Thursday, June 16, 2005
The only thing in the world the Chinese don't eat. But the Japanese will.
Monkey brains? Certainly!
Dog stew? Why not?
Bugs? Chow down!
Burdock root?
Are you out of your Japanese Imperialist Dog mind? We don't eat sticks!
However.......if you really like the stuff, we'll be happy to grow it and sell it to you.
And so the Chinese grow a crop they don't eat. Though, if history is any indication, they eventually will. Remember that great stringy Chinese broccoli that used to come with any Chinese dinner? Gone. The Chinese are big exporters of Western broccoli these days. That means the stringy stuff doesn't get planted. The Western broccoli that doesn't get exported, because of quality or flat markets, is foisted off on the locals, who have long since grown used to it. No farmer is interested in growing the old stuff anymore.
Burdock, though, is one of the more unusual foods on this planet. It is a root, but when it's cleaned up a bit it looks completely different. Like a stick! I am sure you are rushing out to the local Safeway at this moment demanding that they stock it next to the Chinese garlic.
Burdock (know as "gobo" in Japan) actually does have a following in America, among the kind of people who skulk about "health food" stores that stock up on eggless mayonnaise, wheatless bread, creamless ice cream, and various crunchy grains that even pigeons won't touch. Oh, the joys of life.
And even these culinary masochists don't eat burdock. They make an awful, bitter tea with it. Healthworld Online tells me:
"Burdock is a most valuable remedy for the treatment of skin conditions which result in dry and scaly skin. It may be most effective for psoriasis...."
Like I said, you are probably rushing out to try the stuff.
And, in my opinion.....well, you should.
Though the Japanese take a perverse delight in burdock, even prefering roots that are covered with dirt to those that have been cleaned (contrary to their usually finicky cleanliness). In fact, "gobo" sometimes needs to be scruffed up a bit and rolled in dirt before it can be displayed in the local supermarket.
Once taken home, though, and cleaned and boiled, a whole lot of stuff can be done with it. Gobo-mayo sandwiches, for example. Fried gobo sticks. Gobo salad. The possibilities are endless. And it will still cure your psoriasis, even in a hamburger bun.
Dog stew? Why not?
Bugs? Chow down!
Burdock root?
Are you out of your Japanese Imperialist Dog mind? We don't eat sticks!
However.......if you really like the stuff, we'll be happy to grow it and sell it to you.
And so the Chinese grow a crop they don't eat. Though, if history is any indication, they eventually will. Remember that great stringy Chinese broccoli that used to come with any Chinese dinner? Gone. The Chinese are big exporters of Western broccoli these days. That means the stringy stuff doesn't get planted. The Western broccoli that doesn't get exported, because of quality or flat markets, is foisted off on the locals, who have long since grown used to it. No farmer is interested in growing the old stuff anymore.
Burdock, though, is one of the more unusual foods on this planet. It is a root, but when it's cleaned up a bit it looks completely different. Like a stick! I am sure you are rushing out to the local Safeway at this moment demanding that they stock it next to the Chinese garlic.
Burdock (know as "gobo" in Japan) actually does have a following in America, among the kind of people who skulk about "health food" stores that stock up on eggless mayonnaise, wheatless bread, creamless ice cream, and various crunchy grains that even pigeons won't touch. Oh, the joys of life.
And even these culinary masochists don't eat burdock. They make an awful, bitter tea with it. Healthworld Online tells me:
"Burdock is a most valuable remedy for the treatment of skin conditions which result in dry and scaly skin. It may be most effective for psoriasis...."
Like I said, you are probably rushing out to try the stuff.
And, in my opinion.....well, you should.
Though the Japanese take a perverse delight in burdock, even prefering roots that are covered with dirt to those that have been cleaned (contrary to their usually finicky cleanliness). In fact, "gobo" sometimes needs to be scruffed up a bit and rolled in dirt before it can be displayed in the local supermarket.
Once taken home, though, and cleaned and boiled, a whole lot of stuff can be done with it. Gobo-mayo sandwiches, for example. Fried gobo sticks. Gobo salad. The possibilities are endless. And it will still cure your psoriasis, even in a hamburger bun.
