Food is one of the basic necessities of life.
All of us must eat and while in animals that basically refers to killing a prey and eating
it raw, humans have a more developed culinary sense.
They spend a lot of time cooking and some have made professions out of it.
But every so often, we tend to return to our very base instincts.
While that does not necessarily mean eating food raw, it does mean eating them while they
are still alive.
Let us take a look at some of the dishes that people eat while it is still alive!
10.
Sannakji.
While many of us may not have heard of it, sannakji is a very popular dish served in
Korea.
And it is also pretty easy to make.
All it takes is one baby octopus, known as nakji, and it is basically chopped up into
pieces and eaten alive.
Of course, there is a seasoning of sesame seeds and sesame oil to go with it.
What you eat is actually the tentacles, and the tentacles are still moving around when
you swallow it.
That actually can cause problems as the suction cups on the tentacles are still active and
they can become stuck on the throat and lead to choking.
Deaths have also been reported due to sannakji choking which is why it also finds its way
into lists of the most dangerous foods on the planet!
9.
Sea Urchins.
Well this one is as basic a food as you can get.
What the dish involves is catching a sea urchin and eating its insides!
No cooking, no seasoning!
But of course, not the entire of the sea urchin is edible.
They have a number of spikes which can pose a little danger if not eaten properly.
The edible part of the sea urchin is the roe, which is on the inside.
So, there is a special tool to open them up though people can manage with scissors as
well.
The insides are generally eaten with a spoon although people often lick them out as well.
And if your insides are churning, you would not be the only ones.
But then there are quite a few exceptions as hunting for sea urchins and eating them
has become a popular practice in Italy!
8.
Drunken Shrimp.
As fancy as the name sounds in itself, the dish is actually fancier!
It is delicacy from China, or at least what some call it a delicacy!
The drunken shrimp is basically just that.
It’s a bunch of shrimps dunked into a bowl of alcohol.
Of course, the process is much more refined than that, but that is the essence of it.
And while it is not always served with live shrimps, there are more than enough times
that it is.
The shrimp is served with a bowl of baijiu, which contains almost 40 – 60 percent alcohol!
A traditional dish involves around 10 full grown, live shrimps which are dunked into
the bowl of baijiu.
And the shrimp tend to thrash around a lot so the consumers have to catch them and stuff
it into their mouths before they can get away!
If you are not careful and forget to chew them before swallowing, they can keep wriggling
even after they have been swallowed!
7.
Noma Salad.
There is a very famous restaurant located in Copenhagen called Noma.
In fact, it has been named as the best restaurant in the world on more than one occasion and
have even opened up restaurants elsewhere in the world.
What marks the Noma as special is that they love to innovate.
So much so, that one of their signature dishes is the noma salad, which is basically a bunch
of ants in your salad!
What happens is that the dish is served with chilled ants, so they move slower, making
them easy to eat.
These ants are supposed to taste like lemongrass, but why on earth would you not use lemongrass
itself?
And what’s more, the Noma charges you over $300 for a salad that is crawling with ants!
Hey, just go to a bachelor kitchen!
You will probably find that free of cost!
6.
Casu marzu.
Cheese is definitely one of the most popular food items the world over!
Who doesn’t love the hot melt in mouth cheese that comes with Pizzas?
And there are many types of cheese that you can choose from, but if you ever found out
what the actual content in the Casu marzu is, you will probably be turned off cheese
forever!
The casu marzu is a Sardinian cheese made from sheep’s milk.
The process of its production is that the larvae of cheese flies are intentionally put
in the cheese to cut down on its fat content.
The larvae eat through the cheese and seep a liquid known as lagrima!
And after keeping it in that state for some time, the cheese is labelled ready for eating!
And while some remove the maggots, there are many who prefer to eat the cheese with the
maggots!
Oh, and they are advised to do that with their eyes closed, as the maggots tend to leap out!
And if the thought tempts you rather than nauseate you, you are kind of out of luck
as most places have a ban of the casu marzu!
5.
Oysters.
While oysters are a delicacy in almost all parts of the world, many might not be aware
that they are probably eating it alive!
And well, in their defence, it is often not easy to tell if the oyster is actually alive
or not.
The thing is that oysters tend to deteriorate much faster than other animal meat so it is
difficult to transport them after they are dead.
Now when the shell of an oyster is actually cracked open, they can survive for a long
time.
And it is only when the flesh is actually separated completely from the shell that they
begin to die.
Which is why oysters are almost always sucked out directly from the shell.
So the next time you order an oyster, be prepared that you are going to be eating a live animal!
4.
Eels.
When it comes to food, most people play it safe.
But if you a chef, you need to be open to food encounters of any kind.
Which was what prompted a renowned chef to try out a dish that he found at a local eatery
in Japan.
What the dish contained was basically baby eels.
Basically, a bowl of baby eels is brought to the table and you are asked to add vinegar
and sake to the bowl.
That makes them start to wiggle around and you are supposed to catch them and eat them
whole!
And it is considered quite an experience in Japan as the jiggling eels make way into your
stomach and you can even feel them moving around in your stomach!
Definitely not an experience that everyone will be able to stomach, pun intended!
3.
Cobra.
We have all heard of the venomous nature of cobra.
Which is why most of us would like nothing better than to never encounter them in real
life.
But then, there are some who live to actually eat the cobra!
In Vietnam, customers can opt for a dish where they go up to a cage full of snakes, choose
the one which they want and then ask the chef to prepare it!
What follows it pretty bizarre.
The snakes are agitated in one way or the other to get their hearts to beat faster.
They are then sliced down the middle to let the blood flow into a half full glass of rice
wine and the still beating heart is put into this drink.
The juices of the gallbladder are then poured into another cup of rice wine.
The customers then down the first glass with the still beating heart and then follow it
up with the other glass with the gallbladder juice!
And then probably there is a third bucket to puke it all out in, but that one might
be optional!
2.
Opihi.
In Hawaii, you can often get fresh sea food.
And in some cases, the food might be fresher than you think!
We are talking about the opihi, which is basically a shellfish who love to cling to rocks!
And that is why there are many opihi vendors who walk around with bags full of freshly
caught opihi.
And when they sell it to you, its not just a live shellfish they are selling, but a complete
dish in itself!
The opihi are eaten straight out of their shells, with tentacles and all.
They are usually served with a side of limu and a dash of salt.
And if you think there is a danger of them crawling out of your mouth because well, they
are alive, be at peace.
They are not really fast movers and as long as you do not take forever to chew them, they
wont come out.
Of course, if you are adventurous, you can try and catch the opihi by yourself and eat
it without involving a vendor or a restaurant, but they have kind of figured out not to hang
out wherever humans are!
They are kind of smart when you think of it!
1.
Lobster.
While it is still rare, cases of people picking out the lobster that they want to eat have
still been heard of.
What is rarer, and thankfully so, is the case of eating right out of the belly of a lobster
while it is still alive, and staring at you while you devour it!
The process is pretty gruesome as the lobster is sliced it half while it wriggles around.
And the rest of the process is basically culling out the bits that are edible and it is served
on a bed of ice for you to enjoy while the lobster watches you devour it!
And the fact is that the dish must be prepared and served immediately so that the muscles
do not stiffen up and ruin the so called experience.
But the very idea of eating something while the rest of it is watching is not a recommended
activity for everyone.
It takes a staunch heart and stomach and very frankly, the world would not be missing out
on something if this sort of food was banned!
Those were some of the foods that people love to eat around the globe which are actually
not dead when eaten!
And if you are feeling a little squeamish after listening about all those animals being
eaten alive, you would not be the only ones.
But if you are one of those adventurous eaters who have tried any of these dishes, do let
us know in the comments below.
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