Padma Lakshmi: Krishna Will Have the ‘Greatest Palate in the World’

hmm…i guess thats something to be proud of…knowing your unborn child is eating testicles. whatever

Kim, if you read the article correctly, the baby is 3 months old and she’s saying the baby is eating everything through her breast milk.

Just because you don’t like something doesn’t make it wrong for others. Have you ever had rump roast? Then you just ate a cows butt, ever had ribs, or a chicken leg? Think about what these parts of an animal are before you put someone else down for what they eat.

I think it’s very healthy to live under the food motto “I’ll try anything once”. Lots of people in the world eat stuff Americans (more broadly, Westerners) find disgusting. Better to get your kid to try “exotic” foods than the processed crap too many parents give them. Okay, not testicles, but if we’re making that deal, how about not McDonalsds, hot dogs and chicken fingers! Please!

I agree with Erin.

I agree! Try anything once is my motto as well. my dad was military and he always said you can’t say you don’t like something if you never treid it. That is why I think people should adopt the same motto. We have kids who are picky eaters. Their picky because parents don’t want to fight with them. Im glad Padma is doing what all parents should.

Obviously, food must be nutritious but it can be cultural that is common in a specific area of the world. It may be rejected in some parts of the country because there are large amounts of the best meats available.

Testicles of bulls (beef) used to be called ‘sweetbreads” – and are a delicacy in most parts of the world.
Most Americans are very provincial in their tastes, and even when they travel all they ever want to eat is hamburgers and fries. Or else why would anyone have Macdonalds in Paris?
Thank goodness, there are some enlightened chefs on the Food Network these days, and they show that there are other things to eat that are not so bad, in fact most of these items may be terrific. Ever try cow’s tongue? or pig ears? pig tails? All terrific things to eat – if cooked with the right spices. In the end, keeping an open mind is what it’s all about.

Christina – I LOVE that you managed to get “testicles” and “HUGE” in the same sentence! I know you were talking about the festival being huge…but still! Thanks for the great case of LOL!

Sweetbreads are NOT testicles. They are the thymus gland and found in the neck of the animal.

Whatever, people can do and eat whatever they want. I prefer not to live by the ‘I’ll try anything once” motto. The idea of eating something just for adventure as opposed to it being agriculturally raised for consumption, does not appeal at all. I’m not going out of my way to eat a puppy just because ‘I’ll try anything once”

Way to throw in a red herring, Justine. I don’t think anyone here is condoning scarfing down domesticated pets. Domesticated animals, possibly. Lassie, no. Nice try, though.

I grew up in a multi-cultural environment and I must say am better off for it. I am one of the very few “white” girls that love pickled pigs feet, scrambled eggs with cows brains, cow tongue, and armadillo. I honestly haven’t tried cows testicles because I haven’t been to a restaurant that serves them but I gaurantee if I ever do go there then I will try them. My step-grandparents were fantastic cooks and made me the woman I am today, not afraid to try anything once. Parents should strive for their kids to have an open mind, and palet where cultural lifestyles and cuisine are concerned.

I think it’s mostly pregnancy talking, but I don’t think I’d ever try testicles. I was always the adventurous kid who was never picky and would clean her plate and eat any veggie, though. So I really think this new-found pickiness is hormonal, especially since I was raised on all kinds of multicultural experiences (food, art, music) by my hippy parents. Yet still, I’m having a hard time not gagging every time I read the word now.

Don’t some of you ladies “read” before you post?

it’s always amazed me that if you don’t know what you’re eating, you can try anything…that’s how my parents did it. we had to try at least a bite of something before they told us what it was/what was in it. this was particularly useful when we traveled, as they would only let us go to local restaraunts on vacation. obviously, not everyone is fond of this method of eating, but i am strangely proud of saying that i’ve nibbled on a skirts-kidney stew in county cork or kitfo in ethiopia…i suppose it would be rather odd to voluntarily eat these things in my home in the us, but as a traveller, they are (to me) essential.

It’s easy to say tht you won’t eat a certain food when you have choices. When you live in a place or situation where you constantly scavenging for food, dogs would look more appetizing. In the end everything is relative to your situation & place in the world. Hindus would be offended if ever served beef. There are several strange things that we now that are considered “common”. For example, think about from where eggs come…a chicken’s vagina. Who was the first person that decided to eat that? Or milk… one day somebody decided, I want to drink the same thing that calf is sucking off it’s mother nipples. Why are dogs or testicles strange but escargot (SNAILS) gourmet? Think before you judge the foods of other people.

I think it is great that she wants to expose her daughter to different foods (even if it is just via breast milk for now). In my house we had a “no thank you bite” rule where before we could say we didn’t want something (or “no thank you”) we had to at least have one bite (and a legitimate bite not a nibble) of it first. THEN after we tried it we could pass. And my parents would re-introduce foods like tomatoes and mushrooms periodically as people palates change (they are now two of my favorite foods, a far cry from how I felt about them at age 7). It made me happier and far more willing to try more “exotic” foods as I grew up and now, as an adult, there is very little I WON’T try. (or at least won’t at least have a “no thank you bite” of). I fully intend to have the same rule with my children when I have them.

I think I’ll just stick to peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Lauren- I’m pretty sure Mel was referring to the fact that Padma makes it clear in the article that she’s referring to Krishna getting her food through her breast-milk, yet some people are commenting as if she was referring to Krishna getting that food in utero. 🙂

Christina- Testicle festivals are popular around where I live, too (and on the flyers for them, of course there’s always the obligatory, “You’ll have a ball!” or something similar. :)).

Erin- I think McDonalds, hotdogs, and chicken nuggets are part of being a kid, and are fine in moderation. That being said, I totally agree with your second comment. Obviously the people who are saying “try everything once” probably don’t mean it literally!

Sorry, but that’s gross. Her culture though.

D – that’s not her culture. Grow a brain.

I live by that same motto…and I am better off for it as well. We grew up on an island but my mother made sure our meals (often time dinner) reflected the ingredients from other parts of the world.

To date I have tried a lil bit of just about everything….how else will you know you dont like something unless you’ve tried it?

Alligator, frogs, brains, tripes, heart, snake, balls etc. etc…..lemme tell you, when prepared just right you think you are eating chicken.

Some westerners are a lil too dang conservative and they look at what other people eat and become disgusted by it. People from all over the world have been using every part of the animal to eat for centuries and they are a hell of a lot healthier for it.

We teach our kids that McDonald’s or KFC is good food and then we impose these chains on the rest of the world because I guess its not enough that we are among the FATTEST nation in the world…we need other people to join in our misery!!!!

I am due in a few days and I have been eating everything with the exception of undercooked or raw stuff of course and I will continue this once my baby is born. I want him or her to have a really great appreciation for food that doesn’t come foiled backed in grease!!!!

But that’s just me!!!!

Carry on everyone!!!

I’ve had aligator…tastes like chicken! My mother loves eel and beef tongue, and my father said bull testicles are really delicious all fried up. I wish I was a bit more adventurous but I think it’s great that Padma is!

So you think, Eva.

I will try MOST things once. But, I have a lot of foods I will not eat after trying them. I don’t know why everyone thinks that American is synonymous with uneducated and culturally ignorant.

There are many things in our country, by region, that other regions would think is “disgusting” and wouldn’t even think to eat where they are from. I was born in Southern California, and there are things here in Wisconsin that locals think are disgusting. Such as avocado, and I used to eat them alone with a spoon and a shaker of salt and pepper. And there are things here that I think are odd, like cheese curds.

Furthermore, I’m sure there are natives of other countries that would look at what we eat here in America as odd and disgusting, and no not just our fast food or our bastardized versions of their food. In Louisiana they eat alligator, ostrich, crayfish, etc. Those are “exotic” but they are what is AVAILABLE there. Not all foods are AVAILABLE everywhere. If you’re from there, they aren’t “exotic” to you.

People need to get over their elitist, self-righteous views of themselves just because they’ve been “adventurous.” And please, quit putting Americans down. I’m sure whatever country you’re from you have your own fanatics, idiots, and unenlightened people as well. It’s not just America.

We’re all the same species, and we all function the same. We just are from different regions with different fauna and flora we co-exist with, and different religions that socially form us. How are we ever to a global community and world peace when we tear one another apart over food? There’s no hope for us accepting one another for differing religions and political views if we can’t even accept someone’s food preferences.

Get over yourselves, get along, ACCEPT and TOLERATE. Do not disparage. Love and peace equally for all.

Just saying.