I hate to purport to speak on behalf of all "white people," but I think it's not that we're afraid. We're disgusted.
People eat blood around the world in all kinds of ways: from France’s rich, gamy sauces and Spain’s morcilla to Swedish blood pancakes, British black pudding and the chocolate-laced blood sweets of Italy; in sausages and stews throughout Southeast Asia; in the wobbly slabs of blood tofu that are a key element in China’s hot pots and soups. Yet in the United States, most blood from slaughterhouses is processed into animal feed and fertilizer. In this era of nose-to-tail dining, when we pat ourselves on our sustainable backs for every ear, liver or trotter we dare to eat, why do we routinely pour the most vital part of the animal down the drain?
It's not down the drain. It's into animal feed and fertilizer. But maybe there is some wonderful stuff we the white people of America are missing out on.
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106 comments:
Animal blood is extraordinarily nutrient dense for obvious reasons.
The aversion to blood consumption is in the same category as aversion to fat and saturated fat. It is a lie built and enforced to make people eat more processed foods.
I'm asking why!?
Hopefully soon we can stop calling most of the garbage in grocery stores “food.”
"But maybe there is some wonderful stuff we the white people of America are missing out on."
Donkey meat. It's delicious. Very popular in North China.
If it tastes good, I'll eat anything safe to eat.
White people? Thats racist. Blood products are around in Europe
Except, I won't eat humans or dogs. I just don't wanna. In a starvation situation, I'd eat anything, so watch your back.
If you said this about any other race, you'd be a racist.
Wonderful parasites!
I'm Jewish. I don't eat blood.
British black pudding is actually delicious. I got a taste for it before I learned what it was made of.
Things like black pudding and blood sausage used to be popular in Europe and the UK. Not sure if they still are. Both came from the days when people weren't rich enough to "Waste" the blood. Everything had to end up eaten, even the squeal.
We've never had to do that in the USA. We've lived "High on the Hog".
I was offended at the blithe characterization of white people as cowardly.
We'll probably get over our aversion to eating blood at the same time we go back to eating pigs feet and Lamb's eyeballs.
Our Chinese friends have a lot of delicicies (sic) that White America has never relished because they revolve around animal parts we dont eat.
What are you, too scared to eat it?
Something that has never worked on me.
To @Nancy's point, there is also a religious aspect to this. Many conservative Christians join their Jewish brothers and sisters in refusing to eat blood. The prohibition was continued as part of the early church's Jerusalem council in Acts 15.
Althouse said: "I was offended at the blithe characterization of white people as cowardly."
It may be a problem with translation. I have often been mystified when a southeast Asian patient tells me that someone in their family is "mad at them" because they are short of breath or have some other symptom. I think what they are really trying convey is "concerned" but they don't have the proper word for that or don't know how to translate the word if they have it.
Oh, baby. Vampirism.
The Biblical God comes down hard against blood drinking, but with all the flak "we the white people of America" is going to get you, that's the least of your troubles.
Diversity Dietism
My Christian fundamentalist mother would never serve her family rare meat, because it "still has blood in it." I was never clear on how blood became anything other than simply cooked blood on the table. We were also so poor that we could not afford to waste any calories . . . but always let the nutrient-dense blood drain on the ground from all slaughtered animals. We also never ate crayfish or mussels, though our streams abounded with them. Maybe we were actually orthodox Jews keeping kosher but not consciously knowing it; at least, we did have a lot of Old Testament/Hebrew Bible in us.
I’ve had it. (Soup.) It’s ok, but it’s nothing to write home about. So I didn’t.
I don't know if they eat blood foods, but the Japanese eat anything that washes up on shore.
Blood born pathogens are an ancient phobia.
There are communities in Southern Asia known to feast on fetuses. It would reduce our carbon footprint by several million barbies annually.
I really wish that I wasn't squeamish about blood because I suspect I would love black pudding and the like. My son eats it happily, but I just can't get over my hesitation.
Reminds me of the Simpsons episode about the Krusty Burger's new "Burger Squared" burger:
"Kent Brockman: I’m here at Krusty Burger for the launch of the highly anticipated Burger Squared. Krusty, can you tell us about this fantastic new sandwich?
Krusty: I’m glad you asked, Kent. We start with Grade A beef, feed that to other cows, then kill them and serve the unholy results on a seven grain bun. Burger Squared!
Homer: Math checks out.
Lisa: Cows eating cows? That’s an abomination.
Marge: Now Lisa, you’re a vegetarian but these cows have made a different choice."
Black pudding is clearly "white people's" food. Black pudding is great. I always order it for breakfast at small inns in the UK when it's available. The smart innkeepers always check (since I'm obviously American): "Are you sure? You know what it is, right?" And I would assure them that I did, indeed, know what it was.
It's probably a religious thing -- the Bible prohibits eating raw blood (though this is probably about uncooked meat).
“Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles, but that we write to them that they abstain from things contaminated by idols and from fornication and from what is strangled and from blood.” Acts 15:19-20 NASB
Black pudding is one element of the Full English Breakfast, which is not for the squeamish.
In the last century, I worked in refugee resettlement. Clients were Vietnamese, Laotian and Cambodian - but Laotian was dominant in our area. Over time I got to know many people in the community, which is very hospitable. Enter a Laotian person's home, you are going to get fed.
That is how I developed a taste for duck blood soup. Truly, I am not making this up. The one ingredient I didn't like was the chopped up duck skin - didn't like the texture. One family would make a small serving for me without it. So kind!
The one dish I couldn't eat: duck embryo brains. Yep - was served a whole, cooked duck egg. You crack open the shell to reveal the duck embryo brain. I tapped out at that point. To this day I hope my hosts were not too offended as it was a honor to be served this dish.
I know a couple of non-white people who find rare steak disgusting. You could put a beautiful piece of prime rib cooked to a turn on their plate, and they will take it to the microwave.
Black pudding is an abomination, in both an exegetical* sense, and in the word's use in the common parlance.
*OK, I got that word from Grok.
"To this day I hope my hosts were not too offended as it was a honor to be served this dish."
The Bizarre Foods guy says that when you are an honored guest and are offered something that looks disgusting, eat it, because it is almost always delicious.
aren't most people squeamish about drinking blood?
A bloody piece of meet or even raw meet is tolerated or enjoyed by some.
Not me... no carpaccio for me, thanks.
The Old Testament prohibition against consuming blood is based on the idea that it's the "life force" of any creature. That might be the same reason the Christian communion includes consuming the blood of Jesus (either symbolically or literally, depending on your point of view).
If you want to be a vegetarian - go visit a slaughterhouse.
BTW - in Eastern CO - where all the slaughter houses are - guess who are predominately employed there? Somalia. Islamic Somalis. and they sued and won - because they demand their all their prayer times.
I am often offended by the NYT.
We are in Manhattan right now and looking for a Thai restaurant within walking distance of West 57th street. I don’t think my wife would go for this place.
There is something in the air that might be called a vibe. Texas Democrat Gene Wu touched upon it with his now infamous recent remarks advocating for a nonwhite oppressed majority to dislodge white people from leadership in the country. Here in Los Angeles, the reconquista is building (look at the anti-ICE demonstrations with Mexican flags waving). I catch little glimmers of people expressing animosity toward "de ojos azules". Discrimination against people of pallor is de jure illegal, and de facto legal. That environment creates a permission structure for casual expressions of anti-white racism. It's real. Get used to it.
I think the aversion to blood is more of a modern, urban American thing than a white people thing.
Snails are diverse and nutritious. The fetal figgy pudding is to die for.
"t's real. Get used to it."
The Goths did it to Rome, but hey, after a couple of thousand years, we got the Italians, who are delightful people.
I was invited by a cheerleader friend of mine to take her to HER prom the year after I graduated. We doubled with my buddy and his gf. About a week later, as he and I were sitting in a booth at my parents' restaurant with my mom, who was on a break, she asked how it had gone. Bill said he overheard his date say to my date that it was a shame that they were both on their periods. My mom caused Bill's mouth to drop open when she asked, "So you had to go through the blood to get the glory?" I miss her.
bagoh20 said...
"Except, I won't eat humans or dogs. I just don't wanna. In a starvation situation, I'd eat anything, so watch your back."
You might want to start with buttocks -- less muscle and well marbled. The back is sinewy
@ronetc Maybe your family was crypto Jews-- forced to convert during the Spanish Inquisition but still secretly following Jewish traditions.
One of the early proposed Saturday Night Live skits that never made it past Standards and Practices review was a spoof ad, parodying Hamburger Helper. The product was called Placenta Helper.
As mentioned above- rare meat is bloody. My mother said I like my steak the same way her father did- passed over the fire twice, once on each side. My late father-in-law couldn't eat at the same table as someone eating rare steak.
From stories I as told as a kid, blood used to obtained from butchers to add to formula or milk for sickly babies. It is nutrient dense- also mentioned above. And full of iron for the anemic.
I can't think of anything I eat with added blood. But a well done steak is an abomination. I will cook to medium for guests, but not further.
A bloody steak on your plate is not oozing blood. The blood was drained from the animal long ago.
These frigging Food Police -- don't eat THAT but you're a coward if you don't eat THIS. I've tried some food that I would normally never eat - tripe, Rocky Mountain oysters and the like -- just to say I did try it.
I also would not eat dogs ... or bats at a wet market
I'm going to order my pizza tonight with extra blood.
We'll see what transpires.
“White people” won’t eat blood. Proceeds to mention its popularity around the world, including several European countries.
Now a "full English breakfast"---I've consumed quite a few of them when visiting England, contains a piece of blood sausage. That black thing is about the size of a hockey puck but not quite as tasty. But what the heck, if I'm going to eat the Heinz beans in tomato sauce on the plate, I may as well tackle the blood sausage.
It's typical human behavior. God says don't do something and people can't wait to do it.
"A bloody piece of meet or even raw meet is tolerated..."
"As mentioned above- rare meat is bloody."
They are not bloody. The red liquid from a rare steak (or raw) is water and myoglobin. Virtually all the blood is drained in processing.
Leftists at NYT demand lockstep adherence to all their latest fads.
I'd try just about anything, but I'm discriminating in what I will continue to eat.
I'll eat no liver of any beast, thank you, but I'll eat chicken hearts, gizzards, feet and tails of a few critters.
"One of the early proposed Saturday Night Live skits that never made it past Standards and Practices review was a spoof ad, parodying Hamburger Helper. The product was called Placenta Helper."
Weird - I seem to remember that skit aired. Jane Curtain did the skit. Figment of my imagination?
Peachy said...
aren't most people squeamish about drinking blood?
No.
There are herder nomad cultures that have a large part of their diet "bleeding" their livestock.
This is a fairly recent thing historically that is mostly US based.
"The blood is the life, Mister Renfield."
Van Helsing, "The Wit and Wisdom of Count Vlad Dracula", 21
"There are herder nomad cultures that have a large part of their diet 'bleeding' their livestock."
The Masai do that. They bleed their steers, and mix the blood with fresh cow's milk. When in Nairobi, never drink a pink milkshake.
Nutritional value aside, why is it always acceptable for foreign cultures to 'mansplain' how backwards American/white food is, yet if we decry the same of theirs it is racist/xenophobic?
"I'll eat no liver of any beast..."
I love liver. Chicken livers are easy to make, our delicious, and good for you.
I have a recurring joke about hot dogs:
Maybe lips and assholes are the most delicious part of a pig and we're too proud to realize it.
IIRC the mare's milk with blood concoction was a staple among steppe nomads.
Agree w/ Curious George ... I dig those chicken livers... sautéed in Dijon and white wine, mmmm. Good, and good for you.
<“I>There are herder nomad cultures that have a large part of their diet 'bleeding' their livestock.”
The scabbards of traditional Japanese tachis (longer and more curved than katanas, typically used by samurai on horseback) often contain a small by-knife called a kogotana. According to Turnbull, these knives were used to bleed the warrior's mount, as food, one assumes. The Mongols did the same thing when mare's milk wasn't available.
@Althouse:
White people are not cowardly, they eat haggis, lutefisk, hakarl (Icelandic fermented shark meat), and (nearly extinct) jellied eels.
Every bloody European country eats blood sausages too. The US territory of Puerto Rico does a nice rendition of Spanish blood-and-rice sausage. It's great!
BLOODY 🩸 HELL!!!
“The bloody scene is bloody sad
The bloody news is bloody bad
The bloody weed is bloody turf
The bloody speed is bloody Surf
Bloody folks are bloody daft
Don't make me bloody laugh
Bloody hurts to look around
Everywhere in Chickentown”
Doth the quim not quiver
Nor liver shiver
At mere mention
of blood?
RideSpaceMountain:
You don't have to go all the way to China to try donkey meat: it's readily available in Sicily. Not to shock the tender-hearted, but I've had horse steak in Milan, horse cheeseburgers in Palermo and Syracuse, and donkey cheeseburgers in Syracuse. All were delicious. Plus, if people think I'm acting weird, I can now say "Sorry, my Ass-burger Syndrome is acting up!"
“I hate to purport to speak on behalf of all "white people," but I think it's not that we're afraid. We're disgusted.”
Get over yourself and embrace the inclusive diversity, or diverse inclusity, or whatever the fuck white people are expected to embrace these days.
Blood can be nutritious, but it can also be a vector for zoonotic diseases. Cooking blood may help; however, prions are not destroyed by boiling, so Thai pig's blood soup could be dangerous. The encysted forms of some helminths can also resist cooking. (Pigs can convey other problems besides trichinosis.) Fresh, uncooked snake blood is a feature of some Chinese cuisine. What do they mean by a Chinaman's chance?
Calling white people cowardly for disliking blood is not only racist, but it's also indicative of ignorance. Obviously, Mr. Rueangpisansin has never heard of Spartan black soup, the daily fare in any 6th-century Lacedaemonian communal mess. The hoplites ate it as a demonstration of their toughness and frugality. I was served a speculative version of melas zomos at a cast party made from bone-in pork shank, blood, and vinegar. Can't say I enjoyed it; it made me sick. But I ate what was given and kept it down for a few hours. It's as disgusting as Lycurgus meant to be. The vinegar causes the blood to form clots that look something like beans floating in the broth. Nope, just stomach-churning morsels that come out the other end looking like a symptom of colon cancer.
There are people who consume blood intravenously that avoids prospective problems with palate preclusivity.
"It’s a small amount, not too gory. But white people think it’s scary." Said Ratthee Rueangpisansin.
Someone should introduce him to Count Dracula, who is as white as it gets.
“IIRC the mare's milk with blood concoction was a staple among steppe nomads.”
So was bedding their sisters…
Christians are free to eat anything, including Blood. And have done so for 2000 years. The dietary restrictions in the OT don't apply.
IRC, there's a tribe in Africa that more or less survives on Cows milk and Cows Blood (along with vegatables, fruits, etc.)
People say horse meat has a peculiar taste to it. Of course, I've never had it and don't know if that's true. I have no desire to eat Lassie or Black Beauty.
Here we go, its the Massie in East Africa. Per Wikipedia = "Blood is a traditional staple of the Maasai diet, which historically consisted of milk, meat, fat, honey, blood, and tree bark. It is often mixed with fresh milk to create a nutrient-rich beverage."
People say horse meat has a peculiar taste to it.
My son tried horse meat and whale meat in Japan and preferred whale. A bit fishy, but it reminded him of a nice dark tuna steak, just a bit more chewy. The horse meat was very tough and gamy.
So, in conclusion, at NYT: ignorance is bliss, Diversity is a progressive woke of art, and the style guide is indulged with liberal license.
I buy blood meal by the 50lb sack because it's an excellent source of nitrogen and trace minerals as a plant fertilizer.
The life is in the blood.
It is an abomination.
Came here to talk about the Maasai, but I see they've been mentioned.
I've been a few places, and I've see people eat a few things that I wouldn't. No one is forcing this down anyone's throats.
“Spartan black soup”
Then of course there is Klingon blood wine. Qapla’! CC, JSM
I think i remember that from the doc savage movie and ack
Its traditional in Europe. In Spain its usually made into sausage, morcilla, which often ends up in soups and stews. The same in most Euro countries. They are just closer to ancient peasant ways than urban Americans.
I’m of Norwegian descent and pig’s blood is in Krub which is a Norwegian treat that is eaten in west central Wisconsin where I am from.
This is my body, this is my blood. Okay, it's bread and wine, but you get the idea.
Blood pudding tastes like blood and I don't like the taste. It lingers in the back of your throat. But the Scots like blood pudding and every barbecue in the US has people who like their steaks practically raw. So it isn't true that "whites don't like." But anyhow so what if white people didn't like blood-based foods. I'm sure most people eat their own national foods without asking what white people think? It's tedious to read media stories that suggest otherwise. It's a fad and it's passing.
Traditional Boudin sausage is made with blood, I think - but not many commercial versions are sold like that anymore. Cajuns were (are?) poor and they eat all kinds of stuff.
Bun bo hue soup - a terrific spicy Vietnamese soup that all y'all should try - is delicious with a pig's foot and a cube of blood in it.
"But the Scots like blood pudding and every barbecue in the US has people who like their steaks practically raw."
Again, rare, or even raw steaks do not contain blood. It's water and myoglobin, not blood.
I know where Covid came from, dickwipe. I STILL wouldn't eat bat meat from a wet market. I mentioned it because the idea of it disgusts me. Sorta like everything that comes out of a libs mouth.
Regarding Japanese foods:
I ended up eating horse meat (basashi) that was bundled in the set dinner menu at a luxury inn. The horse was dead, butchered, and served, so waste not want not. It was truly excellent and did not have any gamey flavor at all. It brought to mind premium types of beef.
Japan has whale meat. I never tried it, and it has a terrible "war emergency food" reputation among the Japanese. School children were required to try it per cultural tradition, but they didn't report positive experiences.
I tried fugu a few times -- poisonous puffer fish. It comes in two common forms. The famous version is thin sliced with residual poison (many plate photos online). Think of a mild sashimi such as hamachi crossed with mouthwash, as it tingles and numbs your mouth and throat. The also common but not famous no-residual-poison fugu fillets are a basic white fish and very mild. No tingles.
Fuck the racist POS responsible for the headline quote. I consider the phrase “white people” as racist as the n word because it is used as a pejorative, exactly as done in the headline. Both Muslims and Jews (both technically white under the alleged rule) have religious proscriptions against eating the blood of animals. Rattee perhaps is supremely ignorant of Mexican (also white!) traditional black sausage or German (also white!) black sausage.
Yes, Rattee is just another xenophobic racist piece of shit. 💩
"Christians are free to eat anything, including Blood."
Blood was prohibited by the Apostles in the New Testament, not just the Old. The Apostles and Bishops have the power to loose and bind in the Church. I don't eat black pudding for this reason. Also, euw.
Rare steak does not contain blood - the liquid released is a breakdown of the cells of the meat in the cooking process, and therefore rare meat can be eaten with thanksgiving.
I blame blood aversion on Bram Stoker.
Soylent Green shouldn't be a problem, then.
Just another one of those so called "Red Scare"s
By "white" I assume you mean Anglos. Many Caucasian ethnic groups (there are many besides Hispanic, BTW) use blood. Primarily in sausages, like boudin, a key ingredient in okra gumbo.
It's readily apparent the non-Anglo Caucasian ethnics (besides Hispanic) were swept up into the broad "White" grouping to provide DEI cannon fodder to protect the advantages of the primarily Anglo elite, particularly for their children.
They can just sod off. I’m not eating that crap.
People eat that shit because they never had real Texas barbeque.
"Blood was prohibited by the Apostles in the New Testament, not just the Old."
No it isnt. But maybe you're right, and the Catholic and Orthodox Churches and everyone else has been wrong for 2000 years, and you're right. Of course, you are a theologian and can read the original Greek. Right?
Anyone can think anything about anything. Personally, I'll take 2000 years of Christian thought over some rando just picked up a Bible. But look at all crazy Protestent Ministers and Cults. And they all got their version of what the bible means.
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