Americans, by global standards, have a pretty bland diet. We're traditionally unadventurous, at least when compared gastronomically to the rest of the world. Take, for instance, baby mice wine, shown above. Newborn mice are drowned in wine, which is said to impart restorative properties to the body. (Yours, not the mice's.) I wouldn't touch it except to throw it away, and I'm probably not alone. The worst part is that it may not be the scariest item in this list. Link | Photos: ohhellsnah, cracked, 13point7billion
I tried most of these when I was in the military overseas. Snake wine left me with a nasty hangover. Tuna eyes are juicy and absorb broth flavors really well. The 'live' shrimp made me want to vomit. The wriggling octopus was ok, kind of bland flavor, interesting rubbery texture. Grilled snake is delicious. Various fried insects are pretty tasty, bit of a nutty flavor, scorpion wasn't bad either, but I couldn't force myself to try the spider. Balut is freaking delicious - a sort of savory poultry soup with tender meat. Escamole isn't bad, also sort of nutty. Calves brain is tender and absorbs flavor well, but I definitely prefer the real muscle tissue of beef. Head cheese & pacha are akin to sausage, not bad at all.
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I tried lizard wine (like baby mouse wine, only with lizards instead) at a Chinese restaurant in Oxford. When the waiter brought it to the table he had the bottle hidden inside his jacket so as not to not to freak out any customers who were squeamish.
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