Turtle

With a meat to fill every void turtles are said to contain seven distinct varieties, each in turn reminiscent of pork, shrimp, veal, fish, goat, beef, or chicken. Once recognized as “a key dish of grand English cuisine,” the turtle has long been admired for its appealing taste and tender, succulent meat. If you’re a chef with an eye to the past, then you’ve no doubt seen recipes for turtle when thumbing through old cookbooks or menus, most famously taking the form of soup. It’s been featured at inaugural dinners, on board some of the first transcontinental railroads, and was the gourmand president Taft's favorite meal. Green snapping turtles were abundant in America, and the first settlers were said to have eaten them regularly, by the Revolutionary War they had become a staple. Around the same time, mock turtle soup was introduced to the public with wild success. It seems that the turtle was so well-loved that diners preferred fake turtle to no turtle at all. At one point even Campbell’s made its own canned mock turtle soup, so popular was turtle at the time that it managed to survive and thrive on the market despite the substandard tagline “you’ll love its unusual flavor”. A victim of its own success eventually turtle fell by the wayside as novel options like Spam and frozen TV dinners rose into America’s purview. However rare today turtle continues to be delicious and adds a wonderfully exotic flair to any menu. Try it for yourself today for an authentic and delightful taste of the past!