Papky

Although multiculturalism is wonderful in things
like fashion and the arts, some differences are
more difficult to embrace than others. Take food
for example. Jeffrey Dryfoos, who publishes
food magazines, including Dessert Professional,
has prepared a sample menu of ten edibles from
around the world that make RadarOnline’s list
of the world’s most disgusting food!

1. Escamoles: Mexico
You won’t find this at Taco Bell (we hope):
eggs of the large, black, venomous Liometopum
ant, sometimes called ‘insect caviar.’ They
have the texture of cottage cheese and are
often eaten in tacos with guacamole

2. Casu Marzu: Sardinia, Italy
The eggs of the Piophila casei, or ‘cheese fly’
are put in sheep milk cheese. The larvae eat it,
the acid from their digestive system makes the
cheese softer. By the time Casu Marzu is ready
to be eaten and will contain thousands of maggots!

3. Lutefisk: Norway
Codfish which has been soaked in lye for two days
a substance so corrosive that it can disintegrate
silver utensils. A long cold water bath helps to
dilute the stuff, but still… Another reason to
avoid: if the fish is soaked for too long, the
fat turns to soap

4. Baby Mice Wine: Korea
A traditional Asian ‘health tonic’ in which
live mice are shoved inside a bottle of rice
Wine and left to ferment. It supposedly tastes
like gasoline.

5. Pacha: Iraq
Simply put, it’s a boiled sheep’s head. The
wool-less treat is supposed to be picked
clean, leaving only the skull

6. Balut: The Philippines
Fertilized duck egg containing a nearly grown
fetus, which is then boiled and eaten in the
shell. It’s generally believed to be an aphrodisiac
and a good source of protein.

7. Tarantula: Cambodia
The giant spiders are cooked whole, and everything
from their hairy legs to their fangs are eaten.
Ketchup, anyone?

8. Kopi Luwak Coffee: Asia
Beverage made from coffee berries which have
been eaten and passed through the digestive tract
of the Asian Palm Civet, a cat-sized mammal.
The berries are retrieved from the animal’s feces.
Why, you ask? The stomach enzymes break down the
protein and make the coffee less bitter. Kopi Luwak
is the priciest coffee in the world, going for from
$100 to $600 per pound

9. Beef Tripe: global
The edible guts of a butchered cow. We’re not
talking liver, here: it’s usually made from
the first three chambers of the cow’s stomach.
Which means, as a bonus, you get whatever grass
and stuff the cow’s belly has absorbed. Yum.

10. Monkey brains: China
Rumored to be cure for impotence, the practice
of eating this delicacy appears to have come
from watching chimpanzees do it in the wild.
Some folks choose to eat them live, with the
monkey’s head held immobile in the center of
a small table.

11. Sago Worms: New Guinea
Plump, yellowish g
rubs that are eaten either
cooked or alive, and are said to taste like
bacon. We’ll take their word for it.