 Youtube video of the preparation and eating of sannakji |
Eating live animals is the practice of humans or other sentient species eating animals that are still alive. It is a traditional practice in manyEast Asianfood cultures. Animals may also be eaten alive forshock value. Eating live animals, or parts of live animals, may be unlawful in certainjurisdictions underanimal cruelty laws.Religious prohibitions on the eating of live animals by humans are also present in various world religions.
Several television game shows such asFear Factor,Survivor andI'm a Celebrity feature segments where contestants must eat live animals includingspiders,cockroaches andgrubs. On his showMan vs. Wild, hostBear Grylls is sometimes shown eating various insects alive. There have been calls to ban eating animals alive on these shows.[1] AYouTube channel called "Food for Louis" showsLouis Cole eating live animals.[2]
The swallowing of live goldfish was sometimes practiced within the United States.
In Japan,Ikizukuri ("prepared alive") is the preparation ofsashimi ("pierced food") made from liveseafood. The most popular sea animal used in ikizukuri isfish butoctopus is typically the only species that is still moving on the plate.
Another fish dish invented by a Taiwanese chef fromChiayi, is calledYin Yang fish (alsodead-and-alive fish) in which the fish's body (but not the head) is rapidly deep-fried and served while the head is still fresh and moving. It is prepared extremely quickly, with care not to damage the internal organs, so that the fish can remain alive for thirty minutes.[3][4]
In an interview, celebrity chefRaymond Blanc stated that in Japan, he had eaten liveeels. He was advised to addvinegar andsake, which made them jump around, and then swallowed them whole.[5]
In 2007, a newspaper reported that a man from south east China claimed that eating live frogs for a month cured his intestinal problems. He also eats live mice and rats.[6]
In 2012, a video showing a woman in Japan eating a live frog was posted onYouTube and went viral. In the video, a live frog is seen stabbed alive, stripped of its skin, and its inedible innards removed to be served as fresh sashimi on an iced platter.[7]
Andrew Zimmern of theTravel Channel'sBizarre Foods atefrog sashimi in seafood restaurant called Asadachi inShinjuku. Though most of the frog is served dead (and raw), the meal begins by eating the frog's fresh, still-beating heart.[3]
Consuming the beating heart and blood of live snakes has been a reported practice among some locals and tourists in certain parts of Vietnam, particularlyLe Mat village in Hanoi.[8][9] The practice was documented onGordon's Great Escape when celebrity chefGordon Ramsay swallowed the beating heart of a cobra at aHo Chi Minh eatery.[10][11] It was also consumed by celebrity chefAnthony Bourdain[12] in the same city.[13] But these are considered adventurous foods according to the Vietnamese standard.
In Korea,San-nakji is the preparation of live octopus that has been cut into small pieces or prepared whole, and served with its arms still squirming.[3] The octopus from which the tentacles are cut is usually dead by the time of serving; however, the animal's highly innervated limbs continue to writhe due to continuing nerve activity.[14]
Sea urchins are prized as a delicacy in many places worldwide (particularly inJapan,France,South Korea,Chile,New Zealand, thePhilippines,Italy,Spain, theMediterranean,[15] andNorth America)[16] for their briny-flavouredgonads. The gonads are often eaten raw, such as insushi (typically calleduni). Some people prefer to eat them immediately after they are cut open.[citation needed] Scissors are often used to avoid the protective spines whilst cutting the animal open. The gonads do not move, even when taken from the live animal.[3]
In China,drunken shrimp is a dish that can be served live, although it can also be prepared with dead shrimp.[17] When served live, the shrimp, usually 10 per serving, are first doused in a strong liquor which makes them less likely to struggle while being swallowed and also creates a flavourfulmarinade. A plate is typically held over the bowl to prevent the shrimp from leaping out as they are much more active than when served asOdori ebi.[3][4]
Odori ebi ("dancing shrimp") is a type of Japanese sashimi that contains young shrimp, usually only one individual per serving. The shrimp has its shell removed and sometimes its head as well. These can be deep fried and served alongside the rest of the shrimp, which is still moving its legs andantennae while being eaten. The shrimp only dies when chewed.[4]
Oysters are the most common animal eaten alive, as it is generally their state when served raw.[18][3]
A chain of restaurants, based primarily inCopenhagen, serves a salad crawling with liveants. The ants are chilled so that they move slowly, and are supposed to taste likelemongrass.[4]
Livecockroaches were eaten in a competition in Florida in 2012. The winner collapsed and died fromasphyxia due to choking and aspiration of gastric contents.[19]
Cheese mites aremites (for instanceTyrophagus casei or other species) that are used to produce suchcheeses asMilbenkäse,Cantal andMimolette. The action of the living mites on the surface of these cheeses contributes to the flavor and gives them a distinctive appearance.[20]
One example of eating live larvae is thewitchetty grub ofAboriginal Australian cuisine, which can be eaten alive and raw or cooked.[3]
Casu marzu is a traditional Sardiniansheep milkcheese, notable for containing live insectlarvae. It is found almost exclusively inSardinia, Italy. Casu marzu goes beyond typicalfermentation to a stage most would considerdecomposition, brought about by thedigestive action of the larvae of thecheese flyPiophila casei. These larvae are deliberately introduced to the cheese. The cheese received attention onBizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. Zimmern described the taste of the cheese as "so ammoniated" that "...it scorches your tongue a bit." The cheese is known to leave an aftertaste for a duration of up to several hours.[21] Similar milk cheeses notable for containing living insect larvae are produced in several Italian regions.[22][23][24]
According to theTalmud, the sixthNoahide Law (Hebrew:שבע מצוות בני נח,romanized: Sheva mitzvot B'nei Noach,lit. 'Seven Laws [of the] Children [of] Noah') sets out a moral and religious imperative not to eat of a live animal. TheTosefta contains more explicit language on the subject, stating not to eat "a limb torn from a living animal".
As a Noahide Law, this law is said to apply to all the "children ofNoah"—that is, all of humanity—as a requirement to ensure a place in theWorld to Come (Olam Ha-Ba). The laws ofKashrut, on the other hand, set out additional regulations which are binding upon Jews only.