Drunken Shrimp
I’ve heard of some pretty exotic foods but this one takes the cake. My lovely hosts decided to treat us to ‘Drunken Shrimp’ last night. I thought we’d maybe get drunk and eat shrimp but it was the other way around. The shrimp got drunk instead! First of all, as you walk into the doors of the restaurant, you see rows upon rows of fish tanks filled with everything from fish and eels to turtles and frogs. It’s like a pet store, but you don’t go home with a cuddly new pet. You walk around pointing and choosing your dinner and they pull out the helpless creatures as you go. I told them no frogs, they were smiling at me, no eating smiling food.
We were there for Shrimp only and got about a pound put into a flimsy plastic bag. The waiter then trotted off with our little crustacean friends. This is where it got weird. After 15 minutes, the shrimp were brought to our table in a glass bowl filled with what looked to be water and ice. It was not water at all, it was alcohol and they were still alive! The bowl jiggled like a block of Jello as they hopped around. Now to the eating part. They like their food fresh in China and it doesn’t get any fresher than food that’s still alive! Joe grabbed a little soldier and slowly began shelling it. I stared in awe as this was happening, it was a bit much for Vegetarian mind to grasp.
Even as he beheaded the poor little guy, its tiny little legs kicked around on the plate. “How is it Joe?” “Tastes like Shrimp!” he said with a smile. I once again used my Vegetarian card to get out of this one.
So why the alcohol? Does it give the shrimp one last hurrah before being beheaded?