; sometimes I wish I was Spongebob Squarepants so I could go catching jellyfish any time I desired. While the texture is very unusual, I really enjoy it and the favor isn't overwhelming but it's amazing.
But jellyfish isn't the only type food that you find strange that I enjoy to eat. As I walked through a Chinese market in Chinatown in Boston, MA with my parents, I realized that I ate (and still do) many things that most American would find extremely eccentric. My Chinese friends and family will understand what most of these foods are. Similar to the jellyfish, (well just underwater), we had eel for dinner last week! It was my first time and it was quite good (expensive too!).
Growing up (and still occurs when I'm home), my mother would create various soup creations for the entire family to drink. These soups would range from extremely bitter, salty, sweet, chucky, and sometimes just thick liquids (think mud). Majority of the time it would be delectable; maybe it was because we were forced to drink them and learned how to enjoy the soups. But what were they made of? Well sometimes snakes, assorted meats (some exotic), fish, and of course numerous types of herbs. The Chinese really love their herbs; there are aisles upon aisles in the Chinese market dedicated to herbs.
As a kid, I really enjoyed two items that I have never learned what they were (and didn't really care to learn). The first snack would be sweet, tart, then even bitter; I would eat bags/jars of them all at once (my grandma would have to take them away from me). It would be a disappointment to just suck on the pit of the food. What is it? Well they are Chinese dried plums!
The other thing I was addicted to as a child was just plain sweet. I would try to eat them chip by chip but that was nearly impossible since it was possible to fit the entire roll in one mouthful. Who didn't enjoy the pink/red Haw Flakes?!
Other things I found interesting:
and Dried Fish Maw (for soup!):
P.S. The Chinese American Mini Market pictured above was the one I grew up with in Cranston, RI; it was just a walk away! I'm craving dried mangos now... And Pocky...