Testicles as food

Last updated
Goat testicles at a market in Spain Criadillas de Choto- Madrid.jpg
Goat testicles at a market in Spain
Beef testicles at a market in Italy Testicoli.jpg
Beef testicles at a market in Italy
Rooster testicle stew (kakashere porkolt
) in Hungary Kakashere porkolt.JPG
Rooster testicle stew (kakashere pörkölt) in Hungary
Bulls testicle stew (right) in Austria Testicle-meal.jpg
Bulls testicle stew (right) in Austria

The testicles of calves, lambs, roosters, turkeys, and other animals are eaten in many parts of the world, often under euphemistic culinary names. Testicles are a by-product of the castration of young animals raised for meat, so they were originally a late-spring seasonal specialty, [1] though nowadays they are generally available year-round.

Contents

Cookery

Testicles are cooked in a variety of ways: sautéed and sauced, fricasseed, deep-fried with breading or batter, in pies, poached, roasted, and so on. Before cooking, they are generally scalded, skinned, and soaked in cold water. [2]

Names

In English, testicles are known by a wide variety of euphemisms, including stones, Rocky Mountain oysters, and prairie oysters. [1] [3] Lamb testicles are often called lamb fries or simply fries (though that may also refer to other organ meats). [4]

Euphemisms are used in many other languages. In Arabic countries such as Lebanon, Syria and Iraq they are known as baid ghanam and in Turkey they are known as koç yumurtası, which in both languages mean 'sheep eggs'. [5]

In some Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, they are known as criadillas, huevos de toro'bull eggs'; in Chinese they are known as simplified Chinese :牛宝; traditional Chinese :牛寶; pinyin :niú bǎo; lit.'ox treasures'; in Greek as αμελέτητα'unmentionables'; in Hindi as kapura; and in Nepali as gula/rajkhani.

The French terms amourettes (from amour, 'love'), animelles or frivolités, [6] the Italian granelli'granules', and the Spanish and Latin American criadillas'little maids' began as euphemisms, but have become standard culinary names. [7] [8]

World variants

Canada

Known as prairie oysters in Canada, they are normally served deep-fried and breaded, with a demi-glace. [9] The dish is especially popular in parts of Canada where cattle ranching is prevalent, and castration of young male animals is common.

France

Sheep and beef testicles are part of French cuisine. They can be grilled and served à la meunière (with butter, lemon and parsley) and sometimes with white wine and garlic. They are also commonly served breaded and fried. [10]

Middle East (Levant)

In Jordan, and Syria, baid ghanam or sheep testicles are grilled and served with lemon juice and parsley.

United States

In the United States, bull testicles are usually served breaded and deep-fried as an appetizer, under the name Rocky Mountain oysters . [11]

Spain

Buffalo, boar or bulls' testicles, known as criadillas, are breaded and fried; [12] In tortilla Sacromonte, a speciality from Granada, lambs' brains and testicles are cooked in an omelette. [13]

Japan

Whale testicles, called kujira no kougan (鯨の睾丸) or kinsou (キンソウ), are considered a delicacy in Japan and are generally eaten boiled. An extensive number of whale tissues are eaten, which includes the intestines, sex organs, and other offal.

Vietnam

Bulls' testicles are commonly called ngầu pín. It is a very common food as it is believed to increase men's sexual ability. [14] [ circular reference ]

Mongolia

After gelding a colt, the testicles are used for ritual purposes. One of the amputated testicles is punctured with a knife so as to permit the insertion of a rope; the rope is then fastened to the new gelding's tail with the assumption that once the testicle has dried, the wound will have finished healing. The remaining testicle is cooked in the hearth ashes and eaten by the head of the household to acquire the strength of the stallion. [15]

United Kingdom

Lamb testicles were historically eaten in England where they were referred to as fries or stones. As the name suggests, they were usually fried in butter after being coated in breadcrumbs. However, they are no longer widely eaten and are not available in supermarkets, although they are sold in some Asian and Middle Eastern butchers and other shops. [16]

Iran

Lamb testicles in Iran are called donbalān (Persian : دنبلان), a white, fleshy mushroom used as a euphemism. Lamb testicles are consumed mostly as home-cooked meals rather than in restaurants as they are considered haram (forbidden) according to Islamic laws, [17] but there are restaurants where lamb testicles are available. In Iran, lamb testicles are mainly skewered and grilled; however, in some areas they are shallow-fried and served with bread.

India

The practice of boiling goat testicles in water and reducing the water with repeated additions of sesame is common in India. [18] Ayurvedic texts describe it as a potent drug among other herbal ayurvedic formulations when discussing treating injury to genital organs. Goat and bull testicles have been consumed prior to the Muslim conquests in India.

Commentaries of the Ashvemedha Yagna, a part of the Rigveda Somayajis tradition, describe consuming horse's entrails including intestines and scrotum along with soma. There is some controversy about the commentaries, particularly related to orgy, and thus authenticity of the practice can be contested.

Goat and cow testicles are highly priced in modern India, up to five times the rung cut/prime cut; however, testicles are not a mainstream delicacy, and are mostly sold as street food. Some tribes offer goat testicles to their guests, such as male lamb genitalia soup, a popular Andhra dish.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Satay</span> Southeast Asian form of kebab

Satay, or sate in Indonesia, is a Javanese dish of seasoned, skewered and grilled meat, served with a sauce. Satay originated in Java, but has spread throughout Indonesia, into Southeast Asia, Europe, America, and beyond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamb and mutton</span> Meat of domestic sheep

Lamb and mutton, collectively sheep meat is one of the most common meats around the world, taken from the domestic sheep, Ovis aries, and generally divided into lamb, from sheep in their first year, hogget, from sheep in their second, and mutton, from older sheep. Generally, "hogget" and "sheep meat" are not used by consumers outside Norway, New Zealand, South Africa, Scotland, and Australia. Hogget has become more common in England, particularly in the North often in association with rare breed and organic farming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Offal</span> Internal organs and entrails of a butchered animal

Offal, also called variety meats, pluck or organ meats, is the internal organs of a butchered animal. The word does not refer to a particular list of edible organs, and these lists of organs vary with culture and region, but usually exclude skeletal muscle. Offal may also refer to the by-products of milled grains, such as corn or wheat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocky Mountain oysters</span> Fried bull meat

Rocky Mountain oysters or mountain oysters, or meat balls, also known as prairie oysters in Canada, is a dish made of bull testicles. The organs are often deep-fried after being skinned, coated in flour, pepper and salt, and sometimes pounded flat. The dish is most often served as an appetizer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chitterlings</span> Food made from pigs small intestines

Chitterlings, sometimes spelled chitlins or chittlins, are the large intestines of domestic animals. They usually come from pigs, but are also made from cow, lamb, goose and goat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rissole</span> European dish of meat covered in pastry

A rissole is "a ball or flattened cake of chopped meat, fish, or vegetables mixed with herbs or spices, then coated in breadcrumbs and fried."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamb fries</span> Fried lamb testicles

Lamb fries are lamb testicles used as food. Historically they were parboiled, cut in half, and seasoned. Lamb testicles are served in a variety of cuisines, including Italian, Basque, breaded and fried in some barbecue restaurants, Chinese, Caucasian, Persian and Iranian Armenian, and Turkish. The dish is rarely served at restaurants in the United States, but can occasionally be found at Iranian restaurants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ghanaian cuisine</span>

Ghanaian cuisine refers to the meals of the Ghanaian people. The main dishes of Ghana are centered around starchy staple foods, accompanied by either a sauce or soup as well as a source of protein. The primary ingredients for the vast majority of soups and stews are tomatoes, hot peppers, and onions. As a result of these main ingredients, most Ghanaian jollof rice, soups, and stews appear red or orange.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meat chop</span> Cut of meat served as individual portion

A meat chop is a cut of meat cut perpendicular to the spine, and usually containing a rib or riblet part of a vertebra and served as an individual portion. The most common kinds of meat chops are pork and lamb. A thin boneless chop, or one with only the rib bone, may be called a cutlet, though the difference is not always clear. The term "chop" is not usually used for beef, but a T-bone steak is essentially a loin chop, a rib steak and a rib cutlet.

Culinary names, menu names, or kitchen names are names of foods used in the preparation or selling of food, as opposed to their names in agriculture or in scientific nomenclature. The menu name may even be different from the kitchen name. For example, from the 19th until the mid-20th century, many restaurant menus were written in French and not in the local language.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pig's ear (food)</span> Cooked ear of pig for human consumption

Pig's ear, as food for human consumption, is the cooked ear of pig. It is found in several cuisines around the world.

An acquired taste is an appreciation for something unlikely to be enjoyed by a person who has not had substantial exposure to it. It is the opposite of innate taste, which is the appreciation for things that are enjoyable by most people without prior exposure to them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goat meat</span> Meat of the domestic goat

Goat meat is the meat of the domestic goat. The term 'goat meat' denotes meat of older animals, while meat from young goats is called 'kid meat'. In South Asian cuisine, goat meat is called mutton, along with sheep meat.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lamb's fry</span> Lamb offal served as food

Lamb's fry is lamb offal served as food, including the testicles, liver, sweetbreads, heart, kidneys, and sometimes the brain and abdominal fat—or some combination thereof.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Croquette</span> Small breaded, deep-fried food

A croquette is a deep-fried roll originating in French cuisine, consisting of a thick binder combined with a filling, which is then breaded. It is served as a side dish, a snack, or fast food worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Meatball</span> Dish of ground meat rolled into a ball

A meatball is ground meat (mince) rolled into a ball, sometimes along with other ingredients, such as bread crumbs, minced onion, eggs, butter, and seasoning. Meatballs are cooked by frying, baking, steaming, or braising in sauce. There are many types of meatballs using different types of meats and spices. The term is sometimes extended to meatless versions based on legumes, vegetables, mushrooms, fish or other seafood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fried cauliflower</span> Widespread dish in Europe, Middle East, and Asia

Fried cauliflower is a popular dish in many cuisines of the Middle East, South Asia, Europe, and elsewhere. It may start from raw or cooked cauliflower; it may be dipped in batter or breading; it may be fried in oil, butter, or other fats. It can be served on its own, as a mezze or side dish, or in a sandwich. It is often seasoned with salt, spices, and a variety of sauces, in the Middle East often based on tahini or strained yogurt.

References

  1. 1 2 Mason, Laura (2014). Davidson, Alan (ed.). The Oxford Companion to Food. Oxford University Press. p. 816. ISBN   9780199677337.
  2. Prosper Montagné, Larousse Gastronomique, 1938
  3. Oxford English Dictionary s.v. 'stone' 11a, 'mountain' and 'prairie oyster' 2
  4. Oxford English Dictionary, s.v. 'fry' n2 2b
  5. Hosking, Richard (2010). Food and Language: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cooking 2009. Oxford Symposium. ISBN   9781903018798.
  6. "L'Épicerie". ici.radio-canada.ca. Retrieved 2024-05-31.
  7. Tresor de la langue française s.v. animelles
  8. Treccani on line s.v.
  9. metacafe.com. "Testicle Festival in Calgary Alberta". Metacafe.
  10. Robuchon, Joël (2007). Le grand Larousse gastronomique (in French). Larousse. ISBN   978-2-03-582360-1.
  11. Stradley, Linda (20 May 2015). "Rocky Mountain Oysters History and Recipe". What's Cooking America. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  12. Castro, Lourdes (2009). Eat, Drink, Think in Spanish: A Food Lover's English-Spanish/Spanish-English Dictionary. Potter/Ten Speed/Harmony/Rodale. p. 124. ISBN   9781580084017.
  13. Richardson, Paul (2007). Late Dinner: Discovering the Food of Spain. Simon and Schuster. pp. 135–136. ISBN   9781416545392.
  14. vi:Ngầu pín
  15. Bruun, Ole. Precious Steppe, p. 56.
  16. "Reviving a very delicate delicacy". BBC News . 13 September 2004. Retrieved 17 November 2021.
  17. isna.ir (23 September 2018). "Illegal Sale of Lamb Testicles". ISNA .
  18. VeershimhavaLokam, an ancient Hindu Ayurvedic Text

Commons-logo.svg Media related to testicles (meat) at Wikimedia Commons