Exotic Foods in Asia

I always like to try new food or to be exact, 'exotic' food. Some of the food might be a little unusual to some people but totally normal to the others. However, from the culture point of view, all foods have their own history, how people came about sourcing it, cooking it and making it as a delicacy. So do not be too judgemental.

1. Crocodile Stew 

The stew was actually quite nice with the ginger and spring onion to cover the gamy crocodile meat. The meat itself was like pork but leaner and tougher. I had this in one of the hawker centres in Singapore.

2. Turtle Soup 

Turtle soup is good for health. The turtle meat is said to be the healing meat. I also had this in the hawker centre in Singapore.

3. Pork Jelly

This is like eating a very refreshing jelly. I think it's made of pig skin and heavy pork stock. It is served cold with cucumber and fresh cilantro. This also, I had in Singapore.

4. Pig Intestines

Pig intestines is my favourite. It has the soft chewy texture and does not have much taste of itself. It can be cooked in many different ways, e.g. braised in soy sauce (I had in Singapore), crispy deep-fried (Taiwan) and cooked in a 'Bak Kut Teh' soup (Malaysia). Most of the 'Bak Kut Teh' restaurants in Singapore and Malaysia have pig intestines on their menu.

Braised in Soy Sauce

Deep-Fried

Bak Kut Teh Soup

5. Pig Organ Soup

This is a white peppercorn soup with mix of pig offals such as liver, heart, stomach, intestines, kidney, tongue as well as pork meat slices and salted vegetables. I had this in one of the hawker centres in Subang, Malaysia.

6. Pig Ear

Pig ear is very crunchy. I had this in a 'Hunan' restaurant in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia that serves pig ear in chilli oil.

7. Saksang (Pork Blood Stew)

This is one of the traditional food in Indonesia, minced pork stewed in pork blood, coconut milk and spices. It has that irony taste from the blood which is interesting. I had this in Medan, Indonesia.

8. Black Chicken Soup

The black chicken soup cooked with ginseng and Chinese herbs is good to warm up the body. I think it's a good food to eat after a hangover night. Haha, that's my personal opinion. I had this once when I stayed in Singapore. 

9. Chicken Feet

Chicken feet is very popular. You can see this in any dim sum restaurants in Asia e.g. Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong.

10. Tongkeng (Chicken Bishop Nose)

I found this fried chicken bishop nose satay in one of the night market in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. It's mostly fat and tailbone in the middle which is not edible.

11. Goose Rice

Goose meat is much nicer, smoother and softer compared to duck meat. It is very popular in Hong Kong.

12. Beef Organs

This braised beef organs which I had in Hong Kong consists of liver, intestine and tripe. So nice.

13. Fugu (Blowfish)

Fugu or blowfish is a poisonous fish, popular in Japan. Only certified chefs are allowed to work in fugu restaurants. The fugu poison is fatal, it paralyses the muscles, causing victims to be unable to breathe and eventually dies. However, if fugu is prepared well, it is safe to consume. I tried this fugu in Osaka, Japan - fugu sashimi, fugu karaage and fugu sushi.

14. Kobe Beef

Kobe beef is so nice because the beef cut has a lot of fat tissues which makes it so juicy and tender, melting in your mouth. It is said that the cow does not need to work hard and got massage treatment in order to produce that quality of meat. I ate this in a restaurant called Steak Land in Kobe, Japan.

15. Grilled Rabbit Fillet

The rabbit meat, for me, tastes like chicken but leaner and tougher.  I had this in La Maison 1888 restaurant in Danang, Vietnam.

16. Foie Gras

In the same restaurant above, La Maison 1888, I also had this super juicy foie gras. It is so smooth and tasty. Actually, foie gras are prohibited in some places due to its cruel practice. 

17. Stinky Tofu

The stinky tofu smells very terrible when you pass by the stall, even you are 5 metres away. It smells like a dirty drain. But when you're eating it, it just tastes like a normal tofu. It can be found is most night markets in Taiwan and it's very popular. I had this stinky tofu few times e.g. in Taiwan, Hong Kong and China.

18. Century Egg (Thousand Year Egg)

I love century eggs for its jelly texture and the creamy sulphuric yolk in the middle which has turned in grey colour due to the preservation process. It is one of the delicacies that you can find in most of the Chinese restaurants as an appetiser. 

19. Bugs & Worms

Bugs and worms are sold as a snack item in Thailand and some other Indochina countries such as Vietnam and Cambodia. I only tried the fat silk worms when I was in Phuket, Thailand. Once you bite into it, it has some slimy things inside but luckily it was seasoned well with soy sauce so the flavour is quite nice. 

20. Snails

Snails, one of the street foods I found in Hong Kong, are crunchy and a little bit slimy. I also had it in Thailand, with lemongrass and chilli sauce.

   

21. Another Kind of Snail

Another mollusc-family street food I ate in Medan, Indonesia. The local name is 'Chao-Lo'. The broth was so spicy and tasty.

22. Fried Snake

This also I had in Medan, Indonesia. The fried snake for me, tastes like fried fish with a lot of skin, a little chewy.

23. Fried 'Biawak' (Monitor Lizzard)

The fried 'biawak' tastes exactly like a fried chicken. The meat texture is also very similar to chicken meat. The only difference is you cannot recognise which part of chicken it is.

24. Eel

This eel soup is very sweet and tasty. Same like turtle, eel is also a healing meat, it's good for skin cell recovery. I also had this in Medan, Indonesia.

25. Frog

I had this battered deep-fried frog in Siem Reap, Cambodia. I love frog meat, especially the thigh muscle, a tiny small muscle. It is like a cross between chicken and white lean fish meat structure.

26. Mini Crabs

I found this cute mini crabs in Jonker Street, Melaka, Malaysia. Not a big fan of this crab since the shells are not as crispy as I wish it should be. However, I think this snack is quite rare though as I don't see it very often.

27. Durian! 

Believe it or not, there is a durian buffet in Malaysia. Durian lovers can satisfy their cravings at Donald's Durian SS2.

I am still looking forward to trying and eating more new things from all parts of the world and I definitely will update this topic from time to time. So till then... :D