Mmm, diseases you can eat...

Yes, I know I'm a weirdo.


I ate huitlacoche for the first time today and was wondering, other than huitlacoche and foie gras, are there any other diseases that people eat? I'm not counting items that are aged or purposely mold-infected. I figured if anyone would know the answer to this, it would be you folks...

Hi,

Foie gras is not a consequence of disease. Migrating geese feed heavily before taking off with this energy stored in their livers. These livers decrease in size while in transit. It is a natural cycle for geese and not a disease.

Regards,

I suppose if you consider huitlacoche a disease, then many mushrooms would be a "disease" - like those that grow on living trees (and C2 would be the definitive expert on that ). I don't like to think of it as disease ... rather, it's just different organisms doing their own thing.

Though I suppose if you're going there with mushrooms, then yeasts would also be a disease...adding bread, beer, wine and spirits to the list...

My Dad often points out that the word "intoxicated" has its roots in the word for poison.

Main Entry: dis·ease
Pronunciation: \di-ˈzēz\
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English disese, from Anglo-French desease, desaise, from des- dis- + eise ease
Date: 14th century
1obsolete : trouble
2: a condition of the living animal or plant body or of one of its parts that impairs normal functioning and is typically manifested by distinguishing signs and symptoms : sickness, malady
3: a harmful development (as in a social institution)

By this definition, both foie and huitlacoche would qualify, while mushrooms certainly wouldn't, as I believe they primarily feast on dead/decaying things, no? Yeast also wouldn't be considered a disease... unless you're talking about a yeast infection? But even in that case, every infection isn't considered a disease. This is also a dictionary definition, not a medical definition.

(Correct me if I'm wrong on the mushrooms, Cathy. And as for foie, you know nobody's more pro-foie than me, but the degree to which foie livers are fattened isn't even close to any state the bird would reach naturally, and it would, indeed, be a serious health problem for the birds were they not promptly slaughtered... a significantly larger health problem I'm not trying to be pedantic... I just think it's important to be very careful with facts so as not to undermine credibility when debating this subject).

The thing is, huitlacoche *is* a mushroom.

It seems odd to include one fungus but not others.

This mushroom grew on the roots of the big ol' oak tree in my front yard in early September:


(It was delicious after I cut away the parts where the grass grew through, btw - C2 confirmed that it was an edible sulfur shelf mushroom.) The tree is very much alive, but as I understand it, at least the part of the root it grew on may have some decay. So I'm guessing if you asked the tree, it would consider it as a disease (although maybe not - it's a very stoic tree).

At any rate, not to get overly pedantic (maybe too late for that), I think this example easily falls under Dom's definition #2.

My vote is for Casu Marzu,* the cheese "facilitated" by worms. But then, lots of folks on the board are over their concerns about eating worms.

Photo link: Wikipedia

khm99 wrote:I ate huitlacoche for the first time today and was wondering, other than huitlacoche and foie gras, are there any other diseases that people eat?

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=10761

cilantro wrote:

khm99 wrote:I ate huitlacoche for the first time today and was wondering, other than huitlacoche and foie gras, are there any other diseases that people eat?

http://lthforum.com/bb/viewtopic.php?t=10761

I don't think that assertion is either provable or disprovable

Josephine wrote:But then, lots of folks on the board are over their concerns about eating worms.

Thank you all for the replies. I have to say, I never did think of a McRib, but I think that probably counts.

BTW, I was no way intending on denigrating foie gras. I eat it with gusto whenever possible, but am also ever mindful of the critter who made it possible for me to experience such gustatory bliss. I figure it's only respectful.

NR706, that is one beautiful sulphur shelf 'shroom (Laetiporous sulphureous, right C2?). One of my favorites -- the texture is incredibly dense, meaty, firm. It's a little hard to determine scale, but it looks big. Nice.

nr, those are some georgeous mushrooms! Do you know if they are chicken of the woods?

Also, on the topic of mushrooms, does anyone know any good places in Chicago to find mushrooms to eat? I know that these are top secret subjects that no one would ever post about on the internet-- but hell, you could even private message if you so desired.

Thanks!

Yes, the sulfur shelf is also called Chicken of the Woods (thanks to the handy-dandy little mushroom book I got from C2, the ultimate mushroom authority). And as Hammond notes, it has a dense, kind of chicken-y texture.

I'm guessing it's a little late in the season to forage for mushrooms now, but again I must defer to LTH's expert mycologist for the final word on that.

C2/nr, what is this Handy dandy little mushroom guide of which nr speaks? I have two mushroom guides that my dad gave me that we use when we go foraging. Both are generally rather confusing-- but I get the sense that mushroom hunting is that way, until you've already come to know a mushroom.

It's called "Start Mushrooming," and it features the six most easily identified wild mushrooms, with a checklist for each. Makes it almost as foolproof as possible.

http://www.amazon.com/Start-Mushrooming ... 442&sr=8-1

"GRITS: An often debilitating affliction common to people who refuse to admit that their side lost the Civil War."

Does that count?