Strange Foods: Tales from Abroad

By Lisa Xia

After an exhilarating day rafting the Rio Cangrejal—arguably the best white-water rafting in Honduras—we find ourselves at a small lodge in Pico Bonito National Park recovering at the bar.

“Do you want to try something local?” the bartender asks.

“Of course, “ I say, and I quickly find myself face-to-face to this concoction: Garifuna Giffity, homemade blend of alcoholic herbs, spices, what looks like tree bark and perhaps a splash of ganja. It’s said to have healing and potency powers, but mostly, it tastes like the way my grandmother’s Chinese herbal drawer smells.

But as a nod to this month’s theme of food and its limitless variety, I decided to expand past the limits of my own experiences to tap those of my fellow travelers—friends from the road that represent scores of different countries, and who have traveled to even more. I asked them one simple question: “what was the weirdest thing you’ve ever eaten?”

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Meg Clark – Booger fruit (granadilla)

Consumed in: Costa Rica

“We were on our way back from rafting, when our bus driver stopped on the side of the road at this little vendor and said we had to try some new things. He called this the booger fruit because the texture and look is similar to boogers. They’re sweet but slimy.”

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Yeye Zhang – Snake seeped sake

Consumed in: Jackie’s Beer Nest, Shanghai, China

To your health?“The concoction is Jackie’s homemade rice wine marinated (steeped? drunken? soaked?) with snake, ginseng, coagulated deer blood (I’m skeptical), and most likely other traditional Chinese medicine (中药). It’s said to cool down hot-headed men. I don’t really remember the taste, something like sour Maotai/Wuliangye but it’s more the sight/smell that overwhelms you. I like to think that this little beer nest is a perfect illustration of today’s Shanghai: the cosmopolitan Chinese who seeks out the imported Belgian beer but only to finish their night with a shot of homemade snake-seeped rice wine.”

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Ben Liotta – Kumpir

Consumed in: Istanbul, Turkey

“Who knew a loaded baked potato could be a Turkish street food favorite!? However, unlike its American baked potato counterpart, the Kumpir is loaded to the size of one’s head with butter, cheese, slices of hot dog, corn, peas, vegetable salad, beets, olives, yogurt, and finished off with hot sauce, ketchup and mayo. There’s even a whole street dedicated to the Kumpir in Ortakoy.”

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Carly Hill – Scorpion soup

Consumed in: Mainland China

“My brother and I were invited by our wine distributors to a fancy banquet dinner and fundraiser in Nanchang, in the Jiangxi Providence. I was ravenously hungry and so excited for the first course which was a broth based soup. As I was scarfing down the delicious broth I spooned a scorpion, trying not to vomit in my mouth, I looked around to see that and everyone else encountered the same insect within their soup.

I sucked it up, bit it, and swallowed it with a big spoonful of broth. It wasn’t as bad as I thought. Quite crunchy and at least easy to swallow…”

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Persis Eskander – Airag

Consumed in: Mongolia

Airag is a national Mongolian beverage made of fermented mare’s milk, which can’t be consumed raw it has the same effect as an extremely potent laxative. After the milk is collected, it’s filtered through a cloth and then poured into one of many plastic buckets usually placed around the walls of a Ger. It’s then left there, uncovered to ferment. Depending on how long it ferments it may have an alcohol percentage between 3% and 12%. Because it’s usually given to each visitor as a demonstration of hospitality, to reject it is extremely rude. It smells and tastes like curdled cheese.

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Paulina Foks – Mopani worms

Consumed in – Johannesburg, South Africa

Mopani worms (caterpillars) apparently eat the leaves of mopani trees, which elephants are also said to eat, and it gets them high. Note: Before you decide to smuggle them through the airport in various orifices, a mopani worm will not get you high. It tasted like dried jerky with red wine tomato sauce. Not awful but I sure don’t have a hankering for it. ‘Mmm, you know what would be soooo good right now? A mopani worm.’ Nope.” Interestingly, in some parts of South Africa, because they are harvested so frequently, they are being driven into extinction.

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Tom Gehl – Grasshoppers

Consumed in: Mainland China

Actually one of my favorite foods is stir fry grasshoppers. They are crunchy, high protein, low fat and delicious!!

(Photo: http://www.bootsintheoven.com/boots_in_the_oven/2007/07/)

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Kora Lazarski – Guineau pig

Consumed in: Cuzco, Peru

I had guinea pig after my four day trek through the jungle up to Machu Picchu, where we stayed with several families in their mountain-top homes.  Each of these homes had their own little outdoor pens where they kept 15-20 of these rodents as temporary pets before preparing them for dinner.  Salty, with the texture of a dark meat akin to duck or rabbit, this traditional Peruvian dish doesn’t come easy.  One has to peel the tough skin off and meticulously nibble away the meat from the tiny carcass.  The end result is surprisingly satiating, though, and provides a tasty protein that’s actually more sustainable to raise than traditional meat proteins like beef and pork.