[s-cars] [NAC]Dave's theory on Andouillette confirmed

[Keith Maddock]

OK , just to check on Frederic's claims on Andouillette being a delicacy and not a chemical weapon,  I've been forwarding this whole thread to a French guy  on the Nürburgring enthusiast mail-list.

And not just your ordinary French automobile enthusiast, but but one whose mother-in-law is a " honorary member of an Association of Andouillette tasters (from Vire in the Calvados) !!! She even
put her diploma on her wall "

 How's that for credentials?? (and talk about waaay too much free time??)

So when I forwarded him Dave's theory (requoted below), he said the following:

"I think Dave is not 'hazarding a guess' here : he found a history book
detailing the exact recipe and how it was discovered... ;-)

We tried to keep that secret for many centuries. Damn ! We have to find
another way to save face !!! :-)

Gwénaël "

So congrat's Dave :), now we know that Frederic has been snowballing us the whole time on the true history of Andouillette  :)

Keith "5 days till S4 reunification but who's counting?" Maddock


Dave's Theory:---------------------------------------------
AHA! This clears up everything. This French delicacy is actually pig
intestines, STUFFED WITH PIG INTESTINES! Now I see what all the fuss is
about.
Just to hazard a guess, I'm assuming that the timing of the development of
this recipe coincided with the last great famine in France. After all of
the more palatable parts of the pig had been eaten, (Ribs, ham, shoulder,
bacon, lips, tail, hooves, teeth, and sphincter) all that was left was a
big pile of intestines. Since they had already been thrown in the River
Seine as garbage the day prior, (hence the "soak in cold water overnight"
instruction) the cook figured that was a good place to start. They tried
just boiling them and eating them, but even the starving French couldn't
stomach a good Bratwurst sans filling, so they pooled their resources, mixed
all of the strongest spices they had with it in a bowl in an attempt to mask
the taste, and STILL walked away in disgust. When Meals-on-wheels didn't
show up the next day, they went back to the foul brew (hence the "macerate
for 24 hours instruction) and stuffed some of the smaller bits into the
bigger bits to try to delude themselves into thinking it was sausage. After
it had been cooked an hour or so, a man on death's door from starvation ate
one, and lived. It took another four hours for the rest of the group to get
up the nerve to eat the rest, (hence the "cook for about five hours"
instruction). Against all odds, they lived, probably thanks to the
nutritional contribution of the celery and the antiseptic properties of the
wine contained therein. To commemorate the event, and to save face, the
malodorous concoction was officially dubbed a delicacy, and the French have
been in denial ever since.
The best food requires the least preparation, i.e.:
Kill cow.
Remove slab.
Grill.
DB

****************************************************************
Keith Maddock, TRW Automotive,  Koblenz, Germany
Slip Control Systems, Systems Design, Traction Control
+49 (0)261/ 895 2474     -    -    keith.maddock at trw.com
** In Arvidsjaur, Sweden,  02-13 December 2003 **
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