Doesn’t everyone get offered offal on the street? It’s certainly the highlight of my day, walking up the hill past the abattoir (which requires alot of concentration, I’ve lost toe nails and rolled ankles and fallen over. Many times.), and it’s always something. Today, it was calf’s brains.
Personally, I think this is a major improvement. I would much have someone offer to scramble the brains of cute baby animals for me, then offer to ‘tear down my walls’. One of the guys called out to me this afternoon, asking if I liked eggs. (When Jamaicans say “egg” it sounds like “Hegg”). Which I do, I do like eggs, but a strange question, no? He walked over carrying something on a coco leaf.
Coco are large white tubers, that boast a spectacular botanical plumage. The leaves- there are usually two or three giant half-tube stalks emerging from the underground root- are triangular, thick, and leathery. They are large enough for a small child to use as an umbrella, and sturdy enough to act as a plate for any number of things.
This coco leaf was holding a pile of what looked like what would happen if you over cooked oatmeal and spaghetti together: these were the calf’s brains. Apparently, they are delicious scrambled with tomato and onion and (get this) sardines. Sardines? Really? I shouldn’t be surprised because Jamaicans love salty fish in just about everything: saltfish and ackee, salt fish and cabbage, sardine omelettes, mackerel and everything.
As an adventurous eater, I’m completely down to try this, and in fact, had I not been feeling rather under the weather, I would have stuck around to watch this curious delicacy being prepared. My community has gone from trying to gross me out with this stuff (getting called over to watch someone split a hog’s head for jerking comes to mind), but since I’m far more likely to be like “Cool!” and ask lots of questions, they seem more intent on my culinary education than the shock and awe factor. Which I absolutely appreciate. And now, when the urge to scramble grey matter strikes (as it so often does, I can’t tell you how often I wake up at 3am, craving brain-and-sardine hash), I know where to go.
