But it wasn't just the ancients who enjoyed a steaming bowl of rodent stew. Many Americans today eat squirrels cousins to the furry heroes who saved sailors with their meat and made emperors call for more. It's not easy making mincemeat of a rattlesnake. The snake's many tiny ribs make the meat hard to extract. And a six-pound snake might have only a pound or so of meat on its body.
Chefs cook the snake, skeleton and all.
Next they hand-peel the meat from the bones. Then they add spices and arrange the meat on a bed of mixed greens, crafting the snake into a delightful eating experience. Bacteria make your feet stink and give cheese its odor. Some of the bacteria in cheese are the same as the ones that live in your body to help digest food. Cheese makers use an enzyme from animals' stomach linings to curdle milk.