The history of medicine has not unfurled gradually. Instead, it is made up of moments—points in time when someone did something really important that would go on to have a significant impact on the medical world as a whole. Each subsequent moment brings us closer to the inevitable conclusion where we all become immortal cyborgs, but until that day, we can look back on some of the noteworthy moments from our past.

10Charles-Francois Felix Removes The Sun King’s Anal Fistula

The year is 1686, and the king has a pain in the butt. Specifically, we are talking about Louis XIV, king of France. Despite enjoying a very lengthy reign of 72 years (also earning the moniker “the Sun King”), Louis was not a healthy man. He suffered from headaches, gout, periostitis, and (some also suspect) diabetes. And in 1686, the king was stricken with a very painful anal fistula that would not go away despite all the enemas and poultices that were the accepted practice at the time.

Perhaps in an act of desperation, the king did something unusual for that time—he turned to a barber-surgeon. Back then, physicians considered surgery beneath them, so the practice was usually left to barbers since they were skilled with a blade. The barber in question was named Charles-Francois Felix. He received around six months to prepare and was told to come up with a procedure to ease the king’s suffering. After practicing on 75 alleged volunteers from France’s prisons, Felix perfected two instruments with which to perform the surgery—a spreader and a scraper.

The procedure went well, and King Louis showered Felix with wealth and titles. All of a sudden, having an anal fistula became the latest trend in France, and many courtiers approached Felix, demanding the royal surgery to imitate the king. But on a more serious note, this also helped legitimize surgery, and physicians started looking at it as a viable alternative.

9Ambroise Pare Runs Out Of Oil

One of the most famous barber-surgeons in history was Ambroise Pare. During the 16th century, he served four different French kings, and before that, he was a pioneer of battlefield medicine. During that time, the pain suffered by a patient wasn’t of paramount concern to medical professionals. It was more of a “you either live or you die” scenario. Pain was expected with most medical procedures, and it wasn’t uncommon for it to be so excruciating that patients would pass out in the middle of the operation.

One of the most painful but essential procedures was cauterization. The surgeon would use boiling oil to seal gunshot wounds. Even so, the chances of the patient surviving the ordeal were slim. In 1536, during the Italian War, Pare was serving as a war surgeon. One day, he ran out of boiling oil to treat injured soldiers, so he created a tincture using rose oil, egg yolks, and turpentine. He didn’t expect it to do much good. To his surprise, the next day, the soldiers treated with his new recipe were in much better shape.

Pare showed the world there were less agonizing alternatives to cauterization and continued his trend by also popularizing the use of ligatures after amputations. Furthermore, Pare brought attention to his ideas through a very simple yet unconventional method—he wrote in French instead of Latin. That way, all the less educated barber-surgeons would be able to learn what he had to say.

8Andreas Vesalius’s Dissections

Claudius Galenus (or simply Galen) was one of the most important scientists of ancient Greece. Primarily a physician and surgeon, Galen’s medical accomplishments are almost on par with those of Hippocrates. He became renowned for his insight into the inner workings of the human body, which he gained primarily through dissections on animals. However, we are still talking about the second century here, so Galen got a lot of stuff wrong.

The man was so respected that his notions remained mostly unchallenged for centuries. It wasn’t until the 16th century that Galen’s teachings were challenged by another publication by Dutch anatomist Andreas Vesalius. In 1543, Vesalius wrote On the Fabric of the Human Body, which showed conclusively that Galen was wrong on several points regarding the human anatomy. More than that, Vesalius based all of his observations on his own personal human dissections, so he also urged doctors to take a hands-on approach to medicine.

Fortunately, Vesalius also had some powerful supporters (like Emperor Charles V of the Holy Roman Empire), which ensured that his book became one of the most important anatomy publications of all time. Like Pare, Vesalius wanted to ensure that his book was as accessible as possible, which is why it contained over 200 high-quality illustrations by skilled artists who were clearly present during the dissections.

7Ephraim McDowell Performs The First Ovariotomy

American physician Ephraim McDowell earned worldwide renown for one particular case—or two cases, if we’re counting the time he removed bladder stones from a 17-year-old James Polk, future president of the United States.

On December 13, 1809, McDowell went to see Jane Todd Crawford, a woman who was thought to be pregnant beyond term by her local doctor. After McDowell inspected her, he promptly diagnosed Mrs. Crawford with a giant ovarian tumor. He explained to her that nobody had ever tried to remove such a tumor and that most doctors would consider the procedure impossible.

Even so, Mrs. Crawford had nothing to lose at that point, so she let McDowell operate on her. She had to endure a 25-minute procedure without anesthesia, during which the doctor removed a 10-kilogram (22 lb) tumor. Despite the grim prognosis, Mrs. Crawford recovered fully in less than a month and lived for 32 more years. McDowell went on to become known as the “father of the ovariotomy,” although not immediately since he waited for eight more years before writing about the procedure.

6Richard Lower Performs The First Blood Transfusion

Blood transfusions are an essential part of modern medicine, but there was a time when they were mocked. Obviously, blood has played a role in many rituals throughout history, but it wasn’t until the middle of the 17th century in London that transfusions were studied as a possible medical treatment. The man behind the research was Richard Lower, an Oxford physician and member of the Royal Society, which had only formed a few years prior.

In 1665, Lower performed the first successful animal transfusion. He took blood from one dog and put it in another dog. That done, he moved on to people. In 1667, a sheep served as the donor, while a volunteer named Arthur Coga became the first human recipient of a blood transfusion and was paid 20 shillings for his services. Noted diarist Samuel Pepys was present at Coga’s medical procedure and took extensive notes.

Coga received 9–10 ounces of sheep’s blood, and the landmark procedure was published in Philosophical Transactions. However, the public didn’t regard this event as anything noteworthy. Quite the opposite, in fact. Lower and the Royal Society were mocked and branded as mad scientists. A play called The Virtuoso written by Thomas Shadwell even satirized the sheep-to-human transfusion.

Coga was a little mad, and Lower incorrectly thought the blood transfusion would fix his mental problems. When that didn’t happen, people dismissed the idea, and it would take a century before blood transfusions would seriously be considered again.

5Dominique Jean Larrey Perfects Battlefield Medicine

Dominique Jean Larrey is often regarded as the first modern military surgeon because of his many innovations in the field that are still relevant today. It didn’t take long for Larrey to learn all the standard practices of the time and enroll as a military surgeon under Napoleon. After that, he pretty much decided that all of those practices were wrong. For example, it was standard for hospitals to be kept miles away from the battlefield for safety. While this made them safe, it also made them empty, as many injured soldiers died en route. Larrey decided that battlefield medicine would be much more effective in medical tents erected near the front lines.

Now that the hospitals were closer, Larrey also wanted the method of transportation to be faster. That idea gave birth to the flying ambulance, the first army ambulance corps. They were horse-drawn carriages, typically used to maneuver artillery. Larrey also became an expert on amputations, developing techniques to make the procedure faster and safer. Supposedly, he once performed 200 amputations within 24 hours.

Larrey’s dedication earned him the admiration of Napoleon (who first named him surgeon-in-chief of the French army and later a baron), but he was also idolized by the soldiers. After the devastating defeat at the Battle of Borodino, Larrey was picked up and passed around crowdsurfing-style by soldiers who wanted to make sure he didn’t get trampled while retreating. Even Napoleon’s most bitter enemy, the Duke of Wellington, gave orders to his men not to shoot on Larrey’s tent at Waterloo.

4Sushruta’s Rhinoplasty

Ancient India excelled in many scientific fields such as mathematics, astronomy, and medicine. While the Western medical world had men like Hippocrates and Galen, India had Sushruta. An ancient surgeon active during the sixth and fifth centuries BC, Sushruta is sometimes called the “father of plastic surgery” for his teachings on nasal reconstructions. He gave quite a detailed description on how to perform a primitive form of rhinoplasty by removing skin from the cheek flap and attaching it to the nose. We can’t say for sure if Sushruta ever actually successfully attempted this procedure, but the level of detail is still quite remarkable for the time period.

Plastic surgery aside, Sushruta’s other notable contribution to medicine was the Sushruta Samhita, an ancient text that became one of the foundations of Ayurveda, the traditional Indian medicine that’s still used today. The compendium contained most, if not all, of the medical knowledge India had at the time. It covered over 1,000 illnesses and hundreds of plants, minerals, and animal preparations that supposedly had healing capabilities.

3Jean Civiale Performs The First Minimally Invasive Surgery

Passing a kidney stone is often claimed as one of the most painful experiences you can endure, with certain women even putting it one step above the pain of child labor. Over one million people have to deal with a kidney stone every year in America alone. Thankfully, we don’t do it the old-fashioned way anymore. Nowadays, we use a minimally invasive procedure called a lithotripsy, which uses various techniques to crush the stones.

Before the 19th century, the standard procedure was a lithotomy. It involved making an incision and removing the stone whole. Not only was it extremely painful, but it also carried a high mortality rate. But in came French physician Jean Civiale with his invention, the lithotrite, which he used to perform the first minimally invasive surgery in the world. With this tool, Civiale was able to crush the stone before removing it through the urethra.

Civiale, a pioneer of urology and the founder of the first urology center in the world at Necker Hospital in Paris, showed that his method was much more efficient than a lithotomy. While the traditional technique had a mortality rate of over 18 percent, his lithotripsy hovered around the 2-percent mark. He did this through an ample and comprehensive study commissioned by the Paris Academy of Science, a significant feat of evidence-based medicine that was highly influential for the time.

2George Hayward Performs First Amputation Under General Anesthesia

Very soon after William Morton introduced ether as anesthesia in 1846 with his “Letheon” inhaler, physicians were already thinking of the possible applications it might have. Sure, the gas proved itself potent enough during a minor surgical procedure, but could it be used for major surgery as well?

The process was somewhat delayed by Morton’s reluctance to reveal ether as the core ingredient of his inhaler. Doctors wanted to use his concoction but were wary of using an unknown agent on their patients due to potential side effects. Morton offered to supply Boston hospitals with Letheon free of charge, but physicians took a stand and demanded to know the formula used with the inhaler. At this point, Morton finally conceded and admitted to using sulfuric ether.

Now that that issue was out of the way, the anesthesia could be used on a much more ambitious medical procedure—an amputation. The task was undertaken by Dr. George Hayward. The patient was a 21-year-old servant girl named Alice Mohan whose leg needed to be amputated due to tuberculosis. Like before, Morton administered the gas until the patient fell asleep. Hayward tested her reaction by stabbing Alice with a pin. When she didn’t react, he quickly proceeded to cut off her leg.

Alice later awoke, not realizing that she’d fallen asleep and that the procedure was finished. When she said she was ready to begin, Hayward reached down and picked up her leg from sawdust and presented it to its former owner.

1Ignaz Semmelweis Tells Doctors To Wash Their Hands

Humans can be very slow to change when a new notion goes against long-held beliefs. Richard Lower was mocked for his work on blood transfusions. When Edward Jenner came up with the smallpox vaccine, he was criticized by the clergy for his ungodly work. And yet probably no man has made a greater contribution to medicine that earned him nothing but scorn and mockery than Ignaz Semmelweis.

Nowadays, the man is known as the “savior of mothers” and you don’t get that kind of moniker unless you did something right. We also know that infection is a serious problem, and doctors go to great lengths to ensure that they operate under sanitary conditions. This wasn’t always the case, though.

Joseph Lister usually gets the credit for pioneering antiseptic surgery, but Dr. Semmelweis had the same idea several decades prior. The only difference between them was that Semmelweis became a pariah of the medical world for his ideas.

Semmelweis realized that there was a direct correlation between infection and puerperal fever in obstetrical clinics. Just by washing their hands and their instruments, doctors could drastically lower the mortality rates caused by the fever to below 1 percent. Puerperal fever was a common problem in the 19th century and had a mortality rate of up to 18 percent. However, doctors simply refused to believe that they could be responsible for so many deaths. It wasn’t until Pasteur proved germ theory that people finally realized Semmelweis’s ideas had some merit. By then, Semmelweis went insane trying to convince others and was committed to an asylum, where he was beaten to death by guards.

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Chicken is a popular staple when it comes to making protein-packed meals. From Chick-fil-A to Nashville fried chicken, there isn’t a clever spin on chicken that hasn’t filled the stomach of many.

Chicken eggs are also popular in worldwide cuisine due to their versatile nature, texture, and overall taste. Despite the various ways that these eggs can be cooked, eating chicken eggs is going to be a similar experience no matter how they’re made.

Yet some people crave more than just a simple hen’s egg. They may want something richer or lighter, maybe slightly fishy, or possibly something so out there that even considering eating it seems a bit bizarre.

10 Fish

Caviar is a costly, delicious treat made of fish eggs that appeals to the taste of many.

Beluga caviar is the most expensive form of fish eggs. The cost can vary—sometimes ranging from $3,000 to $4,000. In fact, Iran made the Guinness World Records’ list for their beluga caviar, which sold for $34,500. It was considered a rarity as it came from an albino sturgeon.

In general, the beluga sturgeon is endangered, which makes the price tag of its eggs high. However, more affordable sources of caviar are available.

Fish eggs are often placed on sushi. Flying fish eggs are the most common type used. They have a reddish color and a notorious “pop” when eaten. While larger, salmon eggs can also be used on sushi as well as eaten by themselves. These versatile eggs are often found in California supermarkets and restaurants. They can be eaten with rice, mixed in pasta sauce, cooked in an omelet, or eaten raw. Salmon eggs are soft and come seasoned in a variety of flavors.^[1]

In Japan, fish eggs are a specialty. On New Year’s Eve, a traditional food is cooked herring fish eggs (kazunoko). With their salty, slightly fishy taste, these eggs are normally eaten alone or paired with rice when served on a New Year’s menu.

Oddly enough, feeding babies ground-up salmon eggs has been recommended by the USDA to aid in normal development. The taste of salmon eggs may even pair nicely with butternut squash or sweet potato baby food.

9 Ant

Small and able to lift twice their size, ants have many uses. In some countries, the eating of ants—and their eggs—is a tradition that has been carried out for years.

Ant eggs come in various sizes, depending on the type of ant and the region in which it lives. For example, red ant eggs from Thailand are larger than the typical ant egg. They are said to have a slightly sour taste. Red ant eggs can be used in salads, made into a curry, cooked in omelets, or even eaten on their own.

In Mexico, ant eggs are referred to as escamole and have been eaten since the time of the Aztecs. These eggs are said to have a more nut-related taste. They are either fried with spices or added to tacos and omelets. Many times, these eggs are served alone, often eaten with guacamole and chips.

This peculiar but not unreasonable interest in using ant eggs has spread to North America, where restaurants are starting to use them in salads, omelets, and even ice cream. When out for ice cream, it might be best to ask just what sort of eggs have been used after all.^[2]

8 Emu

Often confused with ostriches due to their similar size and long necks, emus are huge birds whose eggs are in significant demand. Emu eggs weigh about 0.9 kilograms (2 lbs) and are a stunning blue-green color. However, the selling point is that one emu egg equals roughly 12 chicken eggs.

Eating emu eggs is common in Australia, where the birds are endemic. In fact, there has been a spike in demand in the past few years.

As emu eggs are 50 percent whites and 50 percent yolks, the eggs can be used for a variety of dishes from breakfast to dessert. Australia’s demand for emu eggs has increased as cooking shows and restaurants look to add these eggs to their menus, either by scrambling, frying, or even turning the eggs into milkshakes.^[3]

In the United States, the popularity of emu eggs is also rising. Restaurants have started to add them to their dishes at up to $90 an egg. A dish with one egg serves up to six people and is scrambled with mushrooms and black truffles.

Even farmers’ markets are quickly selling out of emu eggs, which go for around $20 each! They are said to have a more decadent taste than chicken eggs, though you may have to taste them to believe it.

7 Seagull

Seagulls seem to be everywhere you don’t want them to be, especially if you’re trying to enjoy a nice day at the beach or picnicking in a park. A way to take out your frustrations with these birds is simply eating their eggs.

There has been a sharp increase in demand for seagull eggs, leading to a decrease in egg production and in the birds themselves. This is because their eggs are said to be much richer than chicken eggs. Seagull eggs are almost creamy in texture when cooked, making them even more delectable.^[4]

While these eggs are mostly eaten hard-boiled, they can also be fried, poached, scrambled, and served with meat. Due to their creamy nature, they’re good for use in baking as they add extra lightness that chicken eggs don’t have. In London, seagull eggs are served in high-end restaurants with caviar, truffles, and even foie gras.

Due to the conservation laws in England, the cost of seagull eggs is around £7 or almost $9 for just one egg. In Canada, the restrictions make eating a seagull egg a delicacy that happens once a year. When this time comes, those in Ahousaht prefer to eat their eggs the simple way: scrambled.

While seagulls might be everywhere, getting your hands on a cooked seagull egg can be harder than imagined.

6 Turtle

For a time, turtles were known as the pets that caused Salmonella outbreaks in children. This led to restrictions on which turtles could be pets, further limiting which turtle eggs could be incubated. Although some have found that turtles may not make the healthiest pets, their eggs might just have another use—breakfast.

In the US, eating turtle eggs became so common that it is now illegal to sell, consume, or produce turtle eggs in some states. This is a way to aid in species preservation, which is also happening in many other countries such as Nicaragua. There, turtle eggs are a highly sought-after dish.

In Nicaragua, the soft-shell turtle eggs can be cooked in soups or placed raw in salads. When eating them raw, the eggs are placed in boiling water for only a matter of seconds to absorb a mixture of garlic and onions before they’re served in a salad with a variety of leafy greens.

The taste of turtle eggs has been described as slimy and less appetizing when compared to other types of eggs. But there is a supposed surprise benefit to eating turtle eggs. In Indonesia, Mexico, and Nicaragua, turtle eggs are said to be an aphrodisiac that can aid in men’s potency.^[5]

5 Crocodile

Many people think of the crocodile as a fierce, almost prehistoric reptile with dangerous teeth and scaly skin. But others see these creatures as a source of food—whether it is their meat or, strangely enough, their eggs.

In fact, crocodile meat and eggs are so popular in places like Jamaica and Australia that the species started to be at risk of becoming endangered. Still, those who want crocodile eggs search for nests that aren’t being watched by the mother crocs. The eggs are then thoroughly washed because they are hosts for fungi. Then the eggs are cooked by themselves or added to other dishes.

In the Philippines, one of the most popular ways to eat crocodile eggs is to turn them into ice cream. When compared to the almost fishy taste these eggs have when eaten alone, the ice cream is creamier and can be mixed with various fruits and flavors.^[6]

Finding crocodile eggs in the US is going to be a bit harder as the US Fish and Wildlife Service restricts such activities.

4 Snail

Eating snails dates back to Roman times when these mollusks were often cooked and served. Eating snail eggs, however, is a completely bizarre trend that’s quickly growing in popularity.

The eggs have a slimy texture and a taste similar to a mix of grass and mushrooms. In places like Italy, snails are fed special diets to speed up their egg-making process. Their eggs are sold in a 50-gram (1.8 oz) jar for €80, or around $90.

Snail eggs have found spots on the menu by being fried with beef, placed in canapes, and used in salads. In Barcelona, snail eggs are sold in bags of about 0.9 kilograms (2 lbs) each and marketed as white caviar. The going price for a bag of these eggs is £1,600.

France has also joined in the snail egg craze. In one restaurant, they are cooked by using a secret recipe and served on toast. Their taste is comparable to a smokier, herbier caviar. Snails’ eggs are also served by being grilled with a Sauternes sabayon sauce.

Eating snail eggs might seem bizarre. But in France, high demand exists due to the superstition that these eggs can enhance your sex life and make you live longer.^[7]

3 Shark

Known as the apex predators of the ocean, sharks sit at the top of the food chain when it comes to other sea-dwelling creatures. For humans, sharks are something to be feared—and eaten. Over the past few years, there has been an increase in shark consumption. Whether it is their meat or their fins in soup, sharks have found themselves on the menu.

And if you’re lucky and find a female shark with unfertilized eggs? Those, too, can and will be eaten.

The eggs from female sharks are large, similar to chicken eggs, and can actually be cooked in the same fashion. In the Maldives, consumption of gulper shark eggs was so high that restrictions on shark fishing had to be put in place.

A popular method of preparing shark eggs is grinding them, allowing them to be easily added to different meals. Ground and dried shark eggs provide numerous dietary benefits, including adding nutrients that are missing in people’s diets.

In addition to being used in omelets, shark eggs can be boiled, fried, and even baked. A recipe exists for creating scones with shark eggs, if one dares to try it.^[8]

2 Octopus

Ordering octopus on a menu seems like a no-brainer—except when the octopus’s head is filled with eggs.

Octopus eggs, commonly known as octopus roe, are not eaten the same way as other eggs are. The female’s eggs are still inside the octopus when the animal is cooked whole and eaten. In some places, such as Japan, the eggs are taken out and used to top sushi.

If the octopus is large enough, such as the mizudako from the North Pacific, the eggs can be used instead of meat or vegetables inside the sushi. But for many, eating the eggs along with the octopus itself is the norm.^[9]

After the octopus is cooked, the eggs are similar in texture to rice once the octopus is opened. The taste of these cooked eggs is said to be sweet and nutty.

In some places, the egg sac is sold so that the eggs can be prepared and served raw. A story like this went viral, calling such eggs “alien eggs” and spurring public confusion. Though they aren’t alien eggs, eating an octopus’s eggs might just be an out-of-this-world experience.

1 Penguin

Nothing is sweeter than watching two penguin parents switch off caring for their egg—except for the egg, that is. With limited resources in Antarctica, having a craving for an omelet might put you in a tough spot. Unless you have a penguin egg nearby.

Back when the French were exploring Antarctica for the first time, a crew led by Jean-Baptiste Charcot became ill during their expedition. Eating penguin eggs, which are packed with protein and vitamins, helped the men to regain their strength. In many cases, penguin eggs were used as the only option when it came to sources of protein that weren’t meat.

While eating penguins has been banned since the early 2000s, those in the Antarctic relied on penguin meat and eggs to keep them nourished. Penguin eggs were a staple in many Antarctic diets because they can be stored for up to a year and are larger than chicken eggs.^[10]

When cooked, the yolk never truly sets and the eggs sometimes appear bright orange. Despite this, penguin eggs are high in protein, which makes them beneficial in cold climates. The most popular way to eat them is scrambled with just a bit of toast. Still, it’s probably best to just leave penguin eggs alone.

Meat is a staple in many people’s diets. Eating ground beef, ham, steak, and the white and dark meats of birds such as turkey and chicken is common and often the focal point for many US holidays. What you won’t find on the tables of many average American families are the organs of these animals, even though they’re entirely edible.

Eating animal organs, often referred to as offal-style dishes, is a routine practice elsewhere. Many countries consider different organs to be delicacies, and some are easily located on the menus of restaurants and street vendors.

Although it might seem outrageous to take a bite of a bull’s testicle or swallow a portion of a chicken’s digestive tract, eating these organs is normal for many individuals. In fact, some of these foods are said to be a delight to eat if you dare to give them a try.

10 Ox Tongue

Around the world, ox tongue is a delicacy that can be found anywhere from restaurants to street vendors. In fact, it was a popular inclusion in American cookbooks in the 1940s–1950s. However, it faded from cookbooks as different parts of meats drew more interest.

Ox tongue, which can be served a variety of ways, is said to be similar in texture to other parts of red meat, such as flank steak and filet. The tongue is used in popular dishes around the world, such as Mexican tacos de lengua.

The tongue is chopped and braised with garlic, herbs, and some spices. Accompanied by typical taco toppings such as salsa and avocado, it’s wrapped in a tortilla. Beef, pork, elk, and lamb tongues are often used in this dish.^[1]

In places such as Japan, ox tongue is quite popular. This is especially true in the city of Sendai where ox tongue is considered to be a specialty. It can be cooked in a variety of ways, added to different dishes, or grilled with a simple side of rice. It’s not only found in restaurants but can be bought in Sendai train stations while one waits.

Although ox tongue may not be popular in the United States, it can be found in specific restaurants and even on cruise ships. As a specialty item, the Carnival Cruise Line offers a braised ox tongue as an appetizer for those willing to give it a try.

9 Gizzards

Gizzards are not an entirely unpopular dish. However, finding them served on a regular restaurant’s menu is unlikely even though they are an edible part of the chicken. Applebee’s may not serve chicken gizzards, but you can find them as a delicacy in other countries and even in some restaurants in the United States.

Found inside a bird’s digestive tract, a gizzard is an organ that helps to grind up food so that the bird can digest it. In the United States, gizzards can be found in the South, where they’re commonly served like fried chicken.

In countries like Nigeria, gizzard is used in a pepper soup. Meanwhile, Portuguese restaurants serve moelas, a dish in which gizzards are cooked in a broth including garlic, onions, and red wine. The gizzards are often served as an appetizer or inside a stew as a main course.

In places like Thailand, gizzards are often included in various dishes like khao man gai, which is gizzard with other pieces of meat, such as chicken liver, served over rice. Gizzard is an easily cooked piece of the chicken and is versatile, making it a favorite for street vendors.

Similar practices can be found in Hong Kong, Taiwan, and the Philippines, where chicken gizzards can be added to any dish or simply served with rice.^[2]

8 Beef Heart

Since the 1940s, beef heart has been considered a very rich and healthy portion of beef. Recommended because it’s high in B vitamins and iron, this food can provide health benefits for one’s own heart. However, though it may be good for you, many are put off by the thought of eating an animal’s heart.

In the US, beef heart was included in ground beef for a short while. Although the USDA still allows it, the practice has faded. Still, some restaurants use the heart by making it into a stew or grilling it, often producing the same look and texture as flank steak.^[3]

In Chicago, beef heart can be found in a signature dish by incorporating the heart into a watermelon salad. Meanwhile, Georgia has seen barbecued beef heart become an increasingly popular dish.

Places such as Peru serve anticuchos, which is beef heart that is marinated, skewered, and grilled. The dish is the most popular way to eat beef and is sold by restaurants and street vendors.

Brazil, France, Denmark, and Japan often incorporate beef hearts in their dishes or make it the star of the show. In London, beef heart is not unheard-of, especially in one Michelin-starred restaurant where it is popular and cheaply bought. The hearts, which are gamy in taste, can be sauteed, made into a tartare, or even turned into burgers.

7 Lamb Kidneys

During the Great Depression, eating offal dishes was common due to the high price of meat. Families used every bit of the animal that they could. Today, meat has become more widely accessible and much cheaper, yet there are still parts of the world which treasure offal dishes, including lamb kidneys.

In Hong Kong, lamb kidneys can be found inside a stir-fry. The kidneys are cleaned and cut into small pieces before being added to the stir-fry to make a quick and delicious meal.^[4]

Due to the delicate taste of lamb kidneys, they are often served deviled or marinated to extract the most flavor. They are paired only with vegetables to ensure that the flavor of the lamb kidneys is the star of the dish. In Persia, lamb kidney was the main ingredient in gholveh which pairs lamb kidneys and tomato sauce to create an easy and inexpensive dish.

Although lamb kidneys are not as popular in North America as in countries like Scotland, they are common in other European restaurants. In France, lamb kidneys are usually found sauteed or grilled. In England, they can be placed as a spread on toast or even soaked in red wine to give them a sweeter taste. More commonly in the United Kingdom, lamb kidneys are used inside a stew—or as famous chef Gordon Ramsay prefers, inside a pie.

6 Goat Brain

Not eating brains has always seemed to be, well, a no-brainer. Most of the time, the hesitation comes from the fear, whether valid or not, of contracting some sort of disease. However, in many cultures, consuming the brains of an animal is seen as a delicacy and is believed to improve bodily functions.

The goat has become especially popular in the United States, where they are increasingly used in recipes. One of these trends is eating goat brains.^[5]

In the Middle East, consuming goat brains is common. In fact, in Mumbai, breja fry is a typical dish where the goat brains are cooked with a curry base as well as chili and ginger. The dish, which is called maghaz masala on some menus in North America, is easily found in India and Pakistan where vendors often serve it as street food. The taste of goat brains is described as having a similar texture to scrambled eggs when cooked.

There are claims that the consumption of goat brains is good for nervous system functioning and provides necessary nutrients. However, this is not scientifically proven.

Still, if one is looking to try something new, the Mexican dish tacos de sesos can be made with goat brains instead of beef. Also, some French restaurants have altered the popular dish tete de veau by using the boiled head of a goat instead of a calf.

5 Duck Liver

Foie gras is a popular dish which started in France and can be found in restaurants around the world. The dish involves overfeeding a duck to ensure a fatty liver, which gives it a rich and almost buttery texture when eaten.

The French also use duck liver inside a bordelaise sauce, called “rouennaise sauce,” which tops the remaining cooked portions of the duck. Although chicken liver has been a common dish in many countries, duck liver has started to increase in popularity. Due to its health benefits, including high amounts of protein, vitamin A, all the B vitamins, iron, copper, and zinc, it has also been considered a good remedy for fatigue.^[6]

In Argentina, liver can be eaten lightly cooked or even raw. In some paleo diets, raw liver is included in drink form alongside tomato juice, egg yolks, coconut juice, lemon, and lime. Even odder, the drink is topped off with a dash of hot sauce.

In Australia, a restaurant opened up with hopes of increasing the consumption of duck. There, duck liver is used in different forms in many dishes—from appetizers to main courses.

Depending on where in the world you are, duck liver can be served boiled, sauteed in a wine or sherry sauce, as a pate, or even in a casserole.

4 Sheep Stomach

The popular Scottish dish haggis is well-known for including parts of the sheep that one wouldn’t normally think of eating, all boiled and encased inside the animal’s stomach. While the Scottish version of haggis isn’t allowed in the United States due to regulations on sheep’s lungs, other versions exist. All of them involve the meats being served inside a sheep’s stomach.

The consumption of haggis has grown and is not just seen as a Scottish staple anymore. Sheep’s organs, their stomachs especially, have been turned into burgers, burritos, and even poutine.

The use of a sheep’s stomach isn’t just limited to haggis, however. It is also in a dish called “tripe” which is the cooking of an animal’s stomach. Normally, a cow’s stomach is used. But in some places such as Italy, a sheep’s stomach is preferred.^[7]

Other countries find different uses for a sheep’s stomach, such as including it in oatmeal. It is even seen as a hangover cure in Romania. The dish is called ciorba de burta and uses the stomach to make a slightly sour soup meant to aid in the cure of the worst hangovers.

3 Pig Intestines

Eating pig isn’t unexpected. Pork chops, bacon, hot dogs, and sausage are all popular dishes in the United States. In fact, in some countries, different parts of the pig can be seen as a delicacy. This includes their intestines.

In South Korea, they offer a street dish called soondae which is boiled pig intestines filled with noodles, blood, and spices. This dish is created in a similar way to American sausages.

In China, another dish called “blood sausage” can be found. The meat is boiled and filled with blood and stock. It is then served with pickled cabbage. Normally, blood sausage is eaten during the colder winter months. Pig intestines can also be found in Chinese restaurants as a spicy meal topped with chili sauce. The late chef Anthony Bourdain had tried the dish during his show Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown.^[8]

The Philippines is known for its various ways of using pig intestines—whether served as street food or found in restaurants. It is most commonly sold in Singapore by street vendors, who simply grill the intestines and then place them on skewers.

Another popular dish is called ginabot. This involves deep-frying the intestines to make a crunchy snack-like dish that is revered for its taste. In other restaurants, pig intestines are cooked inside a wok to create a more savory dish.

2 Bull Testicles

The name “Rocky Mountain oysters” may lead one to believe that this food is made with oysters. However, the Colorado dish is actually made from bull testicles which are breaded and deep-fried. In fact, eating these testicles is so popular that Montana hosts a festival each year where almost 23,000 kilograms (50,000 lbs) of testicles are consumed. In Canada, the dish is called “prairie oysters” and is dipped in a demi-glace rather than breaded.

Eating bull testicles is quite common in other parts of the world. In Spain, criadillas are served like Rocky Mountain oysters, only these “bull fries” are also dipped in a red wine sauce. The consumption of bull testicles is an important way for bullfighters to show their masculinity. Local lore also claims that bull testicles are an aphrodisiac.

In Guatemala and Nicaragua, the star of their ceviche isn’t seafood. Instead, it is bull testicles made with lime juice and mixed with tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. The dish is salty yet savory, and the bull testicles are said to taste like venison.

Eating huevos de toro is a Latin American staple, while bull testicle soup can be found in Vietnam and is renowned in Serbia as an aphrodisiac. There, a World Testicle Cooking Championship is held each year to see which country can devise the best twist on cooking testicles.

If one has the urge to eat testicles, a cookbook entitled Cooking with Balls is available with recipes ranging from testicle pizza to pie.^[9]

1 Human Placenta

For some people, seeking the nutrition that many offal parts provide doesn’t stop at just animals. Eating one’s placenta after birth has become a recent trend, though it’s not really new.

Years ago, eating one’s placenta was not unheard-of. During this time, it was believed to provide the mothers with more nutrition, aid them in breastfeeding, and increase their energy levels.

In various cultures, the eating of one’s placenta is a rite of passage and revered as an important act. Dried placenta (ziheche) can be found in China as a remedy that the Chinese believed would help with conditions such as infertility and impotence.

Recently, the trend of eating one’s placenta has grabbed the spotlight. Mothers who eat their placentas claim that it helps with postpartum depression, though there is no scientific evidence to back this up. Mothers are known to add placentas to their smoothies, dehydrate them for powder that can be placed in baked goods, and even take them in pill form.

Some have even created placenta balms and tonics that are said to help cure certain ailments. In fact, a British programming station came under fire after their presenter, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, turned a human placenta into a pate during the cooking segment of the show.^[10]

Despite many claims that the placenta can be good for you, adding it to your soup or making it into a smoothie might not be good options. The CDC released a statement claiming that levels of harmful bacteria and other pathogens inside the placenta can be dangerous to the mother and the baby.

Every month of every year, all across the globe, cities and towns and even tiny villages are celebrating one festival or another for countless reasons. Some are religious, some are to celebrate the harvest, the passing of seasons, local heroes, historic events, you name it. You can’t keep a good festival down. But for all the easy to understand festivals that offer up good times and good food for those in attendance, there are a handful of festivals that seem to exist mostly to sow discord, havoc and danger for anyone who gets too close.

10. Epiphany in Vale de Salgueiro 

Christians celebrate a feast day called the Epiphany. In the US, this is what kicks off Carnival in New Orleans, and elsewhere things like King Cakes and fruit cakes are commonplace. In the UK, Twelfth Night is the night before and there is traditionally a yule log, wassailing and, once again, fruit cake. In the town of Vale de Salgueiro in Portugal, the celebration includes a weird twist.

If you head to this very small village, with its population of about 200, you’ll discover locals encouraging their children to smoke cigarettes on this day. And by children we mean as young as five years old. Why would people celebrate the Epiphany by making kids smoke? The locals say it’s a centuries old tradition but they also have no further explanation. It’s entirely unclear what it’s supposed to represent or symbolize, especially since traditionally the Epiphany celebrates the Magi visiting Christ as a baby and the revelation that he was God incarnate. Not much of that deals with Marlboros. 

Kids in the village smoke for two days and parents defend the practice since it’s just two days and the kids are exhaling quickly. At least one resident, who is 101, claimed they were doing it when she was a kid, so they’re really committed to it, even if no one knows why. 

9. Mexico’s Festival of Exploding Hammers

You can’t argue that people don’t like explosions, it’s what drives Fourth of July celebrations as well as a large portion of Hollywood action movies. The Mexican town of San Juan de la Vega takes the love of an exploding festival to new heights with sledgehammers laced with explosives that are busted out around Fat Tuesday every year.

As the story goes, the founder of the town was a sort of Robin Hood figure. He got into a skirmish with some local landowners that resulted in him stealing gold back from them. Or maybe they were bandits. Whatever the case, locals celebrated his victory over whoever the thieves were by making exploding hammers, because why not?

In the past, the hammers were strapped with homemade explosives, like fireworks, and then the hammers and slammed against I-beams or sheet metal. Past hammers, unable to handle the force, would commonly explode as well and send metal flying. Modern hammers are reinforced with rebar to handle the explosions but that doesn’t stop chunks of metal from flying free and embedding into spectators and hammer wielders. In 2008, 50 bystanders were injured by shrapnel but the celebrations have been going on for about 400 years so it’s unlikely a few explosion scars are going to stop anyone. 

8. Spain’s Las Luminarias 

The Spanish festival called Las Luminarias is meant to be in honor of St. Anthony the Abbot, patron saint of domestic animals. And what better way to honor a domestic animal lover than by making horses run through fire? According to tradition, which dates back centuries, by running horses through raging bonfires the animals are being purified by the fire. 

Riders are said to take precautions such as cutting the horses’ hair so they can’t get burned, but animal rights groups are still not big fans of the tradition. All told, around 100 horses will undergo the ritual over the course of the festival, which is later followed by drinking and dancing as befits any good, fire-filled festival. 

Despite assurances that the horses don’t get burned, others have pointed out that, because they are animals, they’re not likely to understand what’s going on and forcing animals that traditionally run to escape danger to leap through fire is pretty stressful for them. 

7. The Turkey Trot Festival in Arkansas 

The Turkey Trot Festival sounds about as innocent as a festival can get, doesn’t it? Trotting turkeys makes you think of chubby birds strutting down a street without a care in the world. That’s not technically the case with this real life Arkansas festival, or at least it wasn’t until a few years back when they decided to make it less terrifying. 

For 70 years, the small town of Yellville, Arkansas had been having this festival around Thanksgiving that celebrates all things turkey. They even have a Miss Drumsticks to help celebrate. But for most of those 70 years, literally up to 2017, part of the tradition also included loading airplanes with live turkeys and then throwing the birds, which you’ll remember can’t fly, out of the moving planes. Many died on impact while others survived for a short time with broken bones.

There was no gimmick or trick involved in what was happening, they were just hurling birds to their death. It was animal cruelty despite not tecnically being a violation of FAA regulations. It wasn’t until the media broke the story open after that 2017 year that it finally came to an end as a result of the bad press and not any particular compassion for turkey mayhem.

6. Japanese Wasp Festival

Amidst the chaotic news of the early 2020s was the tale of giant Asian hornets making their way to North America. The internet has always enjoyed these creatures as a giant, stinging insect is a nice sort of sci fi monster come to life, plus videos of them raiding bee’s nests are pretty interesting. 

In Japan, where the hornets come from, there are also wasps that gain some attention around Nagano and Gifu in a festival called Hebo Matsuri. In the village of Kushihara, people come to eat wasp-based snacks made from wasp larvae and compete in wasp nest contests to see whose is the heaviest. If you have the money, you can even eat the larvae alive right from the nest. 

Attendees can expect to get stung a couple of times while they’re there because, unsurprisingly, wasps don’t want you raiding their nests. You can eat the giant hornets there as well, though live ones are not the sort of things you want to see since their sting is very painful and, in some cases, even deadly. 

5. The Naked Man Festival

Not every festival involves 9,000 nearly naked men, but Konomiya Hadaka Matsuri does. The 1,250-year-old tradition requires men in loin-cloths to pray for luck. So far so slightly odd, but not dangerous. Things get more violent later when they men compete to gain good luck talismans, of which there are two, through pretty much any means necessary. The scene is described as a “mosh pit” and involves jumping, tripping, climbing and so on to try to reach them as they dangle from above.

One man at the festival will be deemed the Lucky Man or Man of God. Touching him is meant to protect you from disease and bad luck. But when 9,000 men, being sprayed with cold water, all scramble to do it at the same time the scene can get chaotic. The man is completely shaven beforehand and then chased totally naked, as people pass their bad luck to him. Then he’s run out of town. Tourists are allowed to come and participate and you can neither have tattoos nor be drunk, though some locations seem to encourage drinking sake so you may want to check local rules if you want to join in. 

4. Switzerland’s Spring Festival

Festivals that predict the weather are not necessarily a unique idea, in the US and Canada a groundhog is used to determine when winter will end every year. In Switzerland they have a similar tradition at a festival called Sechseläuten. The festival announces the beginning of Spring and translates to “the six-o’clock ringing of the bells” to commemorate the extra hour of daylight that comes as winter gives way to spring. 

At some point, the festival came to include something called Böögg, which is a giant 11-foot tall snowman that the locals light on fire. The snowman is atop a bonfire and his head is jammed full of 140 sticks of dynamite, because how else do you celebrate the passing of winter into spring? 

Once the bonfire is lit, people place bets on how long until the fire gets high enough to make Böögg’s head explode. The sooner it happens, the sooner it will become Spring, is the thinking. If it takes a long time, then summer may be cold and beset with snowfall.

3. Takanakuy

There’s an episode of Seinfeld in which we learn George’s father invented his own Christmas-adjacent holiday called Festivus that involves feats of strengths and the airing of grievances. The people of the Peruvian Andes did Mr. Costanza one better with a Christmas day festival called Takanakuy.

Men and women participate in the festival, some wear costumes and masks but some don’t, and the gist of it is all pretty simple – if someone wronged you during the year you can settle the score here by beating the crap out of each other.

The goal of the battle is to start the new year fresh and put old grievances to rest. You start the fight with a hug and you end it with one. But in the middle you genuinely pound your opponent into the dirt. Thousands of people attend, cheering the combatants who can be children all they way through grandparents on as they punch their way to a happy new year. 

2. Yanshui Beehive Fireworks Festival

Despite its name, the Yanshui Beehive Fireworks Festival in Taiwan has nothing to do with bees. The name is a metaphor for the chaos and, arguably, the intense and painful danger you’re flirting with by being here.  

A religious festival, its main claim to fame is the fact that millions of fireworks are set off, like a swarm of bees, over the course of the events. But they aren’t shot at the sky, they’re shot at you and everyone else in attendance.

Experiencing the chaos is supposed to bring good fortune for the new year and cleans any bad influences away. All you need to do is wear a helmet and some protective clothing to try to avoid the inevitable burns as millions of little firecrackers explode around you and rain sparks everywhere. Bruises from spent cardboard tubes are not unheard of along with the threat of igniting or going deaf and/or blind from explosions near your ears and eyes. 

1. Onbashira

Back to Japan once more for a log riding festival that has claimed more than one life in the past. Known as Onbashira, the concept is simple if baffling and terrifying. Participants have to ride a giant 10-ton log, essentially a felled tree, down the side of a mountain. 

The festival is actually a religious one and the massive logs are destined to be pillars outside of a Shinto shrine. People have been crushed under the logs, they have drowned under them as they were transported through water, and when they are erected, some people have fallen from the tops. The most recent death was in 2016. The deaths don’t put a damper on the festival however, as dying this way is considered to be honorable.