Extreme Cuisine: The Weird & Wonderful Foods that People Eat

This book is every bit as readable as Bourdain's "A Cook's Tour," and is a must for those of you who enjoy reading about food and its impact on various world cultures. Hopkins has a knack for exposing "extreme" foods such as dogs, cats, rats, insects, snakes, etc. in a manner which is interesting and does not cast judgement on the people who enjoy or rely on these foods for sustenance. There are pictures, RECIPES (yep -- not kidding), interesting facts, detailed histories, and general observations which will keep you turning the pages.

Fascinating reading! In my travels I thought I had seen a lot of strange culinary customs but after reading this book I realize that I had barely scratched the surface. Apparently every living creature on this planet is a delicacy somewhere.

I don't think so! Traditionally this is made in Jamaica with the Goats' head, tripe and (if you are lucky ) the testes. It is considered a soup. It rarely uses the meat which is reserved for the following course of curry goat. In fact prior to making the soup the head is 'singed' to remove the hair easily,this results in the soup having a delightful smoky flavour.The head is then chopped into bite sized pieces and the soup is slow cooked (best done in an old "kerosene" pan on a traditional Jamaican coal pot outside).Wedding Feasts, breaking ground for a new house,or a funeral were all reasons to kill a goat and have a "goat Feast" Jamaica has a sheep population which is very small ( most of the lamb consumed, is imported) but goats are commonly reared. A delightful read however, the book does help the reader to appreciate the gastronomic diversity that exists even today and some of its'history.

I'm enjoying this book, but some of it must be taken with a pinch of salt :-) There's lots of information about the weirdest things that people can eat, with some totally gross and unnecessary information (e.g., about how primates can be purchased in Africa, all grilled and chopped to pieces). Some of the info is really fascinating (e.g., that iguanas can have eggs harvested from them whilst they are alive, and patched up with some ash, and left to regenerate and scamper off). Read this book if you enjoy the odd curiousity now and then, and not because you want to be a gourmet cook of this stuff. Many of the recipes are probably not tried-and-tests, although my sense is that the factual information provided has been carefully fact-checked.

Jerry Hopkins has raised the bar in food scholarship - Extreme Cuisine is an extremely entertaining read and a primary source for anyone interested in how (with recipes) and what other (often rural) world cultures eat. A most worthy successor to Unmentionable Cuisine. Great color photography inserts. Hopkins provides scholarly detail about some subjects some pet-lovers might find less tasty (eating dogs, cats, horse, monkeys, etc), some which are most assuredly unknown by most (eating rooster combs, wattles & testicles) and has a good sense of humor by including dumpster diving and eating roadkill. As Anthony Bourain learned, Hopkins is the perfect guide, the "Old Hand" to the other (than American style packaged foods) food worlds. A must buy for any serious culinary library.