The Nastiest Foods around the World is a list of some of the world’s most awful foods which no one could have imagined edible let alone taste them. It is quite odd and disgusting what people from different corners of the world consider as food: the special combos, and weird mix of ingredients just to create a new delicacy are all overwhelming.
In this piece, we are going to be looking at the nastiest foods around the world.
The Nastiest Foods around the World.
-
Bull penis
Many cultures believe that by eating penis, of any kind, imbues the diner with virility, health and power, but most simply as a source of lean protein. Bull, ox, yak and buffalo are among the most common eaten, particularly in eastern cultures, including China, and notably Beijing. There is a restaurant in the capital, called Guolizhuang, dedicated to serving penises of all kinds, from bull and buffalo to seal and snake. According to those familiar with the delicacy, penis tends to taste tough and sinewy, and benefits from being braised or slow cooked. It is one of the the nastiest foods around the world.
-
Casu Marzu (Maggot Cheese)
Casu marzu, translated literally as “rotten/putrid cheese, is the world’s nastiest cheese and could also be considered one of the nastiest foods around the world.
The Sardinian specialty is made from Pecorino cheese that intently becomes the natural breeding grounds for maggots. The top of the sheep cheese block is removed like a lid so that flies lay eggs inside. The larvae of cheese flies is burrowing around and digesting the fats. The process of fermentation is so advanced that it’s close to decomposition and the cheese is developing a soft, liquid texture.
Although this is a generations old culinary delicacy with roots in familial history it does not meet the modern norm of sanitation and declared illegal.
-
Balut
Balut is a partially developed chicken or, most commonly, duck embryo, boiled alive and eaten straight from the shell.
This Philippines most famous and iconic delicacy is prepared on special occasion and religious festivals but can also be found at street vendors as it’s a much sought dish by tourists.
To eat Balut you are supposed to tap a hole on the top, slurp the liquid interior with salt and vinegar and then, if you can pass off the little duck face inside, you crunch down the bones, feather and all that’s left.
This staple dish is a favorite among local beer drinkers and is also believed to have aphrodisiac powers. This is one of the nastiest foods around the world.
-
Hákarl (Decomposed Shark Carcass)
Among the nastiest foods around the world is Hakarl, a decomposed shark carcass that tastes like strong cheese and smells like urine.
It was invented by the Vikings in a time they had to conserve as much food as possible. They developed a preservation technique that is still used today.
Greenland shark is very toxic to humans so they have to bury it underneath the rocks and sand which presses away the poisonous fluids (the uric acid and the trimethylamine oxide that is). The flesh is left to ferment from 6 to 12 weeks and then is dig up and hang to dry for several months.
The first encounter with hákarl is a full-on assault to the nostrils from a putrid smell so the bold tourists that dare to sample it are advised to hold their breath and try not to gag at the taste of one of the most rancid things on planet earth.
-
Virgin Boy Eggs
This highly anticipated Chinese spring delicacy, one of the nastiest foods around the world, favored by locals, combines eggs with one key ingredient: boy’s urine preferably aged 10 or younger.
Buckets of boys’ urine are collected from primary school toilets in the area and the whole process of cooking takes an entire day.
First, raw eggs are soaked and boiled in the golden ingredient before the shells are cracked and left to shimmer for a few more hours.
You can buy them from the street vendors but locals make them on their home too. According to the tradition this unusual method of cooking the eggs has some health benefits like: promoting better blood circulation, preventing heat stroke and reinvigorate one’s body.
-
Warthog Anus
This one got Anthony Bourdain to his limits and he’s known for eating about everything that he was dared to. He did ate it, there’s no question about it but gracefully declared it was the “worst mean of my life”.
Not that you’re into the detailed recipe but to cook the warthog anus you have to pull it with the last one foot intestine attached, squeeze the feces out and then throw it in the open fire.
Don’t mind the ash and dirt; it’s a part of the process. This is one food you would like to be well cooked but actually it must be al dente and being served right away. This too is among the nastiest foods around the world.
-
Cobra Heart
You have to be heartless to slight open a struggling live snake and a brave heart to try this Vietnamese odd food.
OK, enough with the heart jokes but why on the earth eating a beating cobra heart? It seems that man will do anything to acquire more virility.
Being so popular in Vietnam many restaurants have captive cobras for customers to choose from. If you make up your mind to embrace virility go for the shorter and thicker one with a feisty attitude. The heart is cut off and dropped in a shot glass of rice wine and snake blood. Bottoms up, enjoy the drink and feel the beating hart getting down your throat.
And this is far from being over. The good intended Vietnamese are still offering shots of drinks. One is made from the bile and rice wine and the other with venom alone. If there are no cuts in the mouth you are safe to drink it as the stomach will process the venom just fine and only kills you if it’s getting straight into the blood. Now begins the saga when every part of the cobra is being processed and served.
-
Worm Pretzels
If you are a New Yorker without trying this squiggly snack first, you need to work more on yourself then.
Wormzel is a new creation by Gene Rurka, an ecologically-minded exotic-food chef and former chairman of Explorers Club. He concocted the menu for the 100th anniversary Black Tie Gala, legendary for their unusual appetizers served every year. To make the special pretzel he sizzles a dehydrated earthworm contorted in that particular shape and sells them in New Jersey. This is also among the nastiest foods around the world.
-
Pidan (Rotten Eggs)
More commonly known as century egg, black egg or millennial egg is a rotten egg that stinks like sulfur.
They are covered in salt, clay and ashes and left 100 days to “cook” on its own. The yolk turns to dark green with a soft gooey center and the egg white is a translucent gelatin resembling soy sauce.
Sounds appealing? It is said that it tastes just like hard-boiled egg only a dozen times greater as the flavor is supercharged.
Century eggs are being around as far as the Ming dynasty but the story of how it was discovered is uncertain. Supposedly a man found some duck eggs submerged in slaked lime and despite their appearance he did think it was a good idea to try one.
Well he did live to tell the story and Chinese people really love it. The eggs too.
-
Black Pudding
This blood sauce is more common and widely appreciated at the same time as some consider the idea revolting. Black Pudding originates from the UK and Ireland and it’s made from pork blood with pork fat or beef suet mixed with oats or barley and perfectly seasoned with thyme, mint, marjoram and spices.
At the beginning blood from sheep and cow was also used and the nobility only ate Back Puddling made from porpoise, an aquatic marine mammal.
In some parts of England a boiled Black Pudding is consumed as a complete meal with bread or potatoes but in some other parts, Ireland including, a traditional full breakfast has fried or grilled slices.
Novel culinary uses bits of this delicacy on top of ice creams naming them after it and they look just like chocolate chip. There is even a festival held for the ancestor of all sausages. Among the nastiest foods around the world is this.
