This world is officially too big for me now. Would I have ever imagined I’m living on the same galactic system as the folk that love fermenting rotten fish in its own juices, and then just pop it like a snack, with beer on the side? No! But, lo and behold, we have found a list of some of the craziest and downright rancid delicacies from around the world that you’re going to need divine intervention to be able to stomach.
1. Hákarl
An Icelandic creation, Hákarl is a pretty nasty affair. It’s rotten fish. That’s right, I’m starting with something that’s pretty rancid. Considered to be of Viking descent, the dish, if I’m allowed to call it so, is basically the meat of sleeper sharks, buried underground in gravel and rocks, and left to its own juices for three to four months. I want to see if I can get drunk on this stuff.
2. Bird’s nest soup
This South East Asian soup is literally made out of a bird’s nest. The nest of the swiftlet bird, to be more specific. Swiftlets build nests out of its own saliva – a thick fluid that dries up into a solid, disgusting mass. It’s basically a spit soup, that looks like belly fat, and tastes like rubber (according to many accounts).
3. Shiokara
Japanese people are the best. No argument. If you’ve got a dish with raw pieces of meaty bits from various marine animals in a soupy mixture of their own fermented insides, you’re a boss. It’s basically throw up, served with a side steamed rice. What more do you want?
4. Haggis
Another one speculated to have come from Nordic folk, this Scottish delicacy is basically a combination of the sheep’s pluck (its heart, liver and lungs), minced with assorted ingredients like onions and suet. All of this is then cooked inside an animal’s stomach, in fact, also served inside it. Wash it down with some scotch, why don’t you?
5. Stinkheads
Coolest name ever! Stinkheads, more clinically called fermented fish, are the heads of the King Salmon fish that are fermented and left underground for a couple of weeks – till it into turns into a stinky head basically. The mushy and extremely pungent head is then enjoyed to its fullest by batshit crazy Alaskan folk.
6. Dried Starfish
China strikes, this time with dried seafood, and more popularly, starfish. You can’t just bite into this one. The objective is to break off the legs, and peel the skin, so as to get to the good, green, slimy, meaty bit. I dare you…I double dare you.
7. Shirako
The Japanese are back again, and this time with fish sperm. No, I didn’t stutter. Shirako is an apparently nice sushi topped with the sperm sac of cod. You could have the jizz either steamed or fried. So, do you spit or swallow?
8. Khash
This middle eastern delicacy has been around for ages, and is quite popular, as a matter of fact. Khash is primarily, stewed cow’s or sheep’s feet and head. Other more delicious parts like the stomach are also thrown into the concoction. Although, a pretty popular dish, there’s a good chance you might have trouble keeping the traditional version of the stew down.
9. Bushmeat
Sustenance to those in remote areas and a delicacy to the privileged, African bushmeat is basically game meat that includes everything from reptiles to chimpanzees. Bushmeat is a really bad idea, primarily because it’s been considered responsible for having spread the Ebola virus, small pox, and everything else in-between.
10. Casu Marzu
This Italian delicacy is famously called ‘maggot cheese’; no points for guessing why. Traditionally a Sardinian dish, it’s basically sheep’s milk cheese onto which you throw on some juicy insect larva, and let them go to town on it. Considered to enhance the flavour, the maggots have been known to also survive the stomach if swallowed, and then they latch on to the intestines. Food suicide: check.