# What's the weirdest thing you've eaten? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [December 6, 2002, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013 "2002-12-06T20:48:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Cyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a88e4f/32.png) [@Cyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyn)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/21 "2002-12-07T00:19:44Z")
Horse meat, menudo–that Mexican tripe soup and a mosquito I did NOT mean to swallow! ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 12:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/22 "2002-12-07T00:24:04Z")
I ate alligator as well at this Cajun restaurant. It’s surprisingly rich. ---
**Author:** ![Fretful\_Porpentine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fretful_porpentine/32/2873_2.png) [@Fretful\_Porpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fretful_Porpentine)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/23 "2002-12-07T00:35:56Z")
Ants. I was eleven and had just been given a book by my idol, Jane Goodall, for Christmas. One of the things she wrote about was trying all the foods the chimpanzees ate, including termites and ants. While I could find very few chimpanzees to observe in suburban Virginia, there were plenty of ants, so I figured eating a few was really the only workable way for me to practice being Jane Goodall. They taste sort of vinegary – because of the formic acid, I guess. They weren’t that bad, really. I’ve also had goat, ostrich, cuttlefish, and wild-boar-and-blueberry sausage, but compared to ants, I suppose those all fall squarely into the normal category. ---
**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 12:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/24 "2002-12-07T00:41:07Z")
Probably uni sushi – the guts of a sea urchin (or, according to one source, sea urchin semen). The taste actually matched the appearance quite well. Imagine that Bugs Bunny, after eating a full ten-pound bag of carrots, came down with bronchial pneumonia and coughed up thick, ropy phlegm; some enterprising soul came along and cut the phlegm into cubes, put it on rice, served it to me, and charged me $4.95. I’ve never been so close to vomiting what I’ve not yet swallowed. Daniel ---
**Author:** ![Jayrot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/3ec8ea/32.png) [@Jayrot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jayrot)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/25 "2002-12-07T01:54:10Z")
I think I may be the leader here: While living in Tokyo, my boss treated me to a special japanese course meal of one of the more expensive things you can buy: Fugu (posion blowfish). As with most course meals, it is served many different ways–raw, with rice, soup, etc. You also get many different parts of the fish (hopefully not posionous). How suprised was I to find out I had just eaten **fugu penis**? :eek: Verdict: Very soft and tender. Not worth the price. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 2:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/26 "2002-12-07T02:43:55Z")
Well fugu too. Squirrel, I guess, since others have mentioned ostrich and alligator and turtle. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/27 "2002-12-07T02:54:05Z")
Okay, I didn’t eat it, but I was offered…ox tail soup. My best friend is Chinese-American. The Chinese food served at her house is nothing like the Chinese food at any given Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. Conversation went like this: Her: Would you like some soup? Me, noticing that it’s an alarming red color: What is that? Her: Ox tail soup. Me: Ummm…what’s in it? Her: Ox tails. Me: But really, what’s in it? Her: Ox tails. Me: Really. What’s in it? Her: Really? OX TAILS. Me: I think I’ll pass. Yeah, I’m unadventurous. But it was RED! And now I’m a vegetarian, whew. Spared that experience. ---
**Author:** ![Ashtar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc29f/32.png) [@Ashtar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ashtar)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/28 "2002-12-07T03:28:50Z")
I’ve tried tripe before, but wasn’t able to stomach it. My mexican grandmother served it up for a family gathering. Chicken with mole sauce is interesting, in that the sauce is made with unsweetened chocolate. Not my favorite dish, but not bad, either. These are all kinda just differences in culture, though. If you try to take things from a broad perspective, none of them are really ‘weird’. But of the more unconvential things I’ve eaten, I can also include: Buffalo jerky Venison (deer steak) Rattlesnake soup (The chunks of meat reminded me faintly of corned beef.) Spanakopita (Greek spinach pie–delicious) And finally: -ANY- mexican candy. I kinda like fruit-salted plum suckers…but right now I’m having this syrupy crap that’s marked “Gusano” and “Lucas” on it. I’m not sure which is the company, and which is the name of the candy. It’s a syrup made out of tamarind, a sweet mexican fruit, blended with chili powder, salt, and lemon juice. It’s every bit as disgusting as it sounds, but I keep coming back for more. ---
**Author:** ![JerseyDiamond](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/8491ac/32.png) [@JerseyDiamond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JerseyDiamond)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/29 "2002-12-07T03:31:29Z")
I use to date a guy who hunted. Let’s see: **Squirrel** , which is actually very good **deer** , which is ok if cooked properly **pheasant** , very cood and **pigeon** , (which was at a restaurant in Queens) not to bad I think somewhere it says that people eat 8 **spiders** or something like that in a lifetime… ---
**Author:** ![Pablito](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ed655f/32.png) [@Pablito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pablito)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 3:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/30 "2002-12-07T03:51:37Z")
Unusual things I’ve tried– alligator (though more and more common lately, especially on this board, it seems) rattlesnake Uni (yes, that’s sea urchin sushi; always the sushi chef’s favorite type, rarely the customers. It was good tasting, but yucky texture) calamari ceviche (raw squid, marinaded in limes, etc.) turtle soft-shell crab she-crab soup mountain oysters (calf testicles) brains and eggs sweetbread (pancreas) pickled pigs feet liver (calf and chicken) chitlins (yuck) gizzards buffalo burger elk steak all kinds of venison quail, dove, goose, duck, pheasant rabbit shark’s fin soup peanut butter and anchovy sandwich wild beaver (see the other thread for more about this; not the kind that makes dams. This is my all-time fav.) Many of these were pretty good; some were awful. I don’t personally think of the ones that people commonly hunt as ‘weird’ at all, so I probably shouldn’t list them. But the absolute worst thing I’ve ever eaten was . . . a whole conch, served ceviche-style. It was a big (size of your hand), gelatinous, slimy, black, chewy, foul-smelling, bitter, brackish, terrible experience. Served to my gastrointestinal distress in Guatemala (I think). ---
**Author:** ![DocCathode](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/doccathode/32/18773_2.png) [@DocCathode](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DocCathode)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/31 "2002-12-07T04:04:46Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Ashtar \* > \*\* > And finally: > > -ANY- mexican candy. I kinda like fruit-salted plum suckers…but right now I’m having this syrupy crap that’s marked “Gusano” and “Lucas” on it. I’m not sure which is the company, and which is the name of the candy. It’s a syrup made out of tamarind, a sweet mexican fruit, blended with chili powder, salt, and lemon juice. It’s every bit as disgusting as it sounds, but I keep coming back for more. \*\* Lucas=Idunno Gusano=worm ---
**Author:** ![Nurobath](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a88e57/32.png) [@Nurobath](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nurobath)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/32 "2002-12-07T04:54:14Z")
Well, let’s see raw horse meat (and raw beef) pig blood - kind of like black scrambled eggs uni (sea urchin) raw octopus, squid, and shrimp jellyfish wild pig tripe & beef tendon - both common in Vietnamese soup frog legs bull testicles (not sure what they’re called when prepared…they sure were fresh though). I’m not too adventurous but I’ll try most things at least once. Oh yeah, and natto…yummy. It’s a fermented bean sort of sticky paste like substance that the Japanese eat. (in case you were wondering). ---
**Author:** ![raz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@raz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raz)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/33 "2002-12-07T06:38:48Z")
> [@](#): > > -ANY- mexican candy. I kinda like fruit-salted plum suckers…but right now I’m having this syrupy crap that’s marked “Gusano” and “Lucas” on it. I’m not sure which is the company, and which is the name of the candy. It’s a syrup made out of tamarind, a sweet mexican fruit, blended with chili powder, salt, and lemon juice. It’s every bit as disgusting as it sounds, but I keep coming back for more. You’d have a hayday at [www.bad-candy.com](http://www.bad-candy.com), if they ever get it up and running again. ---
**Author:** ![I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/8edcca/32.png) [@I\_can\_t\_believe\_that\_s\_butter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/I_can_t_believe_that_s_butter)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/34 "2002-12-07T06:39:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Kyla \* > \*\*Okay, I didn’t eat it, but I was offered…ox tail soup. > > My best friend is Chinese-American. The Chinese food served at her house is nothing like the Chinese food at any given Chinese restaurant I have ever been to. > > Conversation went like this: > > Her: Would you like some soup? > Me, noticing that it’s an alarming red color: What is that? > Her: Ox tail soup. > Me: Ummm…what’s in it? > Her: Ox tails. > Me: But really, what’s in it? > Her: Ox tails. > Me: Really. What’s in it? > Her: Really? OX TAILS. > Me: I think I’ll pass. > > Yeah, I’m unadventurous. But it was RED! And now I’m a vegetarian, whew. Spared that experience. \*\* My stepdad made that a few years ago, though perhaps with a different recipe. It’s my understanding that ox tails can be bought at many grocery stores. It’s what beef stew would be like if it were soup. I liked it. ---
**Author:** ![Arden\_Ranger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b487fb/32.png) [@Arden\_Ranger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arden_Ranger)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/35 "2002-12-07T06:55:16Z")
I don’t consider deer or elk or squirrel unusual since I grew up eating those. I did have chocolate covered ants and grasshoppers once. The ants just made for kinda crunchy chocolate. I must have surpressed the memory of the grasshoppers though. I can’t remember what it tasted like. I have also had Escargot. I thought it was gross. ---
**Author:** ![11811](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/1/9d8465/32.png) [@11811](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/11811)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 11:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/36 "2002-12-07T11:56:30Z")
Fried bull’s blood. It was part of a mixed grill in an Argentine restaurant in Mexico DF. I didn’t ask what it was until after I ate it. It had the texture of a plastic pot scrubber, and it tasted like the hot sauce that smothered everything on the plate. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/37 "2002-12-07T13:12:28Z")
Oh, I forgot…I’ve eaten fried squid before. They looked like tiny little onion rings, rather chewy. Eh. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/38 "2002-12-07T13:41:53Z")
Baby octopus (like an inch long) v tasty ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/39 "2002-12-07T13:55:30Z")
I once drank some booze made from wild rice. That stuff is potent. Also vodkamelon made with 198 proof vodka. Just score the melon to the flesh and put it in a tub with the vodka. Let ferment a week. One slice of that and you’re dancing on the roof. ---
**Author:** ![Number](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/number/32/242_2.png) [@Number](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Number)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2002, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013/40 "2002-12-07T18:37:40Z")
I had…a beer milkshake. I’d just read _Cannery Row_ and had probably been watching too much _Red Dwarf_. I figured that one should try to experience new things once in a while, so I blended some homebrewed stout with a large scoop of vanilla ice cream. It wasn’t as bad as one might expect, but I can’t really recommend it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-weirdest-thing-youve-eaten/141013.md?page=3)