Can You Brave These Abnormal Eats?
One of the most exciting parts of travelling is treating your taste buds to exotic dishes around the world. There is, of course, a flip side to experiencing new cuisines though. Some dishes that are considered to be delicacies in certain parts of the world are seen as bizarre or downright nasty by tourists. We compiled a list of 30 of the strangest ones, but be warned: finish eating before you read.
30. Deep Fried Tarantula - Cambodia
In all honesty, it looks (and sounds) a lot worse than it actually tastes. Caught up in the midst of an adventurous mood, we tucked into a deep-fried tarantula in Siem Reap and were pleasantly surprised. It tasted like hairy chicken to us! We learned afterwards that we had more than likely eaten a bunch of spider eggs and excrement, though.
29. Sannakji - South Korea
Sannakji has become a must-try dish for any adventurous foodie visiting South Korea, especially while at the bustling Noryangjin Fish Market in Seoul. Sannakji is essentially live octopus. Severed tentacles are served writhing on the plate, often accompanied by a side salad and dipping sauces.
28. Haggis - Scotland
There aren’t many things more Scottish than haggis: the heart, lungs and liver of a sheep mixed with onions and spices. It's then stuffed inside the animal’s stomach and it sounds offal to us…
27. Century Egg - China
Despite the name, century eggs are not preserved for one hundred years. In reality, the eggs are preserved in a saline solution for a few weeks or months. (Is that any better though?) During the preservation process, the yolk takes on a creamy texture while the whites turn into a dark jelly. We'll stick with scrambled eggs, thanks.
26. Wasp Crackers - Japan
We're not sure what’s wrong with an ordinary biscuit or cracker, but over in Japan they thought something was missing. They added wasps! Imagine dunking one of these in your cup of tea!
25. Escamoles - Mexico
Most people have heard of caviar, the delicacy made from fish eggs, but we bet that most haven't heard of the ant equivalent. Escamoles is a dish made from ant larvae and pupae. It’s not just any ant either, the larvae are collected from the nests of the velvety tree ant, referred to locally as the ‘farty ant.’ The dish is most commonly prepared by frying the larvae with onion and chili before serving in tacos.
24. Escargots - France
Snails cooked in a garlic, white wine and butter sauce, served in their original shells. Escargots are pretty well known, but that doesn’t mean they’re not weird!
Marianne Casamance on Wikimedia
23. Fugu - Japan
There’s adventurous eating and then there’s eating something that can literally end your life. The Japanese delicacy of Fugu, or blowfish, is more poisonous than cyanide and can prove fatal if not properly prepared. As if being a chef wasn’t already stressful enough!
22. Bird’s Nest Soup - China
From a dish that can be fatal for the consumer, to a dish that can be fatal for those collecting the ingredients, bird’s nest soup is an expensive delicacy in China. It's made from the high-protein nest of the Swiftlet bird. The nests are usually built high up on the face of cliffs and harvesting them is extremely dangerous.
Robert Staudhammer from Earth on Wikimedia
21. Frog’s Legs - France
Frog’s legs, or cuisses de grenouilles, to give their proper name, are to the French as chicken wings are to North Americans. The most basic recipe involves cooking the legs in a butter, garlic and parsley mixture and serving them with fries.
20. Rocky Mountain Oysters - America
Despite the name, this dish doesn’t come from the ocean. Quite far from it in fact. Rocky Mountain oysters are deep-fried bull's...well, you know. You’d have to have some serious ones to try these for yourself.
19. Balut - The Philippines
Balut is probably the most gruesome dish on this entire list. It’s a hard-boiled egg with a partially formed duck fetus inside. The fetus is allowed to grow enough to develop distinct features and body parts before it is hard-boiled and consumed as a quick snack.
Marshall Astor from San Pedro, United States on Wikimedia
18. Dragon in the Flame of Desire - China
It sounds like a low budget martial arts movie, but Dragon in the Flame of Desire is actually the cooked member of a yak. Visit Beijing’s Guo-li-zhuang restaurant to find it along with an assortment of other similar dishes.
17. Casu Marzu - Sardinia
We like cheese as much as the next person, but Casu Marzu is just too much for us. Traditionally made on the island of Sardinia, Casu Marzu is sheep’s milk cheese containing live cheese fly larvae. This cheese is actually classified as illegal. Quite rightly, in our opinion.
16. Cuy - Peru
One man's pet is another man's dinner. That’s the case with guinea pigs in Peru, anyway. The little critters are farmed for meat and served in a variety of ways, including roasted whole.
15. Shirako - Japan
Shirako is a Japanese delicacy comprised of a fish’s sac, usually that of a cod fish. The creamy sac can be served fried, or lightly grilled as a topping for sushi. Seriously, who came up with this? And why?!
14. The Heart of a Cobra - Vietnam
We've witnessed this being prepared and consumed, and we can tell you that it’s even worse than it sounds. A live cobra is cut open. Its heart is extracted and placed in a shot glass. The gruesome shot is then downed in one as the heart continues to beat.
13. Yin-Yang Fish - China
Ok, maybe we were wrong about the Balut. Yin-yang fish might take the crown of most gruesome dish to appear on this list. A wet cloth is placed around a fish’s to keep it alive while it’s body is cooked. The animal often writhes on the plate as it is consumed. This dish has come under heavy scrutiny by animal activist groups in recent years, and it’s not hard to see why.
12. Airag – Mongolia
Time to break up the list of weird foods with a weird drink. Airag is a traditional Mongolian beverage made by mixing fermented horse milk in a cow skin bag. Oh, and it’s ever so slightly alcoholic too! Win, win.
11. Tuna Eyeballs – Japan
There’s really not much to say. They’re the eyeballs of tuna fish cut out and packaged like any other kind of meat, and we're staying well away from them.
10. Chicken’s Feet – Asia, South America and the Caribbean
We used to work in a pet shop that sold chicken’s feet as a treat for dogs. It wasn’t until we started travelling that we realized they’re a tasty little treat for people all over the world too.
9. Black Pudding - The UK
The name is misleading, as it’s not a pudding at all. Black pudding, or blood sausage, is made by mixing blood, fat and oatmeal, before stuffing it into a sausage-like casing and frying it. No full English breakfast is complete without black pudding, if you ask us.
8. Fried Rat - Various Countries in Asia
If you’re buying skewered meat from a street vendor in countries such as Laos or China, make sure to confirm what meat you’re actually about to consume. We learned that fried rat skewers look a lot like chicken meat skewers the hard way.
7. Stinkheads – Alaska
Stinkheads is the nickname of a traditional Alaskan dish, which involves cutting the heads off of fish and burying them in the ground along with their guts until they’re deemed ready to eat. Which would be never for us, thanks.
6. Smalahove - Norway
Forget turkey with all the trimmings on Christmas day. How does a whole roasted sheep’s head sound? Smalahove is served on Christmas day in Norway and it’s recommended that you eat the eyes first...while they’re still warm.
5. Hákarl - Iceland
Ever wondered what fermented, rotting shark tastes like? Like urine. Do you want to try it? Then head over to Iceland. They use Greenland sharks, whose flesh is actually poisonous, but don’t worry, the toxins seep out during the fermenting process.
Audrey from Seattle, USA on Wikimedia
4. Kopi Luwak - Southeast Asia
If you thought that the hipster ordering a venti soy quadruple shot latte with no foam was a little over the top, then get a load of this. Kopi Luwak is made from coffee beans that have been eaten, digested and excreted by palm civet cats. Oh, did we mention that it’s the world’s most expensive coffee too? You’ll have to splash out USD$100 for a mere pound of it.
3. Khash - Armenia
During the cold winter months, many Armenians turn to Khash for a heartwarming meal. The dish can be prepared to individual tastes and recipes but the key ingredients, boiled cow's or sheep’s head and feet, are a must.
2. Witchetty Grub - Australia
If you ever find yourself in the Australian outback and fancy a quick snack, indulge in some traditional ‘bushtucker’ cuisine. You can knock back some juicy witchetty grubs, otherwise known as the larvae of moths.
1. Marmite - The UK
‘Love it or hate it’, is the official slogan of Marmite, and it certainly divides opinion. The brown, gooey spread is made with yeast leftover from brewing beer and has a very pungent smell. We're in the ‘hate it’ camp.
