Do you love adventure and exploring unique foods from different cultures worldwide? Out here, extraordinary flavors might make you question your culinary knowledge. From indigenous to exotic, familiar to unconventional, the world has evolved into a buffet of intriguing delicacies.
Let’s take you on a surprisingly pleasant and odd odyssey across cultures and catch a glimpse of some quirky foods that might intrigue your tastebuds.
7 of the strangest foods in the world
1. Balut, Philippines
Balut is a popular delicacy among Filipinos. It is made from fertilized, half-hatched duck eggs. The eggs are left to hatch for about two to three weeks. They are then boiled and eaten with the little duckling inside as you would hard-boiled eggs.
Traditionally, balut is seasoned with salt, vinegar, and chili. To properly eat it, one should make a small hole at the top of the egg, suck out the liquids, remove the shells, and eat the rest of the components.
It is commonly served as a street food in the Philippines and an appetizer in restaurants.
2. Century eggs, China
Century eggs are a Chinese delicacy invented about 600 years ago during the Ming Dynasty.
They are also commonly known as a hundred-year eggs or thousand-year eggs. People believe that these eggs were invented out of the need to preserve eggs for a long period of time.
The eggs are made by completely covering them with a mixture of wood ash, salt, quicklime, and clay. They are then left for four to five weeks or even several months. The eggs will not spoil because they are well-preserved in the clay mixture.
With time, the egg white will turn dark brown or black, while the yolk will turn green. They are seasoned with soy sauce and eaten as an appetizer. Sometimes, they are served with a type of rice porridge called congee.
Century eggs have a smooth, creamy, and salty texture.
3. Casu marzu, Italy
Have you ever heard of maggot cheese? In Italy, a rare type of cheese made from sheep’s milk is left outside so that the cheese fly Piophila casei can lay eggs on it. The fly lays approximately 500 eggs at once.
When the eggs hatch, the larvae feed on the cheese, releasing an acid that softens the cheese. At this point, the cheese is ready for consumption together with the larvae.
Casu marzu is also known as rotten cheese and is only considered safe if the maggots are alive. This cheese is rare, and it has been banned in all the European Union countries due to its potential health hazards. However, it is produced in secret in some areas.
4. Sannakji , South Korea
Sannakji, which translates to “baby octopus,” is a South Korean delicacy in which live baby octopus tentacles are sliced, seasoned with sesame oil, and served. This delicacy has made it into the books of the most dangerous foods because the suckers on the tentacles can get stuck to your throat as you try to swallow them and cause death by asphyxiation.
About six people choke and die every year while attempting to feast on this wonder food.
5. Mopane worms, South Africa
Mopane worms, or simply caterpillars, are a delicacy in South Africa. They are usually harvested twice a year, at the beginning and the end of the rainy season. After harvesting, the worms are squeezed to remove the gut contents, cleaned, boiled, and dried.
They are fried in a spicy sauce or peanut sauce and can be served with pap (maize flour meal) or eaten as a snack. Mopane worms are sold at the local markets in South Africa, Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
6. Sourtoe cocktail, Canada
Hailing from Dawson City, Yukon, the sourtoe cocktail is just a simple shot of whiskey or a mixture of any of your favorite spirits, but with a mandatory additional ingredient — a mummified human toe.
You can choose to sip your drink slowly or take one huge sip, but the catch is that your lips must touch the toe.
In 2013, a man was excommunicated from the town for swallowing the toe on purpose, but he eventually returned and asked for forgiveness.
7. Cobra heart, Vietnam
This exotic food is also known as “the dish for the brave-hearted.” The snake is slaughtered in your presence, and its beating heart is removed. The heart is then placed in a glass with a shot of warm, fresh blood from the cobra. You then drink it and chew away or swallow the whole beating heart.
Drinking snake blood and eating its heart is said to aid in energy production and sexual prowess. Maybe the more of the snake you consume, the more energy.
You can then choose how you want your snake meat prepared, and there you are.
Bon appetit
As weird as these foods may seem, they are quite familiar among the communities that consume them. Most of these foods are indigenous to these areas, while some are exotic, brought about by traders and explorers.
Approaching with an educated perspective and guidance from locals allows you to move beyond the initial reactions of shock or disgust. If you visit one of the mentioned places, try their local unique food and have the experience of a lifetime.
