Monday, January 26, 2009

THE Worst Dinner I Have Ever Made!

If DH thought certain things I have cooked and prepared in the past were bad and that I couldn't possibly outdo myself in such a scenario again, he was wrong. Very wrong. The other night I made the worst dinner I have ever made! It sucked. Simple as that. We're lucky we didn't starve... [Not a chance of that happening, as we both have "extra" and it wouldn't hurt either of us to miss a meal - or quite possibly - lots of meals!]

It was all because I h
ad a craving for a fried fish sandwich, onion rings and a vanilla milkshake. Why I didn't just call Burger King* and have it delivered is beyond me. It would have been easier - no fuss, no mess - probably less expensive, and it would have tasted a whole lot better than what I made! It couldn't possibly have tasted worse, that's for sure.

I bought vanilla ice cream [42.70SR - $11.44 for a gallon of Baskin-Robbins vanilla!], hamburger buns, the frozen fish fillets and frozen onion rings. I had to make tartar sauce [nope - can't find that on the shelves here - that would be too easy], which isn't a big deal because it is just mayonnaise, sweet pickle relish and a little onion. DH got the deep fryer out for me - I can't lift it down off the shelf when it has oil in it - and I heated it up. Fried the fish fillets, put them in the oven to keep warm, made vanilla milkshakes in the blender, and fried the onion rings. Put the fish fillets on hamburger buns with some tartar sauce and a piece of Kraft American cheese. Viola. Dinner.

Let me reiterate: It sucked. Big time. More than you can possibly imagine. The absolute nastiest and worst tasting fish I have ever eaten i
n my entire life. Who knew fried fish fillets could be SLIMY inside?!? These were. And, worse, I made the mistake of doing the fish before the onion rings which made the entire bag of onion rings that I deep fried taste like fish - and bad fish, to boot. [The deep fryer has since been emptied and thoroughly cleaned out so that whatever I make next won't run the risk of tasting pathetically horrid!]

Not that anyone will ever need to heed this advice, unless you are living in this part of the world, but don't ever buy:

What the heck kind of fish is Pangasius fish, anyway?!? It is NOT a nice "bland" fish that can be breaded and deep fried, like say, Haddock or Cod. It was just gross. I threw most of my dinner away - DH ate a couple bites of his fish and a few onion rings - and then I threw his food away, too. We both had two vanilla milkshakes. Had to fill up on something. I probably should have grabbed the bread, peanut butter [I think ours is safe?] and jelly and just made PB & J's for dinner. It would have been a far cry above what it was we tried to eat. I wouldn't even give any of the fish to The Kids. It was just that nasty and although they probably would have luved it, I didn't want to have to scoop "the remains" from the yard.

[Note: The following "click" is not safe for the squeamish. Dawn-Michelle, I'm thinking of you...]

Oh My Gosh. You Don't Want To Know!!! DISGUSTING. Appetite killer, that. Could I have possibly researched it and checked it out before we tried to eat it? No. That didn't happen. Won't make that mistake again, though, will I?! Thank goodness we didn't actually consume very much of it. What the heck was I thinking?!? The box cost 11.20SR [$3.00]. Not Mrs. Paul's that for dayum sure. Never again.



*Burger King - Whaler with cheese! Yum. Burger King, McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken, Pizza Hut and Pizza Inn all deliver, here. Yes. Burger King, McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken. Why? Simple. Women can't drive so it's not like you can load the kids into the family wagon and go through the drive-thru for a couple of Happy Meals if "your" husband is spending "that" night with wife number two, three or four instead of with you.

12 comments:

  1. That didn't sound good at all. I guess living over here doesn't give you the same fare of food we're used to having over here though.

    I remember a place called Jasmi's that looked and acted like McDonald's when I was in the gulf. I wonder if that chain is over in Saudi?

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  2. Sabra,
    Thanks for the thoughtful "heads up." I was eating my lunch when I first read your blog, so the warning was well heeded. :>)

    I've been trying to stay away from any farmed fish and just eating wild, but it's not always easy to do. I think it depends on where they're farmed and who's doing the farming. I don't like buying anything edible from third-world countries because I don't trust their standards for the food they grow and raise.

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  3. I clicked on the link. I am sad now. Maybe someday, with grace and therapy, i will eat again. But really someone does need to know about the Pangas Fish Horror and it might as well be me. I... I will carry this burden for the good of everyone else.

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  4. It does not, Steve! Americans are very, very spoiled in that regard. I can't recall seeing a Jasmi's sign - but then the whole time we've lived here I have only eaten at McDonald's once! Just do not do fast food, here.

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  5. "I don't like buying anything edible from third-world countries because I don't trust their standards for the food they grow and raise." I avoid most fish for that reason alone, Dawn-Michelle. It will be a long while before I have a craving for a fish sandwich, again!

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  6. You are too kind to carry the burden for the rest of us, Vermindust. Most generous of you...

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  7. Another word of caution to all: Do NOT, under ANY circumstances, eat any fish products from China. I once saw a video over on youtube showing a Chinese fish farm. The fish were swimming in raw sewage. It was enough to nearly swear me off fish forever.

    Avoid ALL fish from Wal-Mart. It's practically all grown and farmed in China. This is why we shop only at Martin's.

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  8. Could have used that caution a few days ago, Steve! Although I have seen how salmon is farmed and read the warnings about sea lice. Who knew?!?

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  9. I read the article, and now I know NEVER EVER to have that fish, thanks you did a public service by showing that......

    GIll

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  10. I'd have been doing DH and I quite a service, Gill, by having read about the fish BEFORE we tried to eat it!

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  11. just FYI:

    since reading this post (& the links - DISGUSTING!!) i've been to a couple of different grocery stores.

    checking ALL the fish products that I wanted and UGHHHHH so many of them say "Product of China" and many were of the horrendous Pangasius/aka alternate named fish you described.

    just wanted to thank you for your PSA.

    ~ShyAsrai

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  12. You are most welcome, ShyAsrai. And you are not alone - it will be a long time before I eat fish again - any fish. I'll check and double check the label and find out where it is from! "PSA." I like that. Glad I could offer help in those terms.

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