Cathy2 wrote:Was it a cultural reason? I could imagine two scenarios: 1) aphrodisiac or 2) male-centric drinking foods.

I think it was for much more obvious reasons. Look at the picture I posted and TonyCs lil green smiley, uh, pukey.
I suspect this isn't quite hip food.

A few years back, on Farm Canada, a CBC show that would run on Windsor, ON's affiliate on Sundays, they served up a zucchini bread that was loaded up with ground mealy worms. Most people who tried the bread actually thought it was pretty good.

The researcher who did this wanted to find ways of "boosting" the protein level of foods distributed to starving people in sub-Saharan Africa.

The problem that I had with the sampling was that some of the people were allowed to taste the product before they were told what was in the bread. I have some problems with that personally.

Rene G wrote:Chicago Food at 3333 N Kimball has (or had) a different brand of silkworm chrysalids.

Rene,

I happen to have a can, haven't tried them yet, but it's only been a couple of years.



Enjoy,
Gary

Here's some Friday morning entertainment:

Steve, Don't Eat It - Vol. 9

E.M.

Imagine a cute little silkworm all snug in his cocoon. Perhaps his name is Arthur.

Giving your food a name and a personality is why I could never eat the live turtle I bought in Chinatown a few years ago.

Regards,

[There were no discernible off flavors, just a pleasant toasty taste and crunch. ]

Awesome pictures. It reminded me of the time I ate fried bee's in Taiwan. I wasn't sure what to expect but I tried them. The only thing I could taste was whatever they were covered in.

Do yourself a favor, whenever you get the chance to try something different or odd, do it. If I let smell, looks, or creepy thoughts get to me, I would never have tried those bees, stinky tofu, pigs blood, horse or any number of things I ate when I lived in Hong Kong. Be adventurous and you will find so many things out there that you never in a million years would have thought you liked.

Terrasini wrote: Be adventurous and you will find so many things out there that you never in a million years would have thought you liked.

The only problem could be if you start really liking things that once you had to be adventurous about.
Sea urchin gonads ~sigh~

Do yourself a favor, whenever you get the chance to try something different or odd, do it. If I let smell, looks, or creepy thoughts get to me, I would never have tried those bees, stinky tofu, pigs blood, horse or any number of things I ate when I lived in Hong Kong. Be adventurous and you will find so many things out there that you never in a million years would have thought you liked.

Obviously, I would agree!

When you ate the bees, were the stingers present or were they removed?

My Dad was a beekeeper when I was young. I used to watch him handle his bees, which caused me to be overly familiar with them. I was 8 years old, the day before school began, when I saw a dying bee walking across the sidewalk. In a moment of empathy, I picked it up by the wings and kissed it. The bee not knowing my intentions stung me. I went to school the next day with a very swollen lip.

Regards,

I don't think they had stingers.

Erik M. wrote:Steve, Don't Eat It - Vol. 9

He cheats. In Korea, they boil them until they give off a really foul odor. Then they eat them.

Having grown up in south-east FL< where the bugs are so big they eat children and small dogs, I see bug eating as a great act of retribution. Thos bugs had it comin.

That being said, I sincerely doubt my next trip to Sticky Rice will include any of the afore-pictured chitin-shelled delights.

The roti, however, has been floating through my head all day....mmm...roti...

We should really have a "drool" emoticon...

Great pictures!
I love your adventurous dining spirit!

HI,

I was at Arirang Korean Market on Lawrence at Pulaski, where I bought a can of silkwork pupa:



I took it to Cebu where it was a curiosity to pass around:



The odor and taste of this product was like stale evaporated milk, while the pupa did retain some crunch. One person likened the texture to a walnut, though there was agreement on my thought on the smell and taste.

Unless there is a better way to prepare and present this canned product, I think I have made my first and only purchase.

Regards,

Rene G wrote:

sazerac wrote:(probably also available at Chicago Food Corp.)

Chicago Food at 3333 N Kimball has (or had) a different brand of silkworm chrysalids. They can be found in the canned fish aisle. As I recall they run closer to $2 but the label is even better than the one you show. I described them as being like waterlogged walnuts that had been left soaking in muddy seawater.

What I find amusing about this, is that the cardboard box these cans came in (I've seen 'em at Chicago Food also) is clearly labeled on the side "Not for Human Consumption," - I wonder if they label 'em this way for import b/c they wouldn't pass some sort of FDA regulation.

With family in tow, I subjected my college aged sisters to Sticky Rice, and they of course ordered the safe typical dishes that they've heard of at every other Thai restaurant they've been too.

The hits were the yellow and red curry, which were proclaimed to be delicious and were washed down with their fantastic Thai iced tea.

I ordered the roti for the first time and loved it, it will be ordered again.
My more adventurous husband has also ordered the ducky curry with lychee, which is an odd combination in my mind but is completely delicious.

The disappointment of the day was the minced shrimp on sugar cane skewers. Minced shrimp just doesn't live up to whole shrimp, so we hardly touched the stuff, except to admire the presentation - skewering on sugar can IS a nice touch.

I was the adventurous one of the day, although I would say it didn't reach the level of Cathy2, I tried the frog leg special.

I wanted to take a photo put I felt inconspicuous enough that every other person at my table was watching my every bite with looks of horror. The photo would explain why - it was quite disconcerting to have four skeleton-toes at the end of every tiny little leg.

However, the taste of frogs legs lived up to my childhood memory of them from growing up overseas. I think it's a pleasant taste, more flavorful then chicken, but similar. I have had larger frogs legs, but I assume they are hard to come by in this country, so these were very small and therefore, quite dry.

Still, I enjoyed them and was glad I attempted it!

On the subject of worms, though, I must pull up a memory from my days overseas. In the villages of Papua sago grubs are a delicacy, but live and wriggling rather then fried. It was a memorable sight to see us international students try to muscle up the gusto to throw a moving thing into your mouth and chew.... they are truly disgusting looking. Supposedly the taste isn't bad, simply the thought if it was so horrifying that several people nearly lost their lunches.
I couldn't do it, so I just had a fried one, which tasted like.... well... oil.

papua2001mk wrote:it was quite disconcerting to have four skeleton-toes at the end of every tiny little leg.

However, the taste of frogs legs lived up to my childhood memory of them from growing up overseas. I think it's a pleasant taste, more flavorful then chicken, but similar. I have had larger frogs legs, but I assume they are hard to come by in this country, so these were very small and therefore, quite dry.

Most of the frog legs utilized in Asian restaurants in Chicago are frozen product from China; They're typically pretty big - which makes me wonder where Sticky Rice obtained theirs. You can buy 'em just about in every market in Chinatown, Koreatown or Viettown. Additionally, properly prepped, the legs should not retain the foot (and toes). It should just consist of the "thigh" and calve of the frog leg. I think I'd have lost my appetite if I'd seen the toes as well. Maybe their frog legs are "live-procured" from local area... gross...

Cathy, I admit I've always wanted to try both crickets and grubs, but have had neither the balls or the opportunity. Those are two quite daunting plates you show there....though I can't think of anyone else on this forum who'd consume such things with more grace than you!

I've always been curious about chapulines, but it seems from this thread that serving them can mean death to your restaurant, even if it's a higher-end eatery! Truly, most of the world views bugs as just another source of protein, and how different can they be from their seagoing cousins? (of course, we most often get those sans eyeballs and legs, but the namesake of this forum has easily proved that there are better ways to do it)

papua2001mk wrote:The disappointment of the day was the minced shrimp on sugar cane skewers. Minced shrimp just doesn't live up to whole shrimp, so we hardly touched the stuff, except to admire the presentation - skewering on sugar can IS a nice touch.

I brought 4 orders of this to a party this weekend, and the stuff flew off the plate - for good reason, I thought. It was the first time I had tried Sticky Rice's version of the dish, and it won't be the last. They do a terrific job getting a crusty exterior and succulent interior. Delicious finger food.

Mhays wrote:Cathy, I admit I've always wanted to try both crickets and grubs, but have had neither the balls or the opportunity. Those are two quite daunting plates you show there....though I can't think of anyone else on this forum who'd consume such things with more grace than you!

Having seen the Mhays of two years in the future, the balls have been gained. Yummy crunchy grubs - mmmm!

I was just reading this over with that in mind, myself - and, yes, the caterpillars pretty much tasted like oil. Too bad they didn't have grasshoppers...

I was driving down Western Ave. a while ago on the way home from seeing "Up" in Evanston and there is a big, green "LICENSE SUSPENDED" sign stuck to the door at Sticky Rice. The windows are papered over as well

edit: http://www.chicagobusiness.com/cgi-bin/ ... 9&seenIt=1

tem wrote:there is a big, green "LICENSE SUSPENDED" sign stuck to the door at Sticky Rice

I have no doubt someone here will blame the mouse for wandering in and the customer for reporting it.

tem wrote:there is a big, green "LICENSE SUSPENDED" sign stuck to the door at Sticky Rice

JP1121 wrote:I have no doubt someone here will blame the mouse for wandering in and the customer for reporting it.

JP,

Do you grind your ax with a metal file, knife sharpening wheel or both?

xxooxx,
Gary

G Wiv wrote:Do you grind your ax with a metal file, knife sharpening wheel or both?

Offering an alternative view to the party line is not ax grinding Gary, it is simply opinion, humble though it may be

based on the pictures of these more ... exotic ... items, i wouldn't be surprised if there was a misunderstanding about what is actually considered food and what was thought to be filth...

MBK wrote:based on the pictures of these more ... exotic ... items, i wouldn't be surprised if there was a misunderstanding about what is actually considered food and what was thought to be filth...

Come on. There is supposed to be a bigger gap between what separates us from the rest of the posters on the int4rweb, c.f.:

Crain's Chicago Business Commenter wrote:d k. wrote:
The restaurant didn't know any better...

..... they just thought all those mouse droppings were brown rice!

5/21/2009 10:50 AM CDT

I just wanted to say that my above flippant post had nothing to do with Sticky Rice, a restaurant that I have been to and like very much and will go to again, but rather it was an attempt at sarcasm reflecting on what I perceive to be an occasionally humorous over protectiveness toward a given board favorite.

Failing an inspection is not the end of the world, it is a wake up call and a reminder. The key is how quickly they get back open and how they do on the next two inspections. But really there is no safer time to go to a restaurant than after they have passed their second inspection and reopened. After that one can only hope that the lesson sticks, if it is a good business worth keeping than it usually does.

The reality is that allowing other people to cook and serve your food is always a bond of trust and a leap of faith which is why it is such a personal experience and may by why people develop such a strong attachment to their personal favorites.

Wow - you have been reading carefully - I think I remember seeing that statement almost verbatim in a similar discussion, though darned if I can find it in a search.

Here's hoping that the tone of posts on this subject continues to be civil.

Mhays wrote:think I remember seeing that statement almost verbatim in a similar discussion, though darned if I can find it in a search.

I did accidentally post it to the wrong thread last night, but strangely when I went to delete it I couldn't find it either. In any case it is my statement.


ps
I don't think any of my postings have lacked civility and I will continue to post as I see fit, as usual perception is relative.

Does anyone know if they still serve these insect dishes?