Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Soft-Shell Crab

Louisiana is a birthplace of freaky foods and the soft-shell crab is one of them. As a crab molts, there is a brief moment when its shell is extremely soft. Whoever thought of the idea to fry them should be considered a genius. The crab is dredged in egg wash and seasoned flour and then fried to a golden brown. You eat everything; the meat, the shell, and all the rich, creamy guts and fat. The majority of the crab tastes great, but there will be a noticeable difference in taste and texture when you are no longer eating meat. The innards are strong in flavor and are so weird tasting that they are delicious. Get one on a poboy or just on its own. In my opinion, the soft-shell is the king of fried seafood.


Softshell Crab Poboy



Fried Softshell Crab

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Blackened Alligator

To native Louisianans, alligator seems pretty tame. But for too many people, eating this large lizard makes stomachs crawl. One of the specialties of The Chimes is their blackened alligator. Chunks of tender tail meat are coated with blackening seasoning and seared in a cast iron skillet. The salty and spicy seasoning goes well with the mild, white meat. To those who say it tastes like chicken, you can believe that. But I think it may be better than chicken.

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Boudin Balls

By:Mark

Boudin is such a Louisiana favorite that we really don’t realize how freaky it is. Boudin was originally devised as a way for Cajuns to utilize the organs of the animals. Since the organs were the first part to spoil; the heart, kidney, and liver of a pig were combined with ground pork and seasoned rice. The mixture was then stuffed into intestinal lining. The result is a deliciously rich flavor which rivals any traditional sausage. Here in Baton Rouge, we enjoy our boudin in links and also rolled up into tight balls and deep fried. Many places in Baton Rouge serve boudin well; such as The Chimes, Opie’s Cajun Café, and Ronnie’s. So the next time you order the boudin balls, they may not be as innocent as you thought they were.

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - The Source

By: Mark

http://www.dojerky.com

Technically this Freaky Food entry is located in Denham Springs, La; but I need to include it. In the Beef Jerky Outlet, across from the Bass Pro Shop, a bottle of liquefied Satan awaits. Over 200 hot sauces are for sale, but none can touch The Source. Made of 100% pure capsaicin extract, this “sauce” is actually a base from which hot sauces and large batches of food are made. The Source clocks in at a fiery 7.1 million Scovilles! Considering a bell pepper is 0 Scovilles, a jalapeno is 2,500 Scovilles, a habanero is 400,000 Scovilles, and a naga jolokia is 850,000 Scovilles, The Source is hotter than all of these peppers combined X 5! After signing a waiver, the tip of a toothpick was touched to the sauce and then to my tongue. Pure agony ensued for the next thirty minutes and as a result, I spent $12.00 on milk. The scary part was the milk didn’t help! I had to wait for the sauce to run its course. The only thing I could compare it to would be a furnace running at full capacity in my mouth. I will never try it again, but to all you heat freaks out there, I say “Good Luck!”

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Pho

Many places in Baton Rouge make good pho. My favorite is at Pho Quynh, but other notables are Little Saigon, Tasty Casian, and Drunken Fish. This Vietnamese favorite can be ordered innocently enough with just thin-sliced, rare beef; but I like to go the extra mile. I ask for everything in my pho! Fatty brisket, which is literally the fat from the brisket, adds a rich flavor and the fat has a silky texture. The beef tendon offers little flavor but it does present a strange gelatinous texture. The book tripe, stomach lining from a cow, offers a nice crunch to the soup. However my favorite strange meat to add is the mystery meatballs. Full of gristle and organ meat, these balls are rich in flavor and have a chewy texture. For a flavorful and textural treat, order your pho fully loaded!

Freaky Foods of Baton Rouge - Menudo Rojo with Beef Tongue Tacos

By: Mark

Taco and Burrito Express on Sherwood Forest may not look like much from the outside, but it serves excellent Mexican food and our first Freaky Food Focus. On the weekend, menudo rojo is a specialty of the restaurant. When the dish was ordered, the waitress gave me a peculiar look; a look of “you sure about this gringo?” A large bowl of deep crimson broth was presented, carrying with it the smell of tomatoes and chilies. The meat in the soup is tripe, or the stomach lining of a cow. Two types of tripe are used: the book and the honeycomb. The book tripe has a chewy, meaty texture and the honeycomb has a sponge like texture. A faint muddy smell is also detected, one of the characteristics of cooking with tripe. Served with fresh limes, cilantro, and onions; this soup is a traditional favorite. Corn tortillas are also provided to dip in the broth while eating.

If the soup isn’t enough, order a side of beef tongue tacos. The tongue is cooked long and slow in Mexican spices till tender. The result is a meat that is richer and tastier than the best pot roast. Get them crispy and loaded with toppings, or my favorite with lime juice, onion, and cilantro.

Menudo Rojo

Beef Tongue Tacos