Is That What It Is?

I love cooking shows. By almost anyone; except Ms Lawson (maybe I am envious of her; after all she is known as the kitchen goddess..) And then at a time I simply love Jamie Oliver too (despite his less than perfect / genteel techniques in the kitchen).

I keep tabs of the unfamiliar and exciting ingredients that are used in the recipes. Rosemary, sage and fresh oregano were my favorites at a time. Then there was crème fraîche (and I go like what is that? How to pronounce it? Duh..) After that there were fresh vanilla and vanilla pods (I only ever knew vanilla that I pour out of the bottle). And I would scour the supermarkets just to find and see what these alluring and beautiful ingredients are all about.

Just a few weeks back as we were watching tv, I asked my husband what ingredient was the chef using. He said entah (like he would know if I dont.. he-he) It looked much like a piece of cheese. The pronunciation is foreign. Later I found out it is called foie gras. Much later I discovered that it is pronounced as fwa grah (it is French).

I never thought of looking it up; until recently when I got a mail from Mira on what it is, how it is produced. And then I think I should ban the chefs who ever call for foie gras in their recipe..

Foie gras is literally translated as "fat liver" but it is actually fattened liver of duck and geese. It is considered as a delicacy in fine dining.

In producing foie gras the birds are force fed a rich mixture. The largest production of commercial foie gras is done in France and Israel. The US will only allow this product to be imported in a cooked stage, either canned, vacuum-sealed, or frozen. And the state of California has actually banned this product.

Look at these photos.. first, prepared foie gras. And then below, urgh, how it all started.




So be brave. Prepare to be appalled. And revolted. Learn, and then ban foie gras.

Oh, and co-incidently, I find there is nothing alluring nor exciting about foie gras, do you?

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