balut

I suppose I should say that the pictures after the jump aren't that appetizing. So if you are, in any way, easily put off, then maybe wait for another post or go look at pictures of pretty unicorns. If you are however curious, let me show the the way.

Balut isn't going top be everyone's cup of tea; I realize this. In fact it isn't a cup of tea at all. Very simply, it's an egg; as you can see from the pictures. What makes this egg different from your regular store bought egg is the nearly developed embryo inside. The duck, or chicken egg, is allowed to age for a few weeks, the ideal age I've read is around 17 days, after which the egg is boiled.

Pulling the shell leaves you with quite the sight.

I've been on the lookout for balut for some time now. Now, I'm not exactly calling around everyday, but I do ask when I'm out and about. Walking by a Filipino grocery store today, I decided to ask. To my surprise, there was balut to be had. Asking if I would like my balut cooked, or uncooked, I opted for one that was already cooked. With this being my first experience, I wasn't going to get involved with boiling it correctly..because if I had to wait too long, I might drop the idea all together. The shop owner was more than happy to sell me the egg, but wanted to know if I recently watched the balut episode of Fear Factor. Saying no, I did my best to explain that the foodie in me was dying to try it. I don't know if she understood my desire, but she did ask me to come back and tell her how it was.

The shop owner mentioned I may want to sit the egg in warm water for a few minutes so it can warm up, but once again, not wanting to give up, I dug right in. The shell seemed a bit harder to crack than a normal egg, but it could have been my passive aggressive banging. See I didn't really know what I would see, and didn't want to somehow wreck the interior. Eventually I had the shell completely off, and took a pause. By no means is balut visually appealing. Or for that matter gross; it's just not what you expect. Slicing the egg open is really where the 'oh' factor comes in. I probably should have peeled apart the pieces, instead of slicing through the embryo..but hey; live and learn right! So how was it. Interesting. With a mix of soft and crunchy bits, and everything in between, it makes for an interesting snack. Combined with a familiar, but unfamiliar egg test, I can see why many people would pass on the dish.

I actually didn't mind the egg. The texture of certain sections, was easily the worst part. The crunch of a beak, or the mental imagine of hair does strange things to the belly. I imagine a fresh, warm egg could have a stronger flavour, something the cooler temperature in which the egg was stored may have robbed, and that every egg would be slightly different (just like people and snowflakes). So it's almost hard to judge the entire balut experience based on this first attempt. And, although I'm almost curious to go back and compare...I may not be running back to the store in a hurry.