5x the most bizarre eating experiences from travelling around the world
Book those tickets, grab your backpack or wheeled suitcase, and go out into the world: you can again! But these kinds of culinary experiences may be a little too adventurous, or not?
Have you ever eaten a deep-fried spider? A soup made with snakes, or an omelette with chicken blood? If your holiday takes you farther than the Efteling or pony park Slagharen, you may encounter a surprise on the menu or on your plate.
The most bizarre eating experiences
These editors from travel guide Lonely Planet shared what their most bizarre or creepy meal far from home was.
Crispy legs
‘During my travels abroad, I’ve seen quite a few strange things, sometimes offered to me through the bus window, for example. But I’ll never forget one thing: the large trays at a food market in Skuon, Cambodia. They were piled high with deep-fried tarantulas. Their legs had turned bright purple from frying, and if you didn’t look closely, you might think they were jalebi, a sweet treat from India. But no, these weren’t sweet.’ Travel editor Matt has eaten such a deep-fried spider—two, in fact (brave!)—and says they don’t taste bad at all.
Rubbery tentacles
James Kay was on holiday with his parents in Portugal, and in a restaurant he confidently ordered a plate of choquinhos à algarvia. He knew perfectly well that it was cuttlefish, a type of squid, but it seemed daring. ‘The problem was that I hadn’t expected this. I really couldn’t eat it. There were tentacles on my plate and they tasted rubbery. When I took a bite—the only bite, by the way—I even let out a little squeak.’
Lovely and fruity
Always listen carefully to what the guide tells you—that’s editor Louise’s tip. She travelled through Zimbabwe with her sister, and their guide told them about mopane worms, which are considered a delicacy there. ‘At the hotel that evening, all kinds of local dishes were presented, from fried crocodile tail to a buffalo stew, as well as those mopane worms. I ate one so we’d got that over with, but my sister kept spooning them onto her plate. Apparently she liked them, I thought, and I didn’t say anything more. It turned out later that she hadn’t understood the guide’s explanation and thought she was eating fruit.’
Fresh coconut—very, very fresh
On the beach of the Thai island of Ko Tao, editor AnneMarie narrowly escaped death—or a serious headache—when an enormous coconut landed in the sand next to her. ‘That one’s mine, I thought, and that evening I took it to the restaurant for dinner. I explained to the cook why I was going out to dinner with a coconut, and she completely understood. She hacked away at the coconut with a gigantic knife. It turned out that her ex-boyfriend had lost all his teeth when one of those monsters fell on his head. She was able to take out her frustrations on that coconut, and I got the most delicious and freshest piña colada I’ve ever had.’
From snout to tail
In Nepal, editor Joe was invited to celebrate the Dashai festival with a local family at their home. A tremendous honour, but he was slightly less pleased when he saw his plate of food. ‘The aunts and grandmothers present piled my plate high with the festival’s traditional food: fried brains, boiled intestines, deep-fried backbone, testicles, lungs filled with eggs… And because I had been invited as the guest of honour, I couldn’t refuse anything.’
Read also:
- The tastiest dishes from Italy, and where to eat them
- This is how to eat authentic Japanese food
- 10x the tastiest dishes in the world
Source: Lonely Planet
