Hands down, Asian countries deliver some of the best and most amazing delicacies (no bias here, promise). There is no doubt we Asians can offer somewhat peculiar and rather tabooed dishes too. If you’re a lover of pigs intestines, durians, stinky tofu, and even bitter bean(petai), then you’re not weird to us; you’re just a typical Asian person. Some food, however, may seem impossible to eat even for an Asian person. If you were offered a large sum of money to eat the weirdest and bizarre food without having to throw up, would you? I know I wouldn’t. With this list, you’ll definitely say no too, unless it’s a million bucks! Teehee!
1.Tarantulas (Cambodia)
Do you fear these eight-legged creatures, with their creepy, furry crawlies? Don’t fret, you can now show your dislike and destroy them in one go…by eating them. Welp, that escalated quickly.
In the land of Cambodia, tarantulas are treated as a delicacy. From the years of food shortage during the Khmer Rouge era, as time went by it remained to be popular among the Cambodians. Apparently, fried tarantulas are crispy on the outside and contain white meat in the head and body – with a taste similar to a chicken or fish. The thought of a huge tarantula on my dining plate…I think I’ll skip this one out, guys!
2. Fish Sperm (Japan)
As strange as it sounds, the Japanese dig this food! Shirako means “white children” in Japanese, and it basically is a male genitalia of fish that still contains all the fluids. Now, that is what you call a squirt fest! It is served in both raw and cooked forms in restaurants all over Japan, though the pubs and sushi bars became hotspots for Shirako. Eggs of a male fish – nope, doesn’t work for me.
3.Bee Larvae (Japan)
Famously known among the locals as Hachinoko, the bee and wasp larvae is served with a classic combination of soy sauce and sugar. The combination produces a slightly sweet, crumbly snack to nibble on in between meals. According to myths, this is Emperor Hirohito’s most beloved food. I must say Japanese have a weird sense of taste. Oh well, it is said to be full of protein, so time to exchange protein shake with Hachinoko, perhaps?
4. Kopi Luwak (Indonesia)
Spoiler alert for all you coffee-holics out there! If you’ve been drinking Luwak coffee for a while now, I’m gonna cut to the chase and tell you that it is made from droppings of a cat-like animal called civet. A civet poop, everyone! There’s a controvrsy revolving this coffee: caged civets are being force-fed berries by farmers, who then collect the excretion from the civets to produce the infamous coffee. Get this, Kopi Luwak is the world’s most expensive coffee. Thinking twice about getting that cup of coffee in the morning now?
5. Luu Muu (Thailand)
You think you have what it takes to try this dish? Luu Muu is raw pigs blood combined with a spice mixture and eaten with noodles. As extreme as it sounds, this is definitely for the iron stomach and risk takers out there! To the Thais, it’s just a regular Bolognese sauce except Luu Muu may cause Streptococcus suis, a flesh-eating bacterial infection acquired through direct contact to contaminated animals and raw meat. So, please say your prayers if you would like to try this one.
Asian food are perhaps some of the most exotic in the world. Call these dishes weird, but I think people should get a medal for even trying some of them. All I can say is, YOLO!