8 CHINESE DISHES FOREIGNERS DON’T DARE TO EAT
Pierre Cerchiaro | March 26, 2019



Food plays an important role in Chinese culture. As a result, traditional Chinese cuisine offers a wide range of foods and dishes that can sometimes be considered very strange by Western people.

In order to stay aligned with lucky numbers, in this article we will introduce 8 Chinese dishes that may seem weird for foreigners, but actually taste really good.

1. CHICKEN FEET



In western countries, chicken feet, 鸡脚 jījiǎo in Mandarin, are more likely to end up in the trash can. In China it is a refined dish. Chinese people cook chicken feet in a lot of different ways, such as boiled, in soup, grilled, with ginger, caramelized, crispy...

Cooking them is a long process and it takes hours to soften the little meat that surrounds the bones. Locals don’t waste food and cook almost everything. There is even a Chinese saying that "anything that has four legs and is not a table can be eaten".

2. DUCK BLOOD



Don’t worry, Chinese people don’t drink the blood.

Duck blood, 鸭血 yāxuě in Chinese, is basically cubes of clotted duck blood and is usually cooked in a spicy soup. You can find it in every hotpot restaurant. Duck blood is really tasty and is also known for its health benefits. If you go to China, you should definitely try it, it is ‘bloody’ good!

3. STINKY TOFU



Let's talk about Taiwan and its stinky tofu. Although its name is not appealing, it clearly defines what to expect when you smell it: it stinks. If you go to Taiwan, you don't have to look for a place that sells stinky tofu. Just visit the famous night markets and wait for the strong smell to come to your nose.

It doesn't seem appetising, but like French cheese, the taste is just amazing. Stinky tofu is a fermented tofu with a potent smell (and a strong taste). Stinky tofu (臭豆腐 chòu dòufu) mixed with duck blood in a spicy soup is the best.

4. INTESTINES



As we said before, Chinese people don't like wasting food, so intestines should be eaten too. If you go to a hot pot restaurant, it is really easy to find duck intestines (鸭肠 yācháng) or pork intestines (猪肠 zhūchàng). In Beijing, you can even eat it for breakfast.

Pork or duck intestines can sound weird, but they are really tasty, and Chinese people know how to cook it perfectly.
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