Moose noses and Yak penises? Delicious!



Joking aside, there are some seriously freaky foods on our little blue planet, so we’re taking the time today to do some figurative world traveling to find some of the absolute strangest. And from China to The Philippines, we’ve got a few that will turn your stomach.

If you missed our earlier feature, check it out. Otherwise, jump in below!

 

1. Shirako | Japan

Image Credit: KOI Thailand

Up for some sperm sacs? Of course you are! This… delicacy… is known as “white children” in Japan. What looks like pale goo blobs are actually the sperm sacs of angler, puffer, or cod fish. They’re apparently “sweet.”

2. Jellied Moose Nose | Canada

Image Credit: Rough Guides

Most of us have eaten many parts of any given animal—and who really even knows what’s in our hot dogs—so perhaps it shouldn’t be too surprising that some Canadians have turned to the nose of the moose for their sustenance. The noses are de-haired, boiled with onions and spices, and then sliced and covered in a broth that congeals into a jelly. Yum?

3. Casu Marzu | Sardinia, Italy 

Cheese is amazing. Let’s just get that out of the way. But here’s a variety that may actually give you pause—Casu Marzu out of Sardinia. It’s sheep milk cheese, but the trick is, it contains live insect larvae. Cheese fly larvae causes the cheese to decompose through their digestive action. Oh, and the larvae can launch themselves up to 15cm. Ugh.



 

4. Balut | The Philippines

Why have a regular ole chicken egg when you can have a fertilized duck egg? The embryo here is actually partially developed (see above), which is definitely gonna freak out a lot of people. Feathers, bones, and “savory liquid.” Yuck.



 

5. Huitlacoche | Mexico 

This one may not be as odd as it seems at first blush. We eat blue/bleu cheese, after all—which contains cultures of the mold Penicillium—so why not apply the same principle to corn? In Mexico, they embrace “corn smut,” which is a fungus that adds huge blue-black growths to the corn. Translated, it apparently means “sleeping excrement.” That’s good to know.

 

6. Stargazey Pie | England

Cool name, even cooler story. Originating from the Cornish village of Mousehole, Stargazey Pie is dished out on the 23rd of December (Tom Bawcock’s Eve) and celebrates the legend of a 16th-century sailor who tackled the high December seas during a wicked storm and returned with enough fish to sate the appetites of the entire village. And while not filled with totally oddball ingredients, the presentation is wacky—whole sardines sticking straight out of an egg and potato pie.

7. Yak Penis | Beijing, China

Image Credit: IB Times

Served in the Guolizhuang Restaurant of Beijing and also known as “Dragon in the Flame of Desire” (lolz), this is exactly what it sounds like. A penis. A Yak penis, to be precise. Bon appétit!