Bizzare Foods, Most Bizzare Foods, Chinese bizarre food

Most westerners look upon Asian food, traditions and culture as taboo or exotic. Though some of the strange stories are true, many of the horror stories told are merely exaggerations. While some Chinese fare may be strange or even unappetizing to a Western palette, with a little courage and an open mind, some of these exotic ingredients just might become one of your favorite foods.

Popular foods in Asia such as Beef Tendon, Bird’s Nest soup, and Shark fin can be almost shocking to westerners. Making soup out of nests scraped off of caves in the middle of the woods? Although dishes such as Bird’s nest soup may seem unpalatable by western standards, it is one of the most expensive dishes in Asia, revered for its complex flavor and legendary medical qualities. One must remember that in Rural china, most people have never even heard of foods like burgers and fries, and the idea of expensive caviar or meat pate’s may seem just as disgusting to them.

Some of the stories told about bizarre Chinese fare are true. Reports of dogs and cats being used in human foods are rare, but do exist. Ideas such as these may seem barbaric to westerners. These domestic animals aren’t revered as a delicacy or with any medical purposes. In many instances though, rural families in china sometimes live on less than a dollar a day. Starvation is not uncommon. Faced with starving to death, some villagers had to make a hard decision.

Another reason behind China’s variety of bizarre foods is the belief that many foods carry medicinal properties. There are thousands of supposed home remedies for various afflictions such as bear’s paw, snake’s blood and even ground antlers.

With some of the mystery explained about the reasons behind some of China’s more bizarre foods, it’s relatively easy to explain the origins of many of these strange, but some times delicious dishes.