Last week, WildChina had the opportunity to host Anissa Helou, the “internationally known food writer,
art collector, journalist, broadcaster, and one of the leading experts on the cuisines of the Mediterranean and the Middle East.” She came to get a taste of what Chinese cuisine had to offer, and here is a portion from her blog.
a penis emporium – part 2
“So, here are my tasting notes from my penis eating adventure. As I have already said, it was not a gastronomic experience but a fun and a very interesting one all the same. We ate in a private room and had our own dedicated waitress who, as you can see from the slightly hazy picture above, was very pretty.
“I wondered how she coped with male customers during and at the end of meals as they get more drunk and convinced of their increased strength — to become strong is the main reason for eating penis; strong is also the name or logo of the restaurant — but it wasn’t a question I felt I could ask despite being with two lovely Chinese friends who helped me find the restaurant and once there, decide what to order, translate, etc.
“The place is relatively expensive and however much I wanted to try the many different penises on offer, I did not want to spend a fortune. So, we settled on half a hot pot (one of the few you could order in halves) with lamb, stud ox, monkey and deer penis.
“And this is how our order came, with a bright red erect jelly penis in the middle! By the way, the long white bits at the front of the picture are spinal cord.
“Our waitress poached the bits of penis in a good turtle soup, kept bubbling on an induction hot plate, before serving them to us to dip in any one of three different sauces: a slightly lemony soy one, a sesame paste one and I can’t remember the third one. Perhaps because I didn’t like it.
“We started with the alpha male lamb penis. The texture was gelatinous with hardly any resistance. Some pieces were softer than others and had a slightly nicer mouth feel although I can’t say I was seduced.
“Then we had stud ox penis. I liked those pieces a little better. They offered a little more resistance and had a more interesting texture. Still, it was more like eating gristle than like eating a luxurious part of an animal.
“After that we had a slight respite and were served spinal cord which I love — I used to always order it in Lebanese restaurants in London until the BSE crisis put a stop to it being on the menu. They were nice, soft and velvety with the skin a little chewy, offering a good contrast to the melting inside. And luckily our delightful waitress did not overcook them.”
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Photos by Anissa Helou. To read the rest of Anissa’s blog, please click here.
