Overrated food

sneaker_fish

We stayed in a God awful place in Haast Beach on our honeymoon where my husband had whitebait patties and we chatted to the whitebait fisherman. He loved them but then we are from Manchester so fish is a novelty to us :)

You can use foie to make a lot of the charcuterie preparations - pate, terrine, mousse - or you can use another type of liver. A duck liver pate in a restaurant isn't likely to be foie, given how controversial and expensive foie is.

foie = liver

Anyone selling something called "a duck liver pâté" that contained no liver (foie) would be breaking the law in the countries I'm familiar with. It is not likely to be foie gras unless it says so, if that's what you mean. Neither is something called pâté de foie de canard.

Pate, parfait/mousse, rillettes, terrine, sausages are all a type of charcuterie preparation. The distinction lies in the size of the particles - for example, pates (fine) and parfaits/mousses (very fine) will be pressed through a tamis (fine mesh sieve) whereas a terrine or sausage is going to be more coarse in texture.

A terrine is often baked (sometimes not, in the case of a vegetable terrine) in a bain marie as described by #33 and usually layers of ingredients - whole liver, nuts, dried fruit etc - surrounded by a pate or mousse, and topped with some aspic (savoury jelly). A pate can be baked that way, or directly on the stovetop - the ingredients are cooked ahead of time and then blended with enough fat and flavourings, passed through the sieve and then left to set. All will have minimum 30% fat to get the ingredients emulsified.

Foie gras is not just a duck or goose liver, it's a specific type of duck or goose liver in which the animal has been essentially forcefed ahead of slaughter, resulting in a liver about 10x the normal size. (obviously there are animal ethics issues around this, it's a process that's been around for a long time in France). Foie is therefore extremely fatty, and requires a great deal of care in cooking because it can just melt on you into nothing. It's incredibly expensive, one liver can be CAD$50+.

You can use foie to make a lot of the charcuterie preparations - pate, terrine, mousse - or you can use another type of liver. A duck liver pate in a restaurant isn't likely to be foie, given how controversial and expensive foie is.

Foie gras = a type of liver

You can have a duck liver pate, as you say "pate de foie de canard" that is not made from foie gras. In referring to it as "foie" I've just used the shortened (English speaking) culinary industry term for foie gras. Sorry for confusion.

sockeye the noo, hnth...

Hello, this is my first ever post on here. I'm preparing for a month-long trip to Croatia, which so far sounds like gastronomic heaven for me. I saw this topic though and could not resist, because I am quite a foodie (of the lazy dining out variety). However, there are popular foods that I just do not like.

Ok, first of all, I absolutely hate cooked salmon especially when smoked, even the smell makes me gag. The weird thing is that I can enjoy fresh, raw sushi/sashimi salmon. I am very picky about fish though. Most of the other things that are listed are ok to me except for beer. I dislike most beers except for fruit beers (Kriek, Floris, etc) or the occasional Nastro Azzurro or Baltika.

I also am among the sacrilegious few who think that chocolate is overrated. I like it in small quantities as a part of more complex desserts, but it is in and of itself, no big deal to me. I'd rarely eat a chocolate cake, for example, when presented with some other option. I will say that I absolutely love Nutella though. I also love good sushi. Lobster is also one of my absolute favorite foods (especially in Maine, right next to the water). It's such a violent and primal experience to eat them, but so delicious. I'm not a huge fan of steaks though; having been force-fed a lot of beef as a kid, I tend to eat it only occasionally now.

Some other overrated foods, in my opinion:

1. Cream Cheese - Always grosses me out. The ever popular combination of smoked salmon and cream cheese is a recipe for nausea for me.

2. Brie - Gah, I have never liked it. I don't like the texture, taste or smell.

3. Mangoes - I am highly allergic to them, so obviously, I cannot like them. I have to constantly watch out for mangoes because they are very trendy.

4. Melons - I really don't like them in general, too bland and/or bitter.

5. Burgers - That will seem strange coming from an American, but I do think they are overrated. Every so often, I get the mood for a bacon cheese burger with trimmings, but not too often. A lot of times, I find the meat tasteless.

I could probably think of more but those are the biggies. I often feel like a weirdo when I encounter those things since so many people love them.

"3. Mangoes - I am highly allergic to them, so obviously, I cannot like them. I have to constantly watch out for mangoes because they are very trendy."

As it happens I have over 70 Mangoes ripening on the table behind me-makings for Mango Jam w/Cardamom, Brandy & Lime.

Sorry to hear of your affliction.

#46 wanderlily - I'm with you on the salmon. Can't stand cooked salmon, love smoked.

Wanderlily, what are your plans for Croatia? I have to say that I wasn't blown away by the food there. Fantastic people, great nightlife, fascinating history, rich culture, beautiful scenery and architecture, and lots of other cracking times like swimming, diving, exploring...but the food was mostly a paler version of Italian cuisine, and I travelled to a few places around the country. I don't want to be a negative nellie, and I'm happy to be corrected or told that I was going to the wrong places but I never met anyone who came back from Croatia raving about the food.

They do a reasonable job on a Calzone.