Exotic eats: a global tour of unusual delicacies
Travelling provides the perfect opportunity to try out different foods from around the world. Each country boasts its own delicacies, informed by its traditions and heritage.
Travelling through a country comes with exploring its culture and food. Plus, as a traveller, you learn a lot about a nation through its food.
When discussing unusual delicacies, South Africa is known for mogodu (tripe) and chicken feet (walkie talkies), which might be seen as exotic by some travellers.
Tripe is a good source of several vitamins and minerals, including vitamin B12, zinc, selenium and iron while chicken feet have a high collagen content, which may improve skin, joint, bone and heart health.
As the world commemorates World Food Day and highlight the need to ensure healthy diets for all, here are some unusual delicacies from around the world to try out on your next adventure.
Century Eggs, China
Century eggs, also known as alkalised or preserved egg, are a Chinese egg-based culinary dish made by preserving duck, chicken or quail eggs, in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime and rice hulls for several weeks to several months, depending on the processing method.
According to reports, the eggs may help maintain healthy blood pressure levels; liver health by supporting the liver's detoxification processes and also vision improvement as nutrients in century eggs may help prevent eye disorders like dry eyes and cataracts.
Hákarl, Iceland
Hákarl, referred to as fermented shark in English, is a national dish of Iceland consisting of Greenland shark or other sleeper shark that has been cured with a particular fermentation process and hung to dry for four to five months.
It has a strong ammonia-rich smell and fishy taste, making hákarl an acquired taste. It is a rich source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for heart health and cognitive functioning.
Snake wine, Vietnam/ China
Snake wine is an alcoholic beverage produced by infusing whole snakes in rice wine or grain alcohol.
The drink was first recorded to have been consumed in China during the Western Zhou dynasty and is believed in folklore to reinvigorate a person according to traditional Chinese medicine.
In traditional Chinese medicine, distilling a snake's “essence” into wine is said to cure everything from rheumatism to hair loss. The drink is also widely touted as an aphrodisiac that enhances virility.
Haggis, Scotland
Haggis is a savoury pudding containing sheep's pluck, minced with chopped onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and cooked while traditionally encased in the animal's stomach though now an artificial casing is often used instead.
It is said that the meal is high in vitamins and minerals like iron and magnesium. Haggis is usually quite healthy if eaten traditionally as a main meal as it's accompanied by mashed boiled potatoes and turnips.
Fried Tarantulas, Cambodia
Fried tarantulas are a unique and somewhat unusual delicacy found in Cambodia, particularly in the town of Skuon, located in the Kampong Cham Province.
These large spiders, known locally as a-ping, are often consumed as a snack or street food. The tarantulas are a good source of protein, folic acid and zinc.
Mopane worms, South Africa
Mopane Worms are eaten as a grub in Africa. They are hand picked in the wild, dried, and eaten as a crispy snack. In addition, mopane worms can be soaked to rehydrate, before being fried until they are crunchy or cooked with onion, tomatoes and spices, and then served with pap.
Unlike most animal proteins, Mopane worms are also fibre rich and fibre helps make you feel full after a meal, improved blood sugar levels, controls your weight and keeps your gastro-intestinal tracts working properly.