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Unfortunately the official site is very poor: Culinary Olympics [vkd.com].
But you can find out more here [unichef.com], and also here [news.bbc.co.uk] courtesy of the BBC.
Which country's culinary athlete's will bring back the Gold..?
Ready, steady, cook...
Syzygy
[edited by: Syzygy at 11:11 am (utc) on Oct. 17, 2004]
Drum roll...
Switzerland...
Followed in second place by:
Scotland...
The article behind the link indicates that Cyprus, entering the competition for the first time, won four medals...
Syzygy
Side note >..Many years ago I used to go one time by week to the north of Scotland on business for what was then our family business ...I always had at least 100 Haggises to bring back into England ( where I then lived ) for friends and neighbours etc ...I was brought up mainly on a small farm ..very basic ..horsedrawn ploughs etc ..no Tractors in my part of Ireland when I was a kid ...We ate offal ( well I always refused it after the first time ) cos we were poor and had little choice ( I prefered to stay hungry )...but all offal is actully pretty disgusting looking and smelling for a reason ..thats to stop you from being tempted to eat something which has more possibility of massive bacteriological contamination than much else ..cept maybe Porton Down ( "Cousins" ..Google for the reference there ..ok? )....I can make all of the Black puddingy? Haggisy , Tripe , Brains? liver etc etc dishes even the "Cordon bleu" stuff ......No way will I ever eat them ...I'm way healthier for this attitude than those who do eat this stuff ...I'll kill the beast , dress it , prepare your offal , however you want , I'll cook it for you ...
But I aint gonna eat it ...
And on the occasion that some "bright folks" have snuck in offal to something I ate ( to see if I'd know ) ...I can't swallow it ...
It's bad for me ...and probably bad for you too ..
<end of very long side note ...
Also, I get the very slight impression, though I don't exactly know why, that you can't stomach offal? Would that be right?
;-)
Syzygy
I also had lungs in gravy in Indonesia once, but the worst I've come across is an Irish 'delicacy' called drisheen [bertc.com], which looks exactly like pink jelly. I certainly haven't got the stomach to try it.
What about frensh fries with a nice steak and mayo.
Fresh made chocolates, Brussels waffles and of course with Hoegaarden, Duvel, Westmalle or one of the other - let's say - 500 good beers we make!
Don't forget our 'witloof' (Brussels Endive) in bacon and cheese-sause.
Or Flemish stew wit 'frieten' (frensh fries)
Still not hungry? I am.
Canada comes fifth [pei.cbc.ca] overall...
Syzygy
I'm amazed at how poor the organising body of this event is at posting, or even announcing, the results... thank goodness for G-Alerts!
Note for those who don't know the ingredients in question:
Haggis: Sheep's liver, heart and lungs, mixed with meat scraps, grains (oats, barley, etc.) and seasonings.
Black pudding: Blood, suet and seasoning.
As far as haggis goes, organ meat is widely considered some of the healthiest bits of an animal. Really, the lungs are the only 'odd' part of it. Other than that, the ingredients list is less disturbing than most sausage packages I've read... And if black pudding is unfit for human consumption, I hope you only ever eat kosher meats. It's the only meat processing technique I know of that's geared towards always removing ALL the blood from the meat. ;)
Healthier? I almost never get seriously ill. Oh sure, a cold, sniffles, maybe a little stomach upset now and then, but virtually *never* (as in, only every few years) sick enough for it to interfere with my normal activities.
But hey, if you don't want to eat the offal, all the more for those of us who will. ;)
...Now, *tripe* is another matter entirely. Never smelled any other 'food' so disgusting in my life. Won't eat it. But some people feel the same way about the smell of seafood. That's their loss, and maybe tripe is my loss. S'okay, I don't feel deprived.
Nice to hear Scotland came in second. :) I can now gloat about being the one who first mentioned Scottish food in the thread. hehe
... Canada received a gold medal in the cold competition and a silver medal for hot...
Wonder what the dishes were?
Yay team Canada!
