Brasilian cuisine can be interesting . . .

Guarana, pudim, churrasco, maracuja, all exotic sounding names that describe some every day components of the Brasilian table. Americans traveling in Brasil find that some of the strange sounding names are amazingly tasty.

Fish is one of the highlights of Brasilian eating. Pan cooked, fresh, wide variety, appetizing. However, there is one part of the fish eating that most of us Americans have a problem reconciling as desired — the eating of the eyes and brain.

When our son was small, he used to invite his friends over when we would have fish. We would cook the whole fish, head, fins, and all. As he sat at the table with his little buddies, he’d proudly exclaim, “Watch! My mom is getting ready to suck the eyes out and eat them!”

Yep! She’d suck them out, or, if in mixed company and wanting to be more proper, pluck them out with a fork, then eat them. In fact, most Brasilians in the northeast consider the eyes the best part of the fish. “Chewy,” “tasty,” “nice texture,” are the kind of comments you’ll receive when you ask them what they taste like.

I can’t handle that. I always have to turn my head when eyeball time comes. My stomach gets kinda weasy when I watch. So I don’t.

I’ve had numerous fish heads offered to me, as a friendly gesture. I’ve invented numerous “reasons” for declining the offer. You walk a fine line between insulting your host and vomiting. So far, I’m batting 1000.

I couldn’t convince Jeff or Brad to try the chewy morsel.