Paca a woodland creature that looks like a cross between a pig and a rat had been if not a staple at least a part of Belizean cuisine for many years. It was served the Queen who reacted with as much grace as could have been expected from British nobility being served a large rat-like creature on a platter. The incident seen as an example of the British superiority complex and for the first time the people of Belize had a reason to rally around a truly local cuisine. To this day paca or gibnut shows up on menus in Belize under the title of Royal Rat. This like the passionflower was a food that I had come into contact with although I was unsure at the time what it was. It was in Honduras that I was introduced to the paca both live and as a main dish. While working on a house one a Honduran girl with whom we had been eating brought in a live paca, really an adorable creature, and asked us if we wanted to purchase it. Thinking it was being proffered as a pet we turned it down but later that week a paca this time slow roasted on a spit over a fire showed up on our plates. It was not an unpleasant thing to eat the flesh was a little stringy but had a very woodsy flavor. I imagine that it was a lot like eating squirrel. I would eat it again but knowing the fragile nature of the paca population which has been severely over hunted. Discovering new things or names for old ones is one of life’s great surprises and although I am unlikely to raise paca alongside my passion fruit it is always great to learn more about the world of food that surrounds us.
Sunday, September 2, 2007
Royal Rat
Although neither here nor there I have to recount my surprise while reading an article by Richard Wilk on Belizean national cuisine when I came upon a rather eclectic dish that I am none the less familiar with. After gaining its independence from Britain in 1981 Belize struggled to find a national cuisine. Belizeans who could afford to had long shunned local cuisine in favor of imported goods from Britain. Tourists coming to Belize for a taste of authentic local flavors were instead greeted with potted meat and tins of crackers. That was until the Queen came to visit served a dish that had long been part of the menu in Belize.(Picture from Animals of Guyana)
Paca a woodland creature that looks like a cross between a pig and a rat had been if not a staple at least a part of Belizean cuisine for many years. It was served the Queen who reacted with as much grace as could have been expected from British nobility being served a large rat-like creature on a platter. The incident seen as an example of the British superiority complex and for the first time the people of Belize had a reason to rally around a truly local cuisine. To this day paca or gibnut shows up on menus in Belize under the title of Royal Rat. This like the passionflower was a food that I had come into contact with although I was unsure at the time what it was. It was in Honduras that I was introduced to the paca both live and as a main dish. While working on a house one a Honduran girl with whom we had been eating brought in a live paca, really an adorable creature, and asked us if we wanted to purchase it. Thinking it was being proffered as a pet we turned it down but later that week a paca this time slow roasted on a spit over a fire showed up on our plates. It was not an unpleasant thing to eat the flesh was a little stringy but had a very woodsy flavor. I imagine that it was a lot like eating squirrel. I would eat it again but knowing the fragile nature of the paca population which has been severely over hunted. Discovering new things or names for old ones is one of life’s great surprises and although I am unlikely to raise paca alongside my passion fruit it is always great to learn more about the world of food that surrounds us.
Paca a woodland creature that looks like a cross between a pig and a rat had been if not a staple at least a part of Belizean cuisine for many years. It was served the Queen who reacted with as much grace as could have been expected from British nobility being served a large rat-like creature on a platter. The incident seen as an example of the British superiority complex and for the first time the people of Belize had a reason to rally around a truly local cuisine. To this day paca or gibnut shows up on menus in Belize under the title of Royal Rat. This like the passionflower was a food that I had come into contact with although I was unsure at the time what it was. It was in Honduras that I was introduced to the paca both live and as a main dish. While working on a house one a Honduran girl with whom we had been eating brought in a live paca, really an adorable creature, and asked us if we wanted to purchase it. Thinking it was being proffered as a pet we turned it down but later that week a paca this time slow roasted on a spit over a fire showed up on our plates. It was not an unpleasant thing to eat the flesh was a little stringy but had a very woodsy flavor. I imagine that it was a lot like eating squirrel. I would eat it again but knowing the fragile nature of the paca population which has been severely over hunted. Discovering new things or names for old ones is one of life’s great surprises and although I am unlikely to raise paca alongside my passion fruit it is always great to learn more about the world of food that surrounds us.
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