Gangina – The Afghan Way of Keeping Grapes Fresh For Up to Six Months
Gangina is a traditional means of keeping grapes and other fruits fresh for several months, by sealing them in air-tight containers made of wet soil. Grapes are tricky to keep fresh for long periods of time, even when refrigeration is available, but apparently Afghans have long been using an ancient method of keeping the soft […]
Coquitos – The Tiny Coconuts of the Chilean Wine Palm
Coquitos, also known as pigmy coconuts or dwarf coconuts, are the tiny equivalent of the coconuts we all know (and some of us love). It’s hard to believe that I spent over three decades on this Earth and only learned that there is such a thing as a tiny, marble-sized coconut, today. Well, it may […]
Stargazy Pie – An English Pastry Dish With Fish Heads Sticking Out of It
When it comes to unusual and unappetizing-looking Christmas dishes, there are few meals out there that can compete with the Stargazy Pie, a pie with fish heads protruding through the crust, appearing to be gazing skyward. England is home to a variety of pies, from classics like apple pie and pork pie, to less known […]
Alien Dumplings – A Downright Scary-Looking Dish
The world is full of unappetizing dishes, from fermented fish dishes to the dreaded Kiviaq, but few actually look scary to get near to, let alone put in your mouth. These Japanese dumplings definitely fall in the latter category. Last year, we published a story on one of the world’s most bizarre looking fish, the […]
After 20 Years, Court Tells Baker to Stop Selling Cookies Made With Sawdust
A German baker who has reportedly been selling sawdust cookies for around two decades has recently been ordered to stop, as the finely milled wood has been deemed unfit for human consumption. An administrative court in the southwestern German city of Karlsruhe has upheld a decision to ban the sale of cookies made with sawdust, […]
Chả rươi – Vietnam’s Popular Worm Omelet
Chả rươi, or sand worm omelet, is a seasonal Vietnamese dish made with unsightly, two-inch-long sea worms that some say give the “delicacy” a caviar-like taste. Every year, in late fall, street food stalls in northern Vietnam, particularly in Hanoi, serve a very special dish that looks very ordinary at first glance, but that actually […]
The Whimsical Pie Art of Liz Joy-Murray
Liz Joy-Murray, an ex-Hollywood art director turned food artist creates sugary masterpieces that look way too good to eat. Looking at Liz Joy-Murray’ intricate pies, it’s hard to believe that she has only been creating food art for only three years. It all started when she had to take a break from her Hollywood career […]
Too Good to Eat – Helen Nugent’s Artistically Decorated Pies
Helen Nugent is the Toronto-based pie maker who specializes in stunning, intricately designed pies that are definitely way too good to eat. Thanksgiving may already be behind us this year, but there’s never a bad time for a pie, especially one that looks as amazing as those made by Helen Nugent, a self-taught food artist […]
World’s Most Expensive Piece of Ham Sells for $14,000
A Spanish ham producer recently announced that it sold the most expensive piece of traditional Iberian ham to a Japanese buyer for the outrageous price of 12,000 euros ($14,100). Julio Revilla, president of Sierra Mayor Jabugo, an Iberian ham producer based in Corteconcepción, Spain’s Huelva region, said that the record-breaking piece of ham was prepared […]
Hongeo – South Korea’s Stinkiest Food Smells Like a Public Restroom
Hongeo is a bizarre South Korean dish with a pungent aroma that most people describe as a mix of dirty public toilet and wet laundry left untended for days. Made from skate, a bottom-dwelling ray fish, Hongeo is considered by far South Korea’s smelliest food. It’s so stinky that many South Koreans wouldn’t come near […]
You Can Now Spend $350 on the World’s Most Expensive Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwich
Feasting on peanut butter and jelly sandwiches is usually supposed to save you money, but not if you opt for the variety served at Chicago restaurant PB&J, where a single sandwich will set you back a whopping $350. The owners of PB&J, which unintuitively stands for ‘Pizza, Beek & Jukebox’ not peanut butter and jelly, […]
This Malaysian Cake Is Probably the World’s Most Intricate Dessert
Kek Lapis Sarawak is a traditional Malaysian cake famous both for its intricate kaleidoscopic appearance and the grueling process required to make it. Inspired by the spit cakes that Dutch colonists used to enjoy, Kek Lapis Sarawak was born in Malaysia’s Sarawak state, sometime in the 1970’s. It’s basically a much more complex version of […]
These Juicy-Looking Fruit Are Not What They Seem
An amateur confectioner from Vietnam has been getting a lot of attention for her stunningly-realistic tangerine-shaped steamed buns. Le Thuy, a secondary school teacher from Ho Chi Minh city, is well known among the confectioner community of the Vietnamese capital, especially for her jelly and bean cakes. However, she recently managed to surprise her peers […]
Thai Family Buy Stomach-Churning Glow-in-the-Dark Pieces of Sushi
A Thai family got the shock of their lives when they took home a box of sushi to eat only to see it glow bright blue in the dark after allegedly becoming infected with fluorescent bacteria. Last Tuesday, Arun Yolpaiboon, 58, and her son, 21-year-old Natthanai Kanchanawasa, had just returned home with some boxes of […]
Who Knew There Was Such a Thing as Albino Cucumbers?
If you’re tired of growing or eating the same old green cucumbers, you’ll be pleased to hear that there is actually an alternative – albino cucumbers. As their name suggests, these heirloom cucumbers are a bright white, even though the stalks they grow on have a common dark green foliage. Albino cucumbers don’t simply occur […]