The discussion in Mystery Kitchen tools was getting pretty off track.. so I thought I would open this..

Discussion went to humane dispatching of food.. if this disturbs you you might want to close this thread NOW.











Okay we talking about ways to kill lobsters and crabs so they basically did not poop in the water that is going to be used to cook them with.
Lobsters traditionally are put up on their head and kept upright, their tails drooping over until they basically fall asleep.. and then plunging them head first into the water, killing them almost instantly. Another is to put a kitchen knife through their heads, again causing a near instantaneous death.

As far as snails, I have never cooked live snails.. but ducks do love to eat them that way.. very handy at keeping yards snail free. I do know that the French and many Americans find them a great excuse for a lot of garlic. Over all I find a roasted garlic plenty of excuse. Apologies to any non garlic eaters around whew! But yummy.

I do love crawfish.. honestly I have not cooked them so I have no real clue on humane ways to convert them from mud bugs to yummy. Perhaps there is more to learn, or perhaps this thread will die a quick and painless death. Either way..
I had to get it out of the tools thread, and it seemed a bit too much for the Critter Corner.

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Janice

I do love crawfish.. honestly I have not cooked them so I have no real clue on humane ways to convert them from mud bugs to yummy.

Maybe why Cajun and or Creole seasoning is so spicy. LOL!

I had an uncle that ate crawfish live right out of the bait bucket. That might be where I lost a taste for them. He would purge his in salt water a couple times if I remember right. When the water was poo free then throw them in the boiling pot.

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Okay we talking about ways to kill lobsters and crabs so they basically did not poop in the water that is going to be used to cook them with.
Lobsters traditionally are put up on their head and kept upright, their tails drooping over until they basically fall asleep.. and then plunging them head first into the water, killing them almost instantly. Another is to put a kitchen knife through their heads, again causing a near instantaneous death.

Neither of these methods work as well as putting the lobster in a freezer for ~30 minutes.

Besides the poop factor, lobsters will thrash around when they hit boiling water and splash it out of the pot and onto the cook staff. Standing them on their heads (hypnotizing them??) leaves them free to wake up as soon as they hit the water. A knife to the head doesn't really work because they have a distributed nervous system.

Apparently, the transition from helplessly numb to cooked works the best. The reason to cook Live lobster is that its flesh starts to break down as soon as it dies and starts to turn to mush.

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A Living example of Artificial Intelligence.

even cooked some swear by sucking their brains out.. um.... okay I am not a Cajun native and will pass on this bit of tradition.. But they sure do know how to cook 'em in New Orleans...
Tails have most of the meat anyway.

And they do seem to prefer less than pristine waters, so cleaning them off/boiling them seems like a REALLY good idea to me. But again.. I am west coast.

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Janice

First of all, no one should ever eat a lobster unless they
know for sure that it was alive very close to its being
cooked; The things that could happen to you are beyond telling.
If a lobster is placed in the pot correctly, it will not splash about,
this not always true so stand back. The stuff in the water that
you see after the cooking is over is the fat, it looks gummy and
yucky and is harmless. In all the many years I have spent on earth I
have never seen a lobster so impolite as to 'poop' in the cook pot.
Have some "TP" ready just in case.
Unless a person does not eat move over if one eats, something dies.

The reason to cook Live lobster is that its flesh starts to break down as soon as it dies and starts to turn to mush.

I only tried lobster the once when I went to an Italian restaurant for a pizza. The owner persuaded me to have the lobster instead. I really did not like the lobster much and wish I had ordered my pizza instead. However, I didn't want to make a fuss on my birthday by saying this lobster was basically not very nice. Perhaps it was past the sell by date, or turned to mush due to being cooked whilst dead.

Needless to say I haven't, and wouldn't, touch lobster since and prefer dead cooked pizza.

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flaming balloons

wouldn't, touch lobster

I have heard of people who say they don't like the taste
of the stuff. Also I am what is called a 'super taster',
that means that I don't like the taste of broccoli, bell
peppers, and other obscure types of food.

I'm with you on the brocolli and peppers, horrible stuff.

I've never tried lobster, not from any moral point of view, just can't afford it.

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Life on earth is the global equivalent of not storing things in the fridge.

wouldn't, touch lobster

+1!

Horrible, the way they cook these creatures!

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rOZZ
Music
Pictures

Oysters, anybody?

It's a longstanding neurobiological argument whether or not lobsters feel pain when put in the pot alive - actually if they feel pain at all.
But since there is doubt, best course IMO is to make death as quick as possible.

Obviously none of you have heard of a certain japanese tofu with fish dish - that's one I wouldn't eat for sure!

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A person who won't read has no advantage over one who can't read. (Mark Twain)

wouldn't, touch lobster

I have heard of people who say they don't like the taste
of the stuff. Also I am what is called a 'super taster',
that means that I don't like the taste of broccoli, bell
peppers, and other obscure types of food.

Hmm. I wonder if I'm a super taster. I'm okay with broccoli and a few others, but I really hate the majority of vegetables, including peppers. I don't like the smellier forms of cheese, either. I don't even like Swiss unless it's melted.

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David
Sitting on my butt while others boldly go,
Waiting for a message from a small furry creature from Alpha Centauri.

wouldn't, touch lobster

I have heard of people who say they don't like the taste
of the stuff. Also I am what is called a 'super taster',
that means that I don't like the taste of broccoli, bell
peppers, and other obscure types of food.

Whereas I like a most foods, just not liver or egg plant...

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

My parents loved crab and lobster, but I never cared for it. Used to get funny looks on "Half-way Night" when we'd have steak & Lobster or crab legs and I'd pass on them and have two steaks.

I love liverwurst on sandwiches with cheese and other cold cuts, but have trouble with liver & onions. Love whole-leaf spinach in salads, lasagna, or eggs florentine, or frozen spinach baked in a quiche, but not as a stand-alone veggie. Egg plant parmesan or diced & sauteed with other veggies. Broccoli is okay, but I'll pass on brussels sprouts.

Di gustibus non disputandum est, as Dr. Asimov used to say....

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Donald
Infernal Optimist / Submariner, retired

Most of the veggies I do not care for can be made tolerable via a Japanese Tempura process.

As far as Japanese dishes, I have heard of what translates to "Dancing Prawns". I am not inclined to go seeking those out. Nor Klingon "Gak".

I am inclined to assume unless proven otherwise that everything with a central nervous system feels pain. I have not evolved to the point I would not eat it anyway, but I think it is due as much respect and dignity as can be allowed before being converted into a delicacy.

Oysters:.. Do not like em. Tried them different times and different ways and..
nope.

At this point in time, my taste buds are in "Technicolor". I swear I can taste magenta. And this leads me to deeply appreciate the flavors of organics.

Wild caught tastes better than farmed, fresh is better than frozen...
But for the most part if it looks good and tastes good, I will eat it.

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Janice

It's either frozen or refrigerated or in powder form here, fresh is reserved for tomatoes or such, I'm not crazy about freezing a tomato, I'd probably end up with mush, yuck. Mind you I like tomatoes, sliced or diced, one of these days I'll be making some burgers, but then the buns are in the freezer and I do have most of the ingredients now, I just lack the beef patties, tomatoes, lettuce, sliced pickles and maybe ketchup, maybe.

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The T1 Trust, PRR T1 Class 4-4-4-4 #5550, 1 of America's First HST's

Love lobster--love clams!

We'll be pulling my Uncle's Lobster traps in October and having fresh lobster.

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Bah, lobsters. Disgusting creatures. Doing them a favor by killing them: saves them the emotional pain of having to look at themselves in the mirror every morning. :P

Happen to like most shell fish, depending on the preparation. The doctor doesn't like the cholesterol though.

For years the words broccoli and cauliflower were a turn off. Finally was in a situation were I had to try it. Not too bad. Not sweet corn on the cob, but not bad. I've had both good and bad brussels sprouts. The bad ones were bad enough that I generally avoid them on the off chance ... Lima beans are good, but a little goes a long way. Spinach depends on preparation. Not a fan of it sauteed.

A friend introduced me to Thai food and I like it. However I don't like it if it is too Americanized. The substitutions aren't right on the flavor palate. As I've not been to Thailand to taste the local stuff, I'm a bit surprised by this, but I think the locals knew which things go with each other to give a pleasing taste. European button mushrooms are not a replacement for shiitake or het khon.

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We'll be pulling my Uncle's Lobster traps in October

Say Buddy, just where was it that you said you lived?

my taste buds are in "Technicolor". I swear I can taste magenta

I have read about that, and I saw a documentary on TV
concerning the same idea.

[quote]We'll be pulling my Uncle's Lobster traps in October

Say Buddy, just where was it that you said you lived?

Not here-we'll be in Westport, MA

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