The 10 Most Disgusting Foods in The World

Trying out a new dish always has a thrilling feel to it, especially when sampling ‘foreign cuisine’. Most of it has to do with the excitement surrounding the entire experience – you never know what you gonna get, in true sense of the phrase, until you dig in.

Sometimes though, these new dishes require good guts, quite literally. Behold! We share some of the most disgusting foods around the world that would make you spew your entire body out of your nose.

In no particular order of disgusting-ness (we couldn’t decide which one was the worst!), here they are:

1. Baby Mice Wine (Korea)

Source: flickr

This traditional Korean and Chinese ‘health tonic’ reportedly tastes like raw gasoline. And yes, it is made up of mice fetuses that are fished from the mother’s womb before being stuffed into a bottle of rice wine. The contents are best enjoyed after fermentation (can you think of a more bad-ass drink than this?)

2. Shiokara (Japan)

Source: flickr

This is a Japanese delicacy prepared from marine organisms like squid which are fermented in their own entrails. It comes as no surprise then that it’s quickly followed by a shot of whiskey.

3. Surstromming (Sweden)

Source: flickr

This is a Swedish delicacy made from fermented Baltic herring that even results to bulging of the can from ongoing fermentation during shipping. In other words, this is rotten fish. In fact, a study in recent years found this weird food to have the most putrid smell of any food in the world! No wonder it’s best enjoyed outdoors.

4. Sannakji (Korea)

Source: wikimedia 

Take a small octopus and take it apart. Then season it just slightly with sesame oil. Serve as is. It can be a pain for those not used to chopsticks because the eyes are still moving in front of your very own.

5. Head Cheese (Europe)

Source: wikimedia

Preparation: Skin the head of a pig, sheep or cow and pour out most of the contents. Then, soak the head in a pot of boiling water until tender. Next, cut the now cooked content into small pieces and return it into the boiling liquid. Allow to cool. The result is a mixture that sweetly jells into a solidified gelatin (thanks to the marrow!). Slice and serve with salad or sandwich.

6. Rocky Mountain Oysters (United States)

Source: flickr

If you see this on the a la carte, best to skip it. The name is misleading. Unless you don’t mind peeled, flattened and deep-fried bull-calf testicles, or sheep or pig testicles, depending on your preference.

7. Duck Blood (China)

Source: flickr

You read that right! Duck blood. A common delicacy in China (that explains that look!) it can also be cooked to mirror a jelly-type substance. Those with the stomach can gulp as is. Make a casual vampire face for best effect.

8. Durian (Thailand)

Source: flickr

So smelly, the durian fruit from Thailand remains an unwelcome snack in many hotels, buses or subways throughout Southeast Asia. Call it the Forbidden Fruit, and it has been likened to body odor (yikes!), the smell of sewage, or rotten garbage. Yet, it still makes it to the mouth of some to the point they want to sneak it in the bus.

9. Lutefisk (Norway)

Source: wikimedia

The delicacy is prepared from aged stockfish and lye, aka caustic soda, aka that corrosive alkaline substance. The aged fish is soaked in lye for a couple of days and upon removal, it is so corrosive that it is requires nearly a week long of washing in cold water for it to become edible again.

10. Balut (Philippines)

Source: wikimedia

Few weird foods around the world come close to balut. This is fertilized duck egg that has been incubated to the point that the fetus becomes a little feathery. Filipinos enjoy it best after 17 days of incubation, while the Vietnamese prefer it at 19-21 days old. Boil and serve, yum-yum!

Which of these weird dishes would you fancy? What are some of the most disgusting foods you’ve tried?