Quick links: Zebra | Bug Grub | Baobab Fruit | Hawaiian Pig | Verdict
Lion King is my all-time favorite Disney movie. It is even in my top 5 movies of all time, any genre. That said, I was not super excited to eat the food from the movie. I don’t have the strong will that Simba has to slurp down a giant grub. But Hakuna Matata! I highly recommend everyone rewatching Lion King, even if it’s only been a week since your last viewing.
We also had to do some substitutions. Eating like a lion is fairly hard to do as a human and living in the United States. But I did eat bugs…oh did I eat bugs
Zebra (it’s actually beef because Zebra meat is expensive and illegal I think)
Too bad I don’t have my own personal Scar around to bring me Zebra meat like he did the hyenas.
(Credit: Disney)
It is surprisingly hard to come by in the USA, and I think it is illegal too. So, I had to settle on regular ol’ beef. But I found a good Kenyan recipe called Nyama Choma.
- 1 -2 kg beef (or zebra), suitable for roasting
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 -2 lemon, juice of
- curry powder, to taste
- turmeric, to taste
- coriander, to taste, fresh finely chopped
- paprika, to taste
- salt and black pepper, to taste
- Combine the lemon juice, garlic and spices (to suit your taste) into a large glass dish and mix very well.
- Add the meat and stir to coat the meat with the marinade and allow to marinade for at least one hour.
- Preheat the oven to 450F
- Set meat on a hot pan over the stove and sear the outside. Do not cool long, maybe only 30 seconds to a minute each side.
- Transfer the meat to the oven.
- Cook the meat for 3 minutes, flip it and cook it for 3 more minutes.
- The meat should be done when it has a temp of 135F
Slimy, yet Satisfying Grub
I don’t get why Simba chose the biggest fattest bug in the pile. But I commend him for eating the bugs.
(Credit: Disney)
Also, I did it, I ate some bugs. I had some shipped from Thailand and I ate them just to appease all of you. Spoiler: It wasn’t slimy OR satisfying.
But to further appease all of you, I made something that is actually slimy and satisfying. Some home-made gummy worms!
- 2 pkg 3 oz raspberry jello (or other flavored)
- 2-3 oz unflavored gelatin
- 3/4 c whipping cream
- 3 c boiling water
- 1 tbs lime juice
- 4 tbs sugar (divided)
- 1 tbs lemon rind (fine) (or 1 1/2 tsp lemon juice)
- 15 drops green food coloring
- 100ish flexible straws
- 1 tall container
- Combine gelatin and 1 tbs sugar in bowl
- Add boiling water.
- Let it cool to lukewarm and then add the whipping cream, lime juice and 15 drops green food coloring.
- Flex out the straws and place them in a tall, tight container. It helps to place a rubber band around.
- Pour the gelatin mixture into the straws
- Refrigerate for 3+ hours
- Use a rolling pin to squeeze the gummy worms out, or you can try holding the straw under warm water.
- Once all worms have been taken out of the straws, place into a container.
- Mix the remaining sugar and lemon rind until they make a uniform mixture
- Sprinkle the worms
- Enjoy
Baobab Fruit (Pomegranate)
No recipe here, but just for your info, the fruit that Rafiki has is called a Baobab fruit.
(Credit: Disney)
I couldn’t come by one. So I ate pomegranate, because it looks similar to the fruit in the movie.
Dress in Drag and do the Hula
Luau! If you’re hungry for hunk of fat and juicy meat,
Eat my buddie Pumbaa here cuz he is a treat! A hundred dollar dine, a tasty swine,
all you gotta do is get in line. Are ya achin’?
Yup Yup Yup
For some bacon?
Yup Yup Yup
He’s a big pig, You can be a big pig too! Oy!
This may be morbid, but I actually cooked some nice Hawaiian-style pork. No regrets. It was one of, if not the best meal that I’ve made.
- 1 bone-in pork shoulder butt roast (4-5 pounds)
- 4 teaspoons liquid smoke
- 4 teaspoons soy sauce
- 2 unpeeled ripe bananas
- 1/2 cup water
- Place the roast on a 22x18-in. piece of heavy-duty foil;
- Sprinkle with liquid smoke and soy sauce.
- Wash bananas and place at the base of each side of roast.
- Pull sides of foil up round meat; add water.
- Seal foil tightly; wrap again with another large piece of foil.
- Place in a shallow baking pan; refrigerate overnight, turning several times.
- Place foil-wrapped meat in a roasting pan.
- Bake at 400° for 1 hour.
- Reduce heat to 325°; continue baking for 3-1/2 hours.
- Drain; discard bananas and liquid. Shred meat with a fork.
- Serve over rice
Will it Make you Part of the Circle of Life?
The recipes this week went all over the place. I had some of the best food and worst food and some medium food in there. I definitely don’t want to eat bugs again, but I’m sure there will come another movie with bugs. Sigh….
Verdict:
Nyama Choma – 7/10
Bugs – 1/10
Gummy Worms – 7/10
Hawaiian pork – 10/10
That Nyama Choma looks amazing. Is there any particular/traditional way you serve it?
I’m not sure. I got the idea for the recipe from a friend that used to live in Kenya. But I just looked online and here’s a video of a traditional way to eat it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGtpk_jftEo
Now I’m stick over what to try first, Mr. Pig or Goucho Goofy Asado. Which one was better?
Oh man, I don’t know. They were both delicious. I would probably say Mr. Pig, but my wife would say the asado. You really can’t go wrong.
Actually, there was an easy way to get around the bugs part: after Timon ate one he said it tasted like chicken. So chicken nuggets and/or chicken tenders (depending on the size of the ‘bug’ you want) would’ve been a good substitute.
I’ve been working on a list of Disney movie-themed film days and that’s what I decided to do for The Lion King theme, with other meat pieces and dips being used to make the nuggets and tenders look more like bugs.