Every place in this whole wide world has weird and strange food.
The Philippines is not exempt.
The list below are the most gut-wrenching dishes that the Philippines has to offer .
Are you ready ?
- Tamilok
Would you eat a wood-worm ?
Because this is what tamilok is. It lives inside the trunks and branches of mangrove tree. On the other hand they say that this isn’t really a worm but a mollusk.
Traditionally , this is eaten by cooking it on an acidic solution like vinegar. In the Philippines , the process is called Kinilaw. It can also be fried or grilled.
Locals prefer it pulled straight out from the wood , dip it in spicy vinegar and eat it right away.
Trying this squirmy dish requires a strong stomach .
- Dinuguan
This kind of stew is made from pork blood mixed with beef meat and offal. The color is brownish-black simply because it’s blood.
This is very popular during fiesta.
The reason why this exists is for the innards of pork not to go to waste after cooking lechon.
Can you still continue reading ? Told you , it is not really for a faint heart. Shall we continue ?
- Soup Number 5
Before you continue to read , may I ask you first to try to think why is called Soup #5 ?
Because it is considered as the “fifth” meat . Soup 1 to 4 refers to ingredients which are pork, beef, chicken and seafood. Fifth meat is bull.
And soup number 5 refers to bull’s sex organ. It is the penis and testicle of a bull in a hot soup. Some would add the throat of the bull.
This soup is seen as an aphrodisiac meal.
- Tuslob-buwa
Would you try to eat a pig brain ?
Tuslob buwa means ‘dip in bubbles’ and this dish is from Cebu.
So, to eat the dish , you will dip your rice balls into the cooked pork brain and liver while it’s bubbling.
Maybe you’re wondering about the texture, it’s more like a scrambled egg.
- Fruit Bat Stew
Around Batangas and Davao , they offer bat in soup. Not minding at all if it is associated with vampires and other folktales.
Locals say it tastes like chicken , actually they call it “chicken in the cave” and you can eat all its parts but not the skin and its glands as that’s where the foul odor is coming from.
If you’re asked what you will try on the list , what would you pick ?
Bon Appetit !
