From the US to China, taste the most unusual foods and find out where to find them.
1. Oysters from the Rocky Mountains, Montana, United States.
Do you eat seafood in Montana? Well, not really. Also known as prairie oysters, calf fries or cowboy caviar, Rocky Mountain oysters are actually fried testicles of young bulls. Eating them is a tradition among the ranchers of the West who, in the spring, after the castration season, end up with large quantities of this delicacy. And while it is true that it takes some courage to bite into the first oyster, for the second one (luckily they are served in pairs) you should expect nothing but pleasure: crispy on the outside, tasty and creamy inside. If you think you've got the stomach for it, you can test yourself during the annual Testicle Festival in Clinton, Montana.
2. Chapulines, Oxaca, Mexico.
Scientists claim that insects will be a very important cheap source of protein in the future: inOaxaca, a southern Mexican state, they are evidently well ahead of the game. Here grasshoppers known as chapulines have been a popular bar snack for centuries, as well as an indispensable ingredient in the filling of tacos. Chapulines are usually roasted with salt and chilli to become crispy and tasty. In fact, if you couldn't see the little legs and antennae sticking out, you could easily imagine you were munching on popcorn. But try them for yourself by looking for them in the baskets of the large Mercado Juarez.
The Mercado Juarez in the city of Oxaca is located between Flores Magón and Calle 20 de Noviembre.
Which came first, the egg or the chicken? Don't think about it and eat balut in the Philippines to enjoy both at the same time. Photo by Miha Pav
3. Balut, Philippines.
This Filipino delicacy, nothing more than a fertilised egg, tastes better than its appearance suggests. In fact, seeing a tiny pink duck embryo complete with beak and a hint of wings might put anyone off. Yet that would be a shame because balut is actually quite delicious. Imagine scrambled eggs mixed with chunks of chicken and just a hint of the pleasantly wild flavour of liver. It is usually sold as street food, boiled and served in its own shell with salt, spices and vinegar. Break off the top of the shell and sip the liquid before moving on to the meat and yolk.
Look for balut in the street markets of Manila, where it is sold on stalls
4. Snake soup, Hong Kong, China.
This traditional Cantonese dish from Hong Kong's rapidly disappearing working-class neighbourhoods looks like a normal sour-spicy soup, with chunks of tofu and slices of mushroom. But those strips of meat? They are not chicken. Since it is a warming dish, snake soup is only served in winter, and only in a handful of traditional restaurants that keep live snakes inside wooden boxes in the dining room. She Wong Lam, in Hong Kong's trendy Sheung Wan district, is one of them. Here you can accompany your soup with a shot of liquor, also flavoured with snake meat. Cheers!
She Wong Lam is at 13 Hillier St, in the Sheung Wan district of Hong Kong Island.
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5. Casu marzu, Sardinia, Italy.
For most of us, the sight of insects swarming in our food is an unmistakable sign that that food should be thrown in the bin as soon as possible. But in Sardinia, maggots are used to produce a cheese called casu marzu, in which the larvae of the cheese fly allow for maximum fermentation and a particular pungent flavour.
The legal status of casu marzu is currently uncertain due to EU health regulations. Try asking for information in local cheese shops.
6. Eggs of virgin boys, Dongyang, China.
Bizarre eggs are a recurring theme in Chinese cuisine. There are century-old eggs preserved under ash and calcium oxide, eggs boiled in tea and duck eggs preserved in charcoal paste and salt. But the most peculiar are undoubtedly the 'virgin boys' eggs' from Dongyang, a city of 800,000 inhabitants in the eastern part of Zhejiang province. These eggs are dipped and then boiled in theurine of pre-teen boys, ideally under the age of 10, then served in all their glory with a strong aroma of ammonia. Locals are quick to swear that these eggs have amazing health properties: they help prevent heatstroke and promote circulation. Apparently, urine always holds great surprises.
Dongyang is about five hours by train from Shanghai.
7. Lutefisk, Minnesota, USA.
It was Norwegian immigrants who brought this fish dish to the Midwestern states, where it has become more popular than at home. White in colour, Lutefisk is nothing more than dried cod marinated in caustic soda until it becomes almost translucent. The real challenge is its gelatinous consistency. The classic place to taste it are the lutefisk dinners organised by the many Lutheran churches in Minnesota or the Lodge Sons of Norway.
Luftisk Lover's Lifeline keeps an up-to-date list of lutefisk dinners in the upper Midwest.
8. Woodworms, Australia.
A hand-sized larva that releases a yellow sticky substance and tastes similar to scrambled eggs. Australian Aborigines have always eaten these succulent insects (called wichetty grubs) as they are excellent sources of protein. The larvae live underground, where they feed on the roots of decaying trees. Traditionally, it was women and children who collected the worms, which were eaten raw. Since you are unlikely to find them on the menus of Sydney gastropubs or Melbourne bistros, you can sample them on an outback tour.
9. Guinea Pig, Peru.
Many people remember the guinea pigs of childhood, cute and soft-haired. Well, in the Andes of South America, their homeland, these rodents are served for dinner. Called cuy in Peru, they are roasted, grilled or fried. Diners usually order the front or back just like a chicken leg or breast. The comparison is not accidental, as it tastes very similar to chicken. It should be emphasised that raising guinea pigs has a much lower environmental impact than raising cattle.
The name of the restaurant Kusikuy (Calle Suecia 339) in Cuzco means 'happy guinea pig' in Quechua. Perhaps happy is a little too far-fetched?
10. Durian, Singapore.
The very popular Southeast Asian 'king of fruits' is usually associated with really strange terms for a food, such as 'turpentine', 'gym socks', 'toilets' and 'rotting corpses'. As big as a bowling ball and covered in thorns, the durian has the appearance of a medieval weapon. But its real lethal characteristic is its smell, which is so strong that in Singapore you cannot carry durians on public transport. Open the durian and scoop out the creamy yellow pulp, and you will be rewarded with a sweet but strange flavour, somewhere between a vanilla pudding and onion.
For many Singaporeans, Kong Lee Hup kee Trading in Pasir Ris is the best durian stall in the country.