WARNING: This blog post is rated PG-13 and may not be suitable for all audiences. Please avoid if you have heart trouble, weak stomach, or fainting spells. Proceed with caution if you are vegetarian, vegan, or experience general queasiness or unwellness. This post is not for the faint of heart or stomach or other unnamed parts.
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Lamb fries...if you have never heard of these, they are not what they sound like. If you have heard of them, you may have an inkling what this post will be about. You might imagine some strips of juicy lamb meat fresh off the grill, possibly in kabob form. You might imagine some type of french fry served with lamb meat or juices from lamb meat. On all accounts you'd be wrong. Dead wrong. Painfully dead wrong.
Lamb fries are essentially lamb testicles. Yes, you read that right. Lamb testicles...take a second to let that sink in... And yes, we cooked some and yes, we even ate some. Here was our experience...
We were wandering around the farmers market one Saturday when lo and behold we stopped in at one of the meat vendors and saw a sign advertising lamb fries. "Hmmm, whats that?" we innocently wondered. Superking asks the vendor, "Is that what I think it is?" The vendor, with a knowing grin and giggle, replies, "Yep, those are lamb testicles!" Superking looks at me and says, "I've got to try those."
We bring them home and decide to fry them up. You take anything, cover it in seasonings and breadcrumbs, then fry it in oil, it can't taste too bad. Right??
WARNING: Graphic photos approaching...
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| with the sac... |
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| de-sacked... |
Superking begins the preparation by removing the membrane or sac around the testicles. He wants me to take pictures as he does so. I decide that I will quickly take one picture at a time then wait in the living room until he needs another picture. I have to admit my stomach was not in agreement with watching the preparation.
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| Don't they look like a bunch of little brains? |
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| or some weird science experiment... |
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| thinly sliced and patted dry |
Superking slices the "fries" thinly, dips them in an egg wash, and dredges them in panko bread crumbs and seasonings. Then into the hot oily frying pan they go! Boy do they make quite a pop in that hot oil! They cook up quickly and we carefully remove each one when they are golden brown and place them on paper towels to soak up the excess oil.
Superking really enjoyed them. And even me, honestly they weren't bad. We served them with a dollop of hot pepper jelly we had purchased from the farmers market also, which was really delicious and added a lot of flavor to the lamb fries. The lamb fries themselves have a very mild flavor and a texture similar to cooked tofu or possibly a piece of tender chicken. I personally had a hard time getting past the idea of it all. And after about 4 or 5, I just couldn't stomach them any more. But when it was all said and done, they really were more tasty than I expected. I'm glad I experienced them but I don't think I'll ever want to experience them again. I'll leave that to Superking.
How about you, readers? Would you try them? Or have you tried them? I'd love to hear your experiences!
