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Meet Gene Rurka - Safari Club International
Humanitarian Foundation Chairman
Adventurous Appetizers by Gene Rurka
Since its inception in 1904, The Explorers Club has welcomed
its members to gather annually in New York City to review the previous year in
exploration and to honor the world’s top explorers.
A special feature of each year’s festivities is the famed
“exotics,” the unusual foods that have been prepared by Exotics Chairman Gene
Rurka for the past six years.
Rurka says, “Entomophagy, the eating of insects by humans,
has been practiced since the appearance of man on earth. In the past, all
levels of society consumed various insects. Today, insects remain an important
nutritional food source in many parts of the world. Low in carbohydrates and
high in protein, insects provide essential survival needs for the world’s
explorers.”
Click these links for YouTube videos of Gene's gastronomic
adventures with exotic edibles!
Sautéed scorpions (above), served on endive and known for
their crunchy and herbal flavors, are the most sought after item on the menu.
They are raised organically for human consumption.
"This isn't Fear Factor," says Exotics
Chairman Gene Rurka, 58 (shown below), the mastermind who supplies
scorpions, beaver, maggots, and much more for the exotics appetizer hour at
the annual dinner of the New York City–based Explorers Club, a worldwide
society of explorers and field scientists. "These foods are a protein source for
many indigenous peoples," Rurka says of the expedition-inspired cuisine. The
unusual gustatory tradition, which began in 1905, hit the road this year with
the apt moniker Taste of Adventure (www.explorers.org).
Sponsored by Redwood Creek wines, the eight-city tour features honey-glazed
tarantulas, rosemary-rattlesnake cakes, and the crowd-pleasing scorpion with
herb goat cheese on endive—all for free. Each dish is paired with an appropriate
wine. For dessert, famed explorers, like Everest alpinist Peter Athans, impart
wisdom from their travels. And yes, Rurka notes, some people inevitably say
certain appetizers taste like chicken: "That's because it's familiar. If we ate
more adventurously, we might be reminded of hog testicles or boa constrictor."
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Exotic-foods expert Gene Rurka (left) puts the
finishing touches on the caribou pâté as part of the adventurous hors
d'oeuvres in the kitchen of the Explorers Club headquarters in New York
City.
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Eating a Madagascar Hissing Cockroach (Gromphadorhina portentosa) prepared by
Gene Rurka (behind, right)
Python Fritters with Salsa Verde
Click this link for another
interesting account of the annual Explorer's Club Dinner!
A medley of scorpions and North American crickets are roasted and
nestled in pepper jelly and cream cheese in pastry cups. Rurka strives to stir
salvatory glands by striking a balance between making the foods
look familiar and yet thrillingly unusual.
Crunchy roasted jumbo ants, served atop a cream cheese phyllo cup, are
often compared to unsalted, roasted soy nuts. Working with such non-traditional
food items allows chefs to stretch the limits of their creativity.
Among the array of exotic delicacies, the most popular, palatable, and least
intimidating menu items at the Taste of Adventure include the orchids,
roses, and the rattlesnake. Often compared to a soft shell crab, the
tarantula is the most expensive item, costing from $100 to $250 each,
depending on the size
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