It’s not so strange that Rat is a big source of protein for the residents of Fallen London. According to this article, people have roasted and eaten rats since the New Stone Age: Stone Age people 'roasted rodents for food' - archaeologists - BBC News
Wine with baby mouses is a thing in Hong Kong (post-maternity nourishment, pain suppression, heal bruises, anti-nausea), although said products are going extinct as it is increasingly difficult to procure mouses young enough for it (baby mouses should be hairless and not have opened their eyes yet, so basically birth-to-wine to avoid contamination).
According to some, you especially should eat the wine-pickled baby mouse… either between two piece of sliced bread, or just swallow it whole. Some old-fashioned rice stores even help pregnant mice along so they get their prime cut of freshly born baby mouse for wine. Which is then eaten.
If you ask around, the generation before me might have some memories of their families brewing mouse wines. There’s… a good chance they might treat it as a women’s miracle cure.
A 40-years old bottle of mouse wine can easily fetch, ummmmm, tens of thousands of US dollars depending on the buyer.
…I think there’s still an active discussion thread on the biggest HK parental forum, too. At least within this year.
Rat eating is a thing across many parts of Asia. Here’s an article:
Article also contains a neat photo of rats on a string (the way they should be, naturally), and a paragraph about rats as beloved gifts at the Adi tribe in India:
Well, did you think Failbetter just makes this stuff up?
edited by Johnny Felix on 10/21/2016
Just like the toys.
I drank a thimble once. Couldn’t stomach actually eating a mouse, not that my family is willing to spare me one.
Nothing surprising there. After all, if you got no other choice, you gotta do what you gotta do to survive. Hell, I knew a hobo dude that bred rats and used them as livestock. He even experimented in the ways he could cook them.
Personally if my life’s road leads me to an existence of hoboness…I dunno if I would be able to bring myself to use ratties the way he did. I love animals way too much and besides - rats are for petting and disease spreading, not for filleting and frying.
edited by Sir Goomy on 10/22/2016
[quote=Sir Goomy]Nothing surprising there. After all, if you got no other choice, you gotta do what you gotta do to survive. Hell, I knew a hobo dude that bred rats and used them as livestock. He even experimented in the ways he could cook them.
Personally if my life’s road leads me to an existence of hoboness…I dunno if I would be able to bring myself to use ratties the way he did. I love animals way too much and besides - rats are for petting and disease spreading, not for filleting and frying.
edited by Sir Goomy on 10/22/2016[/quote]
Interesting! There’s a man with an employment niche tailor-made for Fallen London!
The taboo against eating rats are mostly like eating any other animals roaming around urban areas, really. If you live in a rural area eating rats probably isn’t an unwise idea.
I think role-playing eating is the hardest part for my character simply because she’s so fussy. Eating rats? Who do you think I am?
Even by eating that delicious surface goose at parties isn’t going to be frequent enough to sustain her. She should have starved to death by stubbornness long ago.
[quote=Blaine Davidson]
Even by eating that delicious surface goose at parties isn’t going to be frequent enough to sustain her. She should have starved to death by stubbornness long ago.[/quote]
But there is mushroom everywhere xD
[quote=Sandi Gummy]
But there is mushroom everywhere xD[/quote]
Before chowing down some rats. I must add that these are field mice and rats or domesticated versions thereof. DO NOT chow down city dwelling rats and mice. if you do, Unaccountably Peckish will be the least of your problems.
Unaccountably Reckless is the underlying cause
Did people ever eat Guinea pigs ? They look pretty fat and juicey. Just googled it… It’s a delicacy in Peru?
Yes, technically they’re bred there for food purposes.
When it comes to edible rodents, I would like to mention the coypu/nutria… according to wikipedia, their meat is lean and low in cholesterol.
Go figure. shrugs
I ate neither (yet??).
edited by Lestaroth on 11/13/2016
I am immensely grateful I was not presented with mouse wine. Or was aware of its existence. I thought regular Confinment food troublesome enough!
My favorite thing about the rodent-like Capybara is that they used to be dispensed from the usual flesh-meat prohibition during Lent and remain a popular treat in some parts of South America during Holy Week.
As retold (rather liberally) in Rasputina’s "Rats"! (Personally, I’d be happy to see capybaras go befriended and uneaten, but that’s just me. …and now I really really want to see a Neathy capybara.)
[quote=Parelle]I am immensely grateful I was not presented with mouse wine. Or was aware of its existence. I thought regular Confinment food troublesome enough!
My favorite thing about the rodent-like Capybara is that they used to be dispensed from the usual flesh-meat prohibition during Lent and remain a popular treat in some parts of South America during Holy Week.[/quote]
Actually, the capybara is a rodent, the largest in our world.
They’re used as food? That’s sad.
They’re the coolest animals ever. Even when people put the most hyper monkeys on them, Mr./Ms. Capy won’t even budge. 100% peaceful.
A capybara in the Neath? One with a gentleman/lady hat? How deliciously wonderful a suggestion.