Fried-brain sandwich

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A fried-brain sandwich is generally a sandwich with sliced calves' brains on sliced bread. Thinly sliced fried slabs on white toast became a ubiquitous menu item in St. Louis, Missouri, after the rise of the city's stockyards in the late 1880s, although demand there has so dwindled that only a handful of eateries still offer them. But they remain popular in the Ohio River valley, where they are served heavily battered on hamburger buns. In Evansville, Indiana, it is not uncommon to find them on many restaurant menus and they are a major seller at the annual Fall Festival.

The rise of incidents of Bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) or "Mad Cow" disease in recent years will likely further diminish the remaining appeal of this curious regional dish. Brains from cows over 30 months old at slaughter are no longer permitted in human food in the US (Hefling, 2004). Some restaurants have taken to serving pig brains instead of cow brains due to BSE concerns. But as pig's brains are substantially smaller than cow's brains, the amount of prepraration required for each sandwich increases. Each brain must be cleaned before being sliced and the pig's brains produce fewer slices.

[edit] References

• Brown, Alton. Feasting on Asphalt episode 2, "I Smell Pork." Originally aired August 5, 2006.
• Hefling, Kimberly. "Craving brain food, mad cow or no: Indiana diners chow down on a disappearing delicacy". Associated Press, January 15, 2004.
• CNN Cow brain sandwiches still on the menu. Associated Press, January 16, 2004.

[edit] See also

• Barbacoa de cabeza
• Eggs n' Brains
• Beef brain
• Cabeza