Even though I consider myself to be a picky eater I still like to try new things, especially when visiting new places.
I’ve enjoyed zebra and just about any type of gazelle served in Africa, had a hard time swallowing a fat-ass ant in Colombia, enjoyed stuffed pigeon in Egypt and then there was the time I tried cuy (guinea pig) in Peru. Find out the 6 Oddest Foods That I’ve Ever Tried.
On our most recent trip to the Middle East Gulf States, there were a few items that I came across that I would’ve liked to have tried which come from a local animal.
Camels are probably the first animal that comes to mind when thinking of the Middle East.
I wasn’t really familiar with any camel food before wandering supermarkets aisles which we did quite often during our trip.
Here are a few that we came across but didn’t get a chance to try.
Camel Milk– While picking up milk for Lucas, I came across a few varieties of camel milk. I jokingly brought a few bottles over to show Kim but she shrugged it off and wasn’t really interested.
If I was much of a milk drinker, I probably would’ve bought the regular variety and mixed in some of Lucas’ chocolate powder to give it a try and kind of regret not doing so!
Camel milk comes in a variety of flavors but we only spotted three- full cream, date and saffron flavor. (I looked up the brand Camelait online and saw that it also comes in cardamom, chocolate & rose?) Oh and they also sell camel milk ice-cream.
When we got home, Kim mentioned that we should’ve tried the camel milk. She read that it actually packs much more vitamins and nutrition than cow’s milk and is also quite pricey to purchase at home.
Oh well. I guess next time we’re in the Middle East we’ll have to give camel milk a try!
Camel Tenderloin– I’d definitely be interested in finding out what a camel steak tastes like. Too bad it wasn’t offered at any of the restaurants we visited. I’d expect it to be tough and not the best cut of meat but I could certainly be wrong.
And the camel item I most would’ve liked to have tried:
Camel Burger– I’m a big burger fan and usually stick to a good beef burger. Some places make a burger with bacon blended into the meat. I’ve also had bison and elk burgers a bunch of times.
I was really hoping to try a camel burger during our trip but it wasn’t meant to be. At one of the supermarkets (I think it was a Carrefour) out of curiosity, I asked if they had camel meat in stock. The employee looked through an area and said it was sold out but would be back in later on. We happened to be back by that store later in the day and sure enough camel burger (and the tenderloin show above) were for sale.
That was the closest I came to a camel burger.
I had read that one restaurant we were going to served camel burgers. When we sat down, I asked if they had camel on the menu and to my dismay, it was no longer sold there.
I’m still curious to find out what a camel burger tastes like but I somehow doubt that I really missed much…
Have you ever tried camel milk, steak or burgers? If so what were they like?
Related Mid- East Gulf Trip Posts:
Ric Garrido- I think I’d probably turn down whale meat too. What about the hunt in the Faroes where it is supposedly a long tradition…
In Bergen, Norway last week at the fish market, the vendor sliced off a large chunk of Minke whale meat for me to sample. It was probably a $3 portion. I eat seafood most days of the week, but I refused to take the sample.
Norway is so socially advanced in many ways, and it surprises me that they still participate in whale hunting. The vendor said minke whale meat tastes like roast beef.
My research indicates Norwegians have reduced their consumption of whale meat substantially in the past decade. The Norwegian whale meat market is focused on tourists to Norway and Japanese markets.