Every country has it's own traditional ideas when it comes to food. Some of these food choices can seem strange, or just downright disgusting. Even here in North America we eat some rather poignant dishes. Here are 10 dishes from around the world that would make even the staunchest person shiver a little bit.
1. Tete de Veau
Tete de veau, or calf's head in English, is a French delicacy that can take between 5 - 7 hours to properly prepare. The meat is supposed to be extremely tender and flavorful, but for most North Americans we wouldn't be able to get past what we are actually eating.
2. Soup #5
You might be asking yourself why this dish is named, Soup #5? Well, a lot of restaurants might find it difficult to sell this particular menu item if they called it was it truly is, a soup made with bull balls and bull penis. It's a Filipino dish that allegedly has healing and aphrodisiac properties.
3. Sour-toe cocktail
The Downtown Hotel, in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada, is not for the faint of heart. If you head over to the Sourdough Saloon and ask for Captain River Rat, you are on you way to joining the Sour-toe Cocktail Club. One ounce of any liquor you want, plus one authentic dehydrated toe. The only rule is that your lips must touch the toe.
4. Wasp Crackers
The name says it all. This Japanese style rice cracker does in fact have wasps added to the dough. No one really knows how this particular dish came into creation, but I think a lot of people would be taking a hard pass on this cracker. Supposedly, they're not nearly as bad as you would think they are.
5. Deep Fried Tarantula
Apparently Cambodians have never heard of arachnophobia. Fried spiders, specifically tarantulas, are considered a delicacy and are often sold by street vendors to curious tourists. No thank you, with a side of order of nope.
6. Guinea Pig
Guinea pigs are no longer just those useless, nervous little rodents that you keep in cages for your children to play with and forget about a week later. In Peru, they are considered a delicacy called cuy. More people seem to be eating the furry little rodents, but in 2013, over 80 people fell sick after eating the meat at a Minnesota food festival.
7. Jellied Moose Nose
Up in Canada they have their own version of "head cheese". This particular loaf is made from boiled moose nose, gelatin and other various spices. As a whole loaf it looks disgusting, but this is one of those times where you can't knock it until you try it.
8. Pickled Pigs Feet
You can buy this delicacy out of the southern United States on Amazon. Pigs feet are salted and smoked before being dropped in a hot vinegar brine so that they will be preserved without the need for refrigeration until the bottle has been opened. Not sure how I feel about this, but I don't think I will be trying them anytime soon.
9. Rocky Mountain Oysters
On the surface, rocky mountain oysters actually look quite delicious once they have been fried up and served with a side order of marinara. But once you find out they are the skinned testicles from bulls, pigs, or sheep, you kind of lose your interest in trying this North American cultural food.
10. Milt (Shirako)
I may think that I could try everything at least once, but I think that I will pass on milt, or shirako as it is known in eastern culture. Essentially, it is fish sperm sprayed onto eggs and then consumed. I don't really care how you try and cook that, it's not getting anywhere near my plate.
What is the strangest thing that you have ever eaten?