Type | Seasonal (Halloween) |
---|---|
Invented | 2009 |
Serving temperature | 98.6 °F (37.0 °C) |
Main ingredients | Ground beef |
Ingredients generally used | onion slivers, parsnips |
Feetloaf is a novelty dish intended to be served on Halloween. The earliest known reference is a 2009 cooking blog which was based on a recipe found in a seasonal cookbook sold at a grocery store checkout counter. The original recipe described a meatloaf molded into the shape of a human foot, using brazil nuts as toenails and ketchup or barbecue sauce to mimic blood. [1]
The dish was originally called "Bloody Stump" or "Feet of Meat". [2] The first known use of the term "Feetloaf" was in a 2014 Today Show interview with Laurin Sydney, Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kotb. [3] [4] A contemporaneous MTV News story alternately referred to the dish as "Feet Loaf" (two words) and "Meat Foot". [5] A 2016 New York Times Magazine article mentioned feetloaf as being the subject of an Amy Sedaris Instagram post. [6]
In 2019, The Washington Post featured the dish in a pre-Halloween article, citing a tweet by rapper Richard Wilson (known by his stage name Lil Rich Aka Crash). According to The Post, the tweet had nearly 28,000 incoming links and had amassed almost 9,000 retweets. The version of the recipe described by The Post used slivers of onion instead of brazil nuts for toenails, and parsnips to simulate a sawed-off tibia. Serving suggestions included using a small handsaw instead of a knife, and a quarter-size sheet pan as a platter, mimicking a laboratory tray. [2] In the same year, Chris Prosperi of NBC Connecticut noted that there were "tons of pictures" of feetloaf available on the internet. [7]
In 2021, The Daily Mirror reported on a variation of the recipe which included a cheese topping. The dish was described as "absolutely disgusting". [8]
Feetloaf is mentioned in the 1967 children's book The Hungry Thing. When the title character, a creature with a "Feed Me" sign hung around its neck, requests feetloaf, other characters ponder what it might be. A wiseman suggests it might be "a kind of shoe pudding that grows in a tree", and the cook counters that it "tastes sweet, and it's eaten by kings when they dine in bare feet". [9] The book uses incremental rhyming changes to lead the reader from made-up nonsense spoken by the monster to an actual culinary dish; "feetloaf" becomes "beetloaf" and then "meatloaf". [10]
Scrapple, also known by the Pennsylvania Dutch name Pannhaas, is a traditional mush of fried pork scraps and trimmings combined with cornmeal and wheat flour, often buckwheat flour, and spices.
Meatloaf is a dish of ground meat that has been combined with other ingredients and formed into the shape of a loaf, then baked or smoked. The final shape is either hand-formed on a baking tray, or pan-formed by cooking it in a loaf pan. It is usually made with ground beef, although ground lamb, pork, veal, venison, poultry, and seafood are also used, sometimes in combination. Vegetarian adaptations of meatloaf may use imitation meat or pulses.
Stuffing, filling, or dressing is an edible mixture, often composed of herbs and a starch such as bread, used to fill a cavity in the preparation of another food item. Many foods may be stuffed, including poultry, seafood, and vegetables. As a cooking technique stuffing helps retain moisture, while the mixture itself serves to augment and absorb flavors during its preparation.
Pakistani cuisine can be characterized as a blend of regional cooking styles and flavours from across South, Central and Western Asia. Pakistani cuisine is influenced by Persian, Indian, and Arab cuisine. The cuisine of Pakistan also maintains certain Mughal influences within its recipes and cooking techniques. Pakistan's ethnic and cultural diversity, diverse climates, geographical environments, and availability of different produce lead to diverse regional cuisines.
Pilaf, pilav or pilau is a rice dish, usually sautéed, or in some regions, a wheat dish, whose recipe usually involves cooking in stock or broth, adding spices, and other ingredients such as vegetables or meat, and employing some technique for achieving cooked grains that do not adhere to each other.
Korma or qorma is a dish with its origin in the Indian subcontinent, consisting of meat or vegetables braised with yogurt, water or stock, and spices to produce a thick sauce or gravy.
Salisbury steak is a dish originating in the United States and made from a blend of ground beef and other ingredients, being considered a version of Hamburg steak. Today, Salisbury steak is usually served with a gravy similar in texture to brown sauce, along with various side dishes, such as mashed potatoes and cooked vegetables. It is a common menu item served by diners and is frequently available as a TV dinner in supermarket frozen food sections.
Arab cuisine collectively refers to the regional culinary traditions of the Arab world, consisting of the Maghreb and the Mashriq. These cuisines are centuries old and reflect the culture of trading in ingredients, spices, herbs, and commodities among the Arabs. The regions have many similarities, but also unique traditions. They have also been influenced by climate, cultivation, and mutual commerce.
Iraqi cuisine is a Middle Eastern cuisine that has its origins in the ancient Near East culture of the fertile crescent. Tablets found in ancient ruins in Iraq show recipes prepared in the temples during religious festivals—the first cookbooks in the world. Ancient Iraq's cultural sophistication extended to the culinary arts.
Indigenous cuisine of the Americas includes all cuisines and food practices of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. Contemporary Native peoples retain a varied culture of traditional foods, along with the addition of some post-contact foods that have become customary and even iconic of present-day Indigenous American social gatherings. Foods like cornbread, turkey, cranberry, blueberry, hominy, and mush have been adopted into the cuisine of the broader United States population from Native American cultures.
Kofta is a family of meatball or meatloaf dishes found in South Asian, Central Asian, Balkan, Middle Eastern, North African, and South Caucasian cuisines. In the simplest form, koftas consist of balls of minced meat—usually beef, chicken, pork, lamb or mutton, or a mixture—mixed with spices and sometimes other ingredients. The earliest known recipes are found in early Arab cookbooks and call for ground lamb.
Kibbeh nayyeh or raw kibbeh is a Levantine mezze that likely originated in Aleppo, Syria. It consists of minced raw lamb mixed with fine bulgur and spices.
Somali cuisine was influenced by many different countries mainly due to trade, but traditionally also varies from region to region due to the expansive landmass Somalis inhabit. It is the product of Somalia's tradition of trade and commerce. Some notable Somali specialties include kimis / sabaayad, canjeero / laxoox, xalwo (halwa), sambuusa (samosa), bariis iskukaris, and muqmad / oodkac.
Afghan cuisine is influenced by Persian, Central Asian, and South Asian cuisines due to Afghanistan's close proximity and cultural ties. The cuisine is halal and mainly based on mutton, beef, poultry and fish with rice and Afghan bread. Accompanying these are common vegetables and dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, whey, and fresh and dried fruits such as apples, apricots, grapes, bananas, oranges, plums, pomegranates, sweet melons, and raisins. The diet of most Afghans revolves around rice-based dishes, while various forms of naan are consumed with most meals. Tea is generally consumed daily in large quantities, and is a major part of hospitality. The culinary specialties reflect the nation's ethnic and geographic diversity. The national dish of Afghanistan is Kabuli palaw, a rice dish cooked with raisins, carrots, nuts, and lamb or beef.
Bobotie is a South African dish consisting of spiced minced meat baked with an egg-based topping.
Duchess potatoes consist of a purée of mashed potato, egg yolk, and butter, which is forced from a piping bag or hand-moulded into various shapes which are then baked in a high temperature oven until golden. They are typically seasoned similarly to mashed potatoes with, for example, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. They are a classic item of French cuisine, and are found in historic French cookbooks.
Turkey meat, commonly referred to as just turkey, is the meat from turkeys, typically domesticated turkeys, but also wild turkeys. It is a popular poultry dish, especially in North America and the United Kingdom, where it is traditionally consumed as part of culturally significant events such as Thanksgiving and Christmas respectively, as well as in standard cuisine.
A snack is a small portion of food generally eaten between meals. A snack is often less than 200 calories, but this can vary. Snacks come in a variety of forms including packaged snack foods and other processed foods, as well as items made from fresh ingredients at home.
Rat-on-a-stick, also referred to as rat kebab, is a dish or snack consisting of a roasted rat served on a stick or skewer. The dish is consumed in Thailand and Vietnam. Prior to roasting, the rat is typically skinned and washed, after which it is gutted to remove its internal organs and then roasted.
Embutido, or embotido, is a Philippine meatloaf made with ground pork and stuffed with hard-boiled eggs and sliced ham or various sausages. It is traditionally wrapped in aluminum foil and steamed, though it can also be baked.
The Hungry Thing comes to town and asks for tickles and feetloaf and other interesting things to eat while the townspeople try to figure out what he means