Most exotic/unusual ingredients
What are some of the most exotic or unusual ingredients you've cooked with or tried? When I was on Weight Watchers I got tired of having the same fruits and vegetables all the time so I would try different things. *Jerusalem artichokes/sunchokes I liked them because they tasted like a potato but they counted on the Weight Watchers plan as a vegetable. You only got like 2 or 3 breads a day but could have unlimited vegetables so I had to be sparing with potatoes but didn't have to worry about sunchokes. *Yuca I really love yuca. I've had it at Cuban restaurants. It reminds me of sweet potatoes. *Plaintain Another one I've had at Cuban restaurants. It's ok but I prefer the yuca. *Passionfruit I loved passionfruit juice mixes so I finally decided to try the actual passionfruit when I saw it in the store. That ended up being a mistake. A little bit of passionfruit is good mixed with other juices. Passionfruit alone is very tart and has a sickly taste (to me). I haven't been in the mood for anything with passionfruit in it ever since then and it used to be my favorite. *Artichokes I decided to try them after seeing them on a cooking show. I wasn't sure how I felt about it at first--wasn't great, wasn't terrible-but then when I got further into it, I decided I really, really didn't like it. *Gator tail I tried this once at a restaurant. It was on a skewer, fried, and honestly it didn't taste like anything but breading. *** I've never tried tomatillos because I don't know what to make with them and I haven't tried asparagus yet.

As a good Minnesota-born Swedish-American, I grew up eating Lutfisk (the Norwegian-Americans spell it Lutefisk), mostly at Christmas time. Lutfisk is a traditional food of the Nordic countries made from stockfish (air-dried whitefish) and lye (lut). The direct translation is lye fish, owing to the fact it is made with caustic soda or potash lye. Due to the lye, the Lutfisk smells horrible when cooking (and the aroma lingers in your house for about a week. The fish itself has very little taste and is often served with "white sauce" to give it flavor. Few people are indifferent to Lutfisk. You either love it (or tolerate it) or absolutely despise it. It is such a big cultural thing among Scandinavian Americans that there are Lutfisk clubs and websites. I even have heard this song: O Lutefisk, O Lutefisk To The Tune of "O Christmas Tree" 1. O Lutefisk, O Lutefisk, how fragrant your aroma, O Lutefisk, O Lutefisk, you put me in a coma. You smell so strong, you look like glue, You taste just like an overshoe, But lutefisk, come Saturday, I tink I eat you anyvay. 2. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, I put you in the doorvay. I wanted you to ripen up just like they do in Norvay. A dog came by and sprinkled you. I hit him with my overshoe. O lutefisk, now I suppose I'll eat you while I hold my nose. Yes, this is the way I often eat Lutfisk! 3. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, how well I do remember. On Christmas Eve how we'd receive our big treat of December. It wasn't turkey or fried ham. It wasn't even pickled Spam. My mother knew there was no risk In serving buttered lutefisk. 4. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, now everyone discovers That lutefisk and lefse make Norvegians better lovers. Now all the world can have a ball. You're better than that Geritol. O lutefisk, with brennevin You make me feel like Errol Flynn. 5. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, you have a special flavor. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, all good Norvegians savor. That slimy slab we know so well Identified by ghastly smell. O Lutefisk, O lutefisk, Our loyalty won't waver.