Pig Brains in a Hot Pot

Sounds like a visual for a scene in a rated B horror flick. Or from an old episode of Fear Factor where contestants reluctantly indulged in odd meal choices for cash. In reality, pig brain delicious. And a pretty unexciting meat option to choose from when cooking food in a spicy hot pot in China.

In our sheltered lives in North America, we tend to miss out on eating all parts of an dead animal. In fact it’s almost always a thigh, cheekbone, breast, rib, loin or leg. Never a foot or snout or brain. Not unless you find a find a skilled butcher or an obscure high end restaurant, most businesses keep oddities off their menu. And it’s a shame, because when I first tried it, I was amazed by my reaction.

I expected to puke a little in my mouth while watching the organ cook. It looked like a miniature human brain and I couldn’t get this thought out of my head. However, once it was fully cooked in the broth, I let it cool then bit the tiniest piece off. The softness evaporated in my saliva and melted in my mouth in an irresistible creaminess so I quickly ate more. I wasn’t too impressed by the flavour as it seemed a touch bland, but the texture was addictive.

If eating brains seems grotesque to you, it’s interesting to wonder how we normalize eating limbs off various species, but avoid the rest. Tossing it in the garbage or selling it to someone who will eat it. Things like liver, eyeballs, cow tongue and gorilla heart are being consumed all over the globe by countries or tribes that do not waste food that’s already been killed.

But that aside, this Chinese delicacy was worth the courage it took to devour. I’ll likely dabble in it again if it pops up in a menu in another part of the world, though next time I won’t dismiss it just because the name is jarring.