a version of this commissioned article has appeared on the intel iQblog…
…many people seem to assume that blogging is a lonely game and yes sure, there are some very late nights tapping away at the keypad but on the whole one of the things I love most about being a food blogger is the vast network of international digital foodie friends I have. There are so many people from every corner of the globe that I now consider blogger companions and I would hope that should I be passing by their doors on foreign soil they would welcome me in with a cup of tea and a bite of some local delicacy. I know that my doors are open to any one of them.
Obviously, working on the internet also opens doors to an international plethora of positively exotic food stuffs that I would never be able to purchase at the local corner shop. The dichotomy between reliance on technology and the internet to naturally source produce is an interesting topic that I often explore.
Working in London and living in Lincolnshire I also have a unique dual perspective on country and city life and how in particular food is perceived between the two. When we first moved to Lincolnshire 11 years ago there was very little ‘food culture.’ Where London was embracing an incredible food revolution, the local folk treated food as fuel. This has of course changed quite rapidly over the years and now the trend for locally sourced, seasonal food has created a wave of incredible food production here in the county… but sometimes I like to explore food that’s a little more left of centre. A few weeks back I set myself a challenge, to source some of the most obscure ingredients possible from the comfort of my sofa. I used my ASUS T100 tablet to be bolder with my recipe choices, using the randomness of the internet to make choices for me to expand my cooking horizons and what I found was quite interesting.
Here are my top 5 rare foodie finds…
My first random search landed me at the brilliant KeziaFoods website who pride themselves in sourcing the finest exotic meats and seafoods from around the world. All their meats are from suppliers who actively participate in environmental programs, from necessary culls in game reserves to breeding programs. All under EU welfare & CITES regulations and the food comes vacuum-packed for freshness. The range is impossibly varied, from Kangaroo loin to Zebra steak, from Camel steak to Talapia fillets. If you’re looking to impress dinner guests with something they’ve never eaten before, this is your one-stop shop.
It’ a fact that we’ll soon be living in a world where eat insects will be a viable form of food, which i guess is lucky for my next rare and unusual foodie find from Crunchy Critters. If you’ve ever fancied re-creating the IACGMOUH Bush Tucker Trial in your own home then the UK’s number one site for edible insects is the place for you. From canned tarantula to freeze-dried mealworms to scorpions on a stick, they have it all here… they have a page on responsible sourcing and the environment plus, and this really made me laugh, they also have nutritional info on all their crunchy critters…
Something a little closer to home but in my humble opinion just as exotic and definitely worth the visit is The Rare Breed Meat Company. This is an incredible company specializing in all those British rare breed meats we so often hear about but are actually quite hard to find such as Norfolk Red Poll beef, Gloucester Old Spot pork and free-range turkeys and geese. All their meats are free-range and fed only with natural products free from any kind of nasty growth hormones.
I am a huge fan of honey, in fact my love for honey is bordering on the obsessive , so much so that wherever I am in the UK I will always search out the local nectar. This next site Honey Travelleris less about buying honey on-line, although you can do that, rather it’s more about where to buy amazing quality local honey wherever you are in the world and also particularly if you’re travelling. It’s a little like train-spotting for honey nerds and I for one can’t wait to pick up a jar of Jelly Bush honey harvested from bees kept on the roof of the Sydney Opera House!
Whilst my final
site offers a wide range of incredible quality meats, poultries and fishes its actually the fruit and vegetables that I use Natoorafor. Originally a Paris based produce delivery firm they now have offices all over Europe, including the UK and they source all their amazing produce from local farmers who clearly care a lot about their end-user. Their selection of unusual and hard-to-find fruit and veg is phenominal plus they also sell little items such as edible flowers, an incredible array of salad leaves and a selection of different coloured veg that will make your dinner table explode in a satisfying rainbow of culinary delights.
site offers a wide range of incredible quality meats, poultries and fishes its actually the fruit and vegetables that I use Natoorafor. Originally a Paris based produce delivery firm they now have offices all over Europe, including the UK and they source all their amazing produce from local farmers who clearly care a lot about their end-user. Their selection of unusual and hard-to-find fruit and veg is phenominal plus they also sell little items such as edible flowers, an incredible array of salad leaves and a selection of different coloured veg that will make your dinner table explode in a satisfying rainbow of culinary delights.
I’d love to know if you’ve tried any interesting or rare foods and what you thought…
eat and of course, enjoy!
