Brain Food

No, this isn’t about literature, philosophy or trying to justify playing computer games. Brain food is actually about, well, brain as food.

Toulouse’s Victor Hugo market is the largest in southwest France. It sells cheese from nearby Roquefort, peppers from Espelette and wine from neighbouring Bordeaux.

It also sells pre-prepared brain:

Brain Food

These are cervelles d’agneaux (lamb brains), nestling in between trays of rabbit in a prune sauce and a chunky beetroot salad. What’s a girl to do? Experiment, of course!

“You do know what these are?” asked the serveur as he loaded them into a container.

Cooking Brain - Stage 1

“Oh yes.”

“And what to do with them?”

“Er, no…”

Cooking Brain - Stage 2

As it turns out, brain should be heated gently in a saucepan to bring out the garlic and parsley seasoning…

Brain Food - the Finished Work

…and then served with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice as a final flourish.

So, I tried to forget about all those infectious diseases transmitted by eating central nervous tissue and tucked in, to discover a smooth, surprisingly melt-in-the-mouth texture.

Low marks for flavour, however: a kind of grey nothingness saved only by the garlic and lemon. And as for appearance? Well, the next time I’m in a French market, I’m just going to pick up a box of these instead:

Sugary Macarons - A Favourite

For more on foreign food finds, visit OrangePolkaDot, a Lonely Planet Blogsherpa blog. To buy some brain food yourself, visit Victor Hugo Market, Toulouse.