World’s Strangest Delicacies

By Queuebot in Food & Drink on Mar 11, 2010 at 1:26 pm

Every culture has some traditional dishes that make those from elsewhere cringe. The author of this post heard from quite a few people in India that pizza is clearly disgusting! Here are some other offbeat delicacies from around the world. I think I would have to try some of these before I make a judgement. For example, in Iceland, you may encounter Hákarl, or rotten shark.

Typically, a Greenland or basking shark is the Hákarl shark of choice. First, gut and behead it. Next, place it in a shallow hole, dug in gravelly-sand, then cover it with the sand and gravel. Place stones on top of the sand in order to press the shark and extract any fluids out of the body. Allow the shark to ferment for 6-12 weeks. Following the curing period, cut the shark into strips and hang them to dry for several months. During this drying period a brown crust will develop. Remove the crust prior to cutting the shark into small pieces and presto, ready to serve.

From the Upcoming ueue, submitted by mrmunchies.

Tags: Food, insects, seal, shark, World

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Splint Chesthair
Mar 11th, 2010 at 1:41 pm
I’ve had gator. Not bad.
Dunn
Mar 11th, 2010 at 5:28 pm
Gordon Ramsay puked after eating the shark
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vTOfhQ_SZEg
people
Mar 11th, 2010 at 6:23 pm
As an Icelander I can’t state this often enough:
Gordon Ramsay is a uterus.
Geekazoid
Mar 11th, 2010 at 8:18 pm
I can’t remember which one of the Travel channel hosts liked it and which one didn’t like the putrid shark. I think Zimmern thought it tasted alright, and Bourdain didn’t like it.
Bentobochs
Mar 11th, 2010 at 9:45 pm
Lived in Iceland for 3 years. Tried it a couple of times. Has a surprising pungent ammonia/disinfectant taste to it. Definitely an acquired taste. Zimmern had a great time in Iceland; Bourdain not so much.
LisaL
Mar 11th, 2010 at 11:55 pm
I would love to try gator at least once. Heard it’s actually pretty tastey, although eating a reptile is kind of weird to me.
Evilbeagle
Mar 12th, 2010 at 5:42 am
Gator is my favorite meat. Pure white and tender, it is something special when done right.
PT
Mar 12th, 2010 at 9:25 am
Got a Filipino guy here at work who eats chicken babies, from eggs. Says they’re crunchy…
GailW
Mar 12th, 2010 at 10:26 am
Gross food is just that: Gross.
TimO
Mar 12th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
I love it when they use the word “ferment” instead of the reality: “rot”
gryt
Mar 12th, 2010 at 1:20 pm
TimO: Fermentation and rotting are two different things. Look it up.
Frau
Mar 12th, 2010 at 1:59 pm
@ PT – your Filipino co-worker is eating Balut. Baby ducks though.
dooflotchie
Mar 12th, 2010 at 4:45 pm
And what was I eating when I read this?

Pizza!
Evilbeagle
Mar 13th, 2010 at 9:26 am
What’s gross to some is delicious to others. It’s all subjective.
Tempscire
Mar 13th, 2010 at 6:26 pm
Gator meat is a “rare delicacy”? Pshaw.
Scooter
Mar 15th, 2010 at 1:22 pm
I love Gator tail batter dipped and deep fried… YUM.
Blather
Mar 15th, 2010 at 3:59 pm
I find Mayo, Ketchup, and Mustard to be more gross than Many of the bugs i have eaten. Meal worms taste almost exactly like pistachio nuts.

Also certain things that people find gross are things that were on every dinner plate 100 years ago. The ONLY reasons we don’t eat them today is that they are hard to prepare or hard to ship and preserve.

Read a good cookbook from before 1920 and you will find a lot of things that people just throw away now.
Blather
Mar 15th, 2010 at 4:00 pm
BTW – there really are only two kinds of eaters. Those that know they have eaten bugs and those that think they haven’t eaten bugs.
Ilan Ben Menachem
Mar 18th, 2010 at 1:56 pm
Gator is meat. Pure white and tender, it is something special when done right. But i do not like meat.

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