Eating the placenta could be considered delicacy, often reserved for new moms looking to benefit from all the rich goodness that our afterbirth contains. You could eat it raw, in a smoothie, cook it up with some pasta sauce, or have it in pill form. I'm not sure it could ever be called delicious, but nutritious, yes. Still, it's often something for new mothers, and maybe for fathers who are adventurous eaters. Or maybe there is more to it than that.
New dad Nick Baines decided to eat his wife's placenta. It's what gave his child life, after all. If it was good enough for his kid, it's good enough for him. So first he tried some in a smoothie, and then he made some in a taco.
There are people reading this right now and cringing, but what Nick decided to do is beautiful. I see it as another way to bond the family. Perhaps not the most traditional way, or not a very popular way, but a way. And if Nick wants to eat some placenta, then placenta he shall have.
It turns out that this dad has been thinking about his chance to eat human placenta since he and his wife first began talking about having a child. He calls himself "inquisitively omnivorous." Maybe you call it weird. But there's something incredibly romantic about a man wanting to eat his wife's placenta. He's choosing to make something that was a part of her body, a part of his child's life force, and making it a part of his own. There is something undeniable spiritual about it. There is also something undeniably difficult about it since the placenta has a strong, blood mineral taste and masking it isn't easy to do. And because this man clearly loves food, he made a taco out of it. Which, he felt, was the best idea since the smoothie didn't go down all that smoothly.
The taco, however, diced with some garlic and paprika was "actually pretty good." Nick said:
As I seasoned it on the chopping board, the bright, almost glowing red chunk of placenta was more attractive than many cuts of offal I've dealt with, and looked quite appetising. The meat was rich, with a beef-like quality. It was tender, kind of like roast brisket and not dissimilar to Texas BBQ.
He sure has a way with words. And a way with placenta. So it's not going to increase his milk supply, but it could help with his energy level, an iron deficiency if he has one, and his mood. It could also most definitely make him one of the more adventurous dads out there, and make him bonded with his family in a way some would never consider. And for that reason alone -- worth it.
Would you eat placenta? Would your child's father?
Image via Jonny Hunter/Flickr