Here is something I found from Fox News:
New York — It's healthier than turkey, as exotic as alligator and, no, it
doesn't taste like chicken.
"I would probably have to liken the taste to wild rabbit," said Robert
Walker, of the Louisiana Seafood Exchange. "Once people try it, they
realize it's not an offensive-tasting product, just because it's
rodent-like in nature."
And if it has more than a passing resemblance to a rodent, that's because
Louisiana's newest culinary treat is a rodent. It's commonly known as the
nutria — or the swamp rat.
"I'd have to say it's the ugliest game animal there is," Walker conceded.
It's also possibly one of the most dangerous, at least in terms of
environmental damage.
Nutria were introduced to the U.S. in 1937 by an entrepreneur hoping to
raise them for their fur. But some escaped from captivity and began to
thrive in the Louisiana wetlands. By 1955, there were an estimated 20
million wild nutria in the state, devouring the grasses that kept coastal
marshes from becoming free water. They were kept in check only by a
flourishing trade in their pelts.
But by the 1990s the fur market dried up, and the nutria multiplied.
They've devoured so much of the vegetation ringing the shore that some
100,000 acres of wetlands are in danger of disappearing, according to
Edmond Mouton, biologist and program manager for the Louisiana Department
of Wildlife & Fisheries.
Now, whether you're walking by a New Orleans drainage ditch or traveling
down a country road, it's not unusual to notice the three-foot long,
18-pound animals, Walker said.
"You find them all over, sitting on the side of the street eating grass,"
he said. "The first thought anyone who's never seen them before is always:
'Damn! Look at the size of that rat!'"
Nutria have been trapped and eaten in rural areas of Louisiana for decades.
But for the average American, it's safe to say it was a leap of logic to
envision a water rat on a dinner plate.
It took lauded continental chef Phillippe Parola to bring nutria to the
table for the rest of the country. The man largely responsible for making
alligator an acceptable treat and a former commandeur des Cordons Bleus in
Paris, Parola is a spokesman for the Wildlife & Fisheries Bureau and
Louisiana's unofficial "ambassador of cuisine." After a test trial in his
own kitchen, Parola declared the nutria tasty and persuaded 10 top
Louisiana restaurants to put it on the menu.
"Louisiana is known for its exotic food," he said. "We put crawfish on the
table, we put alligator meat on the table, turtle meat. Consumers are
looking for new stuff, something out of the ordinary. And this is
definitely out of the ordinary."
By making nutria popular as haute cuisine under its French name, ragondin,
Parola hopes to create a market for the rodent as food, encouraging
trappers to begin bagging the beady-eyed varmints.
The state has already declared nutria a game animal, and the meat, which
goes for just 50 cents per pound, is processed at a state-contracted
facility and inspected and graded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Bills to create public nutria hunting seasons are flying through the
legislature faster than shot from a 12-gauge.
And, as nutria's proponents repeatedly note, the meat is nutritious. It has
more protein and far less fat and cholesterol than just about any other
meat, including turkey and chicken.
Parola estimates it will take about seven years for nutria meat to catch
on, slightly longer than it did for reptile meat. He is nonetheless
confident it will soon be classified as "a true exotic meat from Louisiana."
"It's going to be a little harder than alligator because psychologically
it's a rat, so people have a tendency to go, 'Oh my God!'" he said.
And once the U.S. is ready to dig into the latest delicacy, Parola, a true
Frenchman, has a couple tips to offer.
"I recommend a good Merlot with nutria," he said. "A bottle of Chardonnay
or Riesling will go pretty good with a nutria cassoulet."
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