One testicle or two? Waste not, want not. It’s all good meat.
Affluent societies view an animal as so many fillets. But meat-eaters in traditional (read: less privileged) societies don’t turn their noses up at offal – kidneys, liver, head meat, tripe, sweetbreads, ears, and trotters. Testicles and penis meat too. Those bumpy, funky bits are just as healthy and delicious as as any other part of the animal.What’s the difference between a lamb’s ribs and, say, his testicles? No reason to throw good meat out. Think whole-animal cooking and sustainable food and read about home animal slaughter on Green Prophet.
In the Middle East, turkey testicles are commonly grilled and served in a pitta along with other grilled meats. Try a “me’urav yerushalmi” in any Israeli shwarma joint – the little dark round pieces are turkey testicles. With the Middle Eastern love of lamb and goat meat, the tasty reproductive organs naturally appear on plates as kabob. Thousands attend annual testicle festivals in Idaho, Montana, and Illinois, starring turkey, hog, bull, and lamb testicles – usually breaded and fried. Lamb fries are lunch in New Zealand when lambs are castrated on the farm. In fact, wherever people love meat and hate waste, testicles are on the menu.
A couple of Americans fry hog testicles in plenty of hot sauce.
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Curious to try testicles yourself? Your local supermarket is unlikely to carry them. Look for them at Halal butchers. Make sure the glands are firm and pink. If fresh, cook them within 48 hours. Frozen ones should be cooked immediately after thawing. Plan on half to one testicle per serving.
If the tough outer membrane hasn’t been removed, you will have to slit it through and remove the meat inside. Grilling the testicles whole, it’s not necessary to remove the membrane. Many people like to soak the skinned glands in cold salty water to leech the blood out first.
Dip them in batter and fry in deep oil, or cover them in flour seasoned with salt, pepper, and crushed garlic and fry in butter. Or soak them in your favorite marinade as you would for any other BBQ and cut them up to grill on skewers. Any way you choose to cook testicles, squeeze some fresh lemon juice over them before serving. Delicious.
Middle-Eastern Recipes from Green Prophet:
Photo of lamb testicles for kabob by Shahrokh Dabiri via Flickr.
Author: Walid Dajani
With Bedouin roots, Walid roams the Middle East looking for stories that entice, inspire and delight the environmentalist in all of us.
