Swedish Surströmming (soured herring)

How do you know when your surströmming (soured herring) is ready to be devoured? When the cans bulge around the middle, an effect caused by a gassy, bacterial byproduct of its lengthy fermenting process.

To prepare this traditional Swedish meal, herring from the Baltic Sea are gutted and tinned in brine, then stored somewhere (preferably warm) for several months. Its pungent aroma makes dining alfresco an absolute must. Locals recommend opening the can under water whenever possible to contain the tantalizing odor of rotten egg, rancid butter and vinegar that results from the fermentation process.

Don't worry about running into it stateside: Often classified as rotting, not fermenting, and considered a potential weapon (because of the pressurized contents), surströmming is banned by a number of airlines and customs agencies.

Canned birds nest drink

Could this be the most disgusting soda drink ever? Available in China, where birds nests are a highly appreciated delicacy.

And no, it’s not a fake!



The Chinese have served bird's nest soup, considered a delicacy, for hundreds of years. It's made using the nests of swiftlets, or cave swifts. These avian homemakers regurgitate their gelatinous spit, creating a web-like superglue which forms their nests and attaches them to cave walls in Southeast Asia.

The nests are collected by hunters on precariously tall ladders and then dissolved into soup. Said to stimulate cell growth, raise libido and boost the immune system, these edible abodes are among the most expensive animal-food products consumed; They are rare, difficult to harvest and require a labor-intensive cleaning process. Don't feel like dropping the coin to get a taste of the cure-all nectar? Pop a tab on the canned bird's nest drink, and get your vitamins on the go.

Kiviak, Greenland Inuit Fermented Seal dish

Whole seagull/auk birds fermented within suture-closed freshly disemboweled seals. Oils are applied to the skin to prevent infestation by maggots. The pelt (containing the whole seagulls/auks) is buried underneath a large, flat stone, seam-side up to prevent rupturing by the gases that evolve and contamination. The pelt is dug up several months later when fermentation is complete.

The sutures are then cut to reveal the fermented seagull/auks. The fermented intestinal fluids are sucked out from the whole birds, or used as a sauce for other foods. It is said to taste similar to natto paste, or very mature cheeses.

Icelandic for “fermented shark”

Hákarl or kæstur hákarl (Icelandic for “fermented shark”) is a food from Iceland. It is a Greenland or basking shark which has been cured with a particular fermentation process and hung to dry for 4-5 months. Hákarl has a very particular ammonia-rich smell and taste, similar to very strong cheese. It is an acquired taste and many Icelanders never eat it.

Hákarl is served as part of a Þorramatur, a selection of traditional Icelandic food served at Þorrablót in midwinter. Hákarl is, however, readily available in Icelandic stores all year round and is eaten in all seasons.

Deer Placenta Soup

Not surprisingly, deer placenta is also sold in encapsulated form as an herbal medicine. The following description comes from an “Anti-Candida Web Mall:”

“Placenta is an embryonic tissue formed during pregnancy from the cells of the fetus. The unique biological compounds in placenta ensure that the fetus is supplied with the necessary nutrients and oxygen needed for successful growth. Chinese anti-aging and restorative formulations have often relied upon placenta as a primary ingredient in formulations designed to rejuvenate the body. Deer placenta has been accepted as the premier source of placenta. Deer is considered to be a “higher order” animal, and deer placenta very closely resembles human placenta chemically. It is extraordinarily nourishing and is completely safe to consume.”

Caldo de Cardan (Bull Penis), Bolivia

In Bolivia they do not need viagra, there is a common broth.

To fight fatigue, but not with an energizing drink of “Red Bull”, they say this increases sexual potency. But it is not Viagra. It is a common broth, a curiosity of the Bolivian cuisine that seems to be gaining more and more support among those in need an extra push or clear mind after a long celebration.

Weekends, and always after dawn, many Bolivians fill the restaurants in the city of El Alto and the slums of La Paz in search of the intense flavor of the broth, whose main ingredient is the virile member of the bull.

Consumed by people of all ages, including women, convinced that it is an effective cure for a hangover. Some attribute aphrodisiac properties and some will recommend it for back pain and joints.

“It’s like my breakfast. The first thing I eat when I get up,” confessed Bráñez Benito, a resident of El Alto for 59 years, who has eaten the broth for the last decade.

The popular soup takes its name from the similarity between the member of a bull, and the mechanical tube located at the base of a car which carries the force of the engine to the rear wheels.

The secret of the mint broth’s effectiveness lies in preparedness. “As a concentrate, we cook it from 10 pm until the next morning,” Luque said in July, owner of a restaurant whose specialty is the popular soup.

The liquid acquires in this way, according to connoisseurs, the strength of the bull, contained in the testes.

“The long, slow cooking in huge pots heated with wood fire stoves or liquefied petroleum gas, makes taurine (a substance present in many energy drinks) which is mixed with the broth” explained Luque, who has prepared the porridge for the last 17 years with a recipe he learned in the central region of Cochabamba, where he worked as a kitchen helper.

“Almost 10 hours of cooking so that the broth is concentrated, this is one of the secrets, the other is taking it tomorrow,” said Cristina Poma, wife of Luque and cook in the restaurant that they handle.

After cooking, the broth takes on a creamy consistency and only then are small pieces of the bulls member mixed in the dish with lots of legs of beef, chicken and lamb, boiled egg, some rice and potato. The potato is ubiquitous in Andean Bolivian cuisine.

“I like it because it is rich,” said Bráñez sipping the broth, which, by the variety of ingredients has a pleasant and intense flavor.

For her part, Surco Lucio said: “I have nine children thanks to the broth” while lifting her chest and shoulders to lift up her younger son, Marco, who she said will, from time to time, taste the succulent dish.

“The broth is a universal tradition,” added the young man carrying a piece in a plastic bag. A single dose of just 12 bolivianos, will cost you a little over a dollar and a half.

Korean Baby Mice Wine Health Tonic

What better to wash down your gelatinous lumps of lye fish than a nice chilled cup of dead mice? What better indeed.

Baby mice wine is a traditional Chinese and Korean “health tonic,” which apparently tastes like raw gasoline. Little mice, eyes still closed, are plucked from the embrace of their loving mothers and stuffed (while still alive) into a bottle of rice wine. They are left to ferment while their parents wring their tiny mouse paws in despair, tears drooping sadly from the tips of their whiskers.

Wait, it gets worse …
Do you wince at the thought of swallowing a tequila worm? Imagine how you’d feel during a session on this bastard. Whoops, I swallowed a dead mouse! Whoops, there goes another one! Whoops, I just puked my entire body out of my nose!

My favorite bad-taste wine labels

I love good wine, I don’t much care if it’s red or white, if it tastes good, I drink it.

I have never been able to remember which wine is meant to go with which food, so I get many looks of disdain from arrogant wine waiters.

Often, I choose a wine, solely based on the design of the label simply to antagonize the wine snobs, and to hear the rapid intake of breath and patronizing, “tut tutting” of the self proclaimed experts.

So, when I come across labels such as these, I try to obtain a few bottles, just to get up the nose of the any really pretentious wine wankers.





So if you come across any that you think would upset the winey’s… please let me know, because a good friend who has a restaurant wants to create a display and wine list around the theme of bad taste wines.

Breast Puddings…

How come the Japanese keep coming up with all this bizarre stuff?

Is it the water they drink? or some form of new, questionably legal, stuff they put in their cigarettes?

How would you order it from the waitress? Excuse me miss, for sweets I’ll have a very large serving of your breasts!

Mind you it would make a great take home gift (No! we won’t mention doggy bags)

In fact it/they would probably sell like hot potatoes as a gimmick for the office worker market.

Cake ideas to stimulate your… um, imagination…

Bizarre hangover remedies

If you've ever had a hangover, you've probably thought about how far you'd go to make the pain go away -- that headache and the feeling that hurts your eyes, your ears and your brain. From crazy promises (“If I live through this, I'm never drinking again”) to consuming your body weight in Gatorade, you may think you'd try anything to get rid of that hangover.

First off, the bad news: There is no such thing as a hangover cure. On the other hand, that hasn't stopped pretty much all of history from dreaming up ways to take the sting out of the morning after.

Next time you feel the ill-effects of too much alcohol, tuck into a bowl of Haejangguk, a Korean beef broth made with pork spine, dried cabbage, coagulated ox blood and vegetables. In Mexico, those serious about busting their resaca (hangover) eat a bowl of Menudo, a traditional spicy soup made with tripe.

A zesty half a lemon rubbed under your drinking arm before 'the session' begins is a hangover-beater that Puerto Ricans swear by.

Folklore has it that the Native Americans worked up a sweat, then licked it off their skin and spat it out to rid their bodies of 'poison'. Asiatic Indians scull a nice big glass of their own wee, while those in the Middle Ages raved about bitter almonds and dried eel.

A pair of pickled sheep's eyes in tomato juice is the hangover buster of choice for heavy drinkers in Outer Mongolia - something to remember if you feel like a night out while travelling through this fine (and curious) country.

We decided to start researching the strangest hangover cures, and where better to go fact-finding than the source of all truth, the Internet? Here's a list of of the wildest and most intriguing hangover cures.

Most are disgusting concoctions of raw eggs and alcohol, but wait until you get down to number 3, 2, and 1 and your stomach will really turn!

No.10 - Lemon in the Armpits
Apparently some Puerto Ricans (and other citrusy fresh people) swear by this method. While I’ve read a few different opinions, the general belief is that you need to rub a slice of lemon in the armpit of your drinking arm before you start boozing. Out of lemons? Lime’s fine. I’m not so sure about this one, but either way you’ll be smelling fresh and fruity.

World’s Greatest Drunks?

Now it’s clearly between the Russians and Irish for being the biggest drunks, so I’ll present a hangover cure from each.

No.9 – Cucumber Juice
The Russians claim all you have to do is drink the juice squeezed from a cucumber. I don’t know how you go about this, but Vodka literally means water in Russian, so who are we to second-guess them?

No.8 – Moist River Sand
The Irish cure? Well they’re said “to bury the ailing person in moist river sand.” It’s not exactly clear if they keep the head above ground, or if this is simply the easiest way to get rid of the weakest drinkers.

No.7 – Jog ‘n’ Lick
Word on the street (according to BBC ) is that Native Americans would run around in the morning to get sweaty after a hard night on the village. Next step? Why the only logical thing: lick all that sweat up and spit it out, so you can get rid of all the ‘poison’ you’d just oozed out. Mmm, I can just taste the sticky malt liquor sweat right now!

No.6 – Sheep Lungs
Now we all learned in school how much the Ancient Greeks & Romans knew how to party, what with the bath houses, orgies, and epic festivals. Well, after a wild night of debauchery Ancient Greeks were all about a nice breakfast of sheep lungs and two owl eggs.

No. 5 - Voodoo
While most of these require mixing together ridiculous ingredients, this hangover remedy simply requires a complete lack of logic… or lots of magic (magic trumps logic every time). Haitian voodoo people are said to recommend sticking 13 black pins in the cork of the offending bottle. Try it out, let me know how it goes.

No. 4 - Highland Fling
After a night on the single malt, the Scots can be forgiven for needing a pick-me-up in the morning. The Highland Fling, an ancient Scottish remedy, involves heating a pint of buttermilk and stirring in a tablespoon of cornflower seasoned with salt and pepper. However, not recommended for the nauseous among you.

No. 3 - Deep-Fried Canaries
While the ancient Romans gave us all kinds of wonderful creations, they also filled the history books with some truly disturbing behavior. Make room in your mind next to the famous Roman orgies and gladiator battles for this bit of information: a staple food for the morning after drinking in ancient Rome was deep-fried canary.

And if you think that sounds cruel and unappetizing, just wait till you see what their great-grandchildren dreamed up at No. 2 on our list.

No.2 - Dried Bull's Penis
If you're like us, the only way you can even imagine somebody eating dried bull's penis is on an episode of Fear Factor. The fact is, though, Sicilian men used to rely on this folk remedy to shake off the haze from a long night of the vino. Between the food, the cars and our own Mr. Mafioso, we can be thankful to the Italians for all kinds of good things -- a great hangover cure isn't one of them.

And while this may sound like the grossest thing a person could ingest to cure a hangover, that “prize” definitely goes to our American-bred hangover cure at No. 1.

No.1 - Rabbit-Dropping Tea
As far as historical hangover cures go, this takes the cake. Sure, eating a bull's penis is nasty enough, but to actually cook with droppings -- blecch! Drinking rabbit-poop tea was a famous cure in the Old West. The drink was popular at the time -- cowboys weren't known to say no to a drink. There are tales of all sorts of heroes of the Wild West tending their hangovers with this vile concoction. And even though we normally approve of anything that was good enough for Billy the Kid and Doc, there isn't a hangover in the world that would make us go near this stuff. We take our 10-gallon hats off to the men and women of the Wild West -- this is hands down the most legendary hangover cure of all.

If you all have any more bizarre hangover remedies, definitely leave a comment. We’re always looking for ways to eat pickled sheep eyes without being ridiculed by peers. I think the next step is testing some of these out for ourselves.

Nyotaimori - body sushi

Nyotaimori translated from Japanese meant, nyo - woman, tai - body and mori - helping, plateful serving, arrangement.

In other words, Nyotaimori (Japanese: 女体盛り, "female body presentation"), often referred to as "body sushi," is the practice of eating sashimi or sushi from the body of a woman, typically naked. This sexual fetish is a subdivision of rare food play and may also be known as "naked sushi".

In Japan, Nyotaimori service allowed restaurant patrons to devour from the skin of a naked woman. Apart from her uhmmm unmentionable, which is usually covered with some kind of garnish, the model’s modesty depends on the (temporary) position of the food on her body (yes that's modesty!). That's why Nyotaimori is also known as “body sushi” and this phenomenon (or pop culture) received a lot of media attention in the west in the 1990s.

Bread Art...goes gruesome

This brings weird to a whole new level. Thai Fine Art student and artist Kittiwat Unarrom is the son of a baker. All that baking exposure growing up has been a clear influence, but his artistic need to see things a little differently definitely flared up as he created the tacitly named “Body Bakery” – brutally, gruesomely, almost unbelievably realistic looking sculptures of dismembered human body parts sculpted entirely from bread.


Here’s the real kicker – they’re packaged like food and up for sale at his showroom / gallery / exhibition / bakery / torture-chamber / oddity / tourist attraction in Ratchaburi, Thailand.

Unarrom himself is almost charmingly candid about his art…

“Of course, people were shocked and thought that I was mad when they saw the works. But once they knew the idea behind it, they understood and became interested in the work itself, instead of thinking that I am crazy.”

Square Watermelons

A round watermelon can take up a lot of room in a refrigerator and the usually round fruit often sits awkwardly on refrigerator shelves.

Smart Japanese Farmers have forced their watermelons to grow into a square shape by inserting the melons into square, tempered glass cases while the fruit is still growing on the vine.

Wacky Food Art

Presidential Cereals

‘Cap'n McCain's’ & ‘Obama O's’ are the two breakfast cereals made in a limited edition of 500 each by the Airbed & Breakfast for the US presidential election. The strange brands are based on the popular cereals, 'Captain Crunch' and 'Cheerios'.

World's largest cupcake

In this photo provided by cakes.com, pastry chef JodiLee Knops celebrates setting the Guinness record for the world's largest cupcake at Mall of America in Minneapolis. It weighed in at nearly 151 pounds, including 15 pounds of fudge filling and 60 pounds of yellow icing. It was one foot tall and two feet wide.

Insects pizza

A festival-goers enjoys an 'insects pizza' at one of the many food stalls during the 34th edition of the Paleo festival on July 22, 2009 in Nyon. The Insect Pizza's are made with mozzarella, tomato, cumin, mealworms and zophobas worms.

The Paleo open-air music festival, one of the Europe's largest festival runs from July 21 to 26.