It’s probably a natural instinct to stay away from anything that smells bad, especially when the “bad” smells like it’s rotten or rotting. I’m guessing that this is nature’s own way of protecting us from coming into contact with bacteria, germs and other health threatening organisms that in general play a huge helpful role in the decaying process. So why then do you find that some people are absolutely drawn to food that smells so pungent it would bring tears to your eyes? Some would tell you it’s all about having the acquired taste, others would tell you it’s about sucking it up for the health benefit you acquire in the long run.
Okay so that answers the why but honestly how many smelly foods are natural occurrences of nature? At the top of my head, I can only think of 1 but it probably doesn’t even count because while the durian fruit can be described to have a strong scent, it’s hardly anything close to smelling like the dead. All the death-like scented delicacies that I’m aware of are man-made through the process of fermentation (Campbell-Platt (1987) has defined fermented foods as those foods which have been subjected to the action of micro-organisms or enzymes so that desirable biochemical changes cause significant modification to the food.) .
But unlike the beer or bread, some foods upon undergoing the fermentation process reeks and more often than not look very much like how they smell but as Dr. Oz would tell you there’s a miracle hidden beneath those bizarre foods. The following 2 are specific fermented foods he mentions:
1. Stinky Tofu
This one I’ve tried and believe it or not I actually like. I’ve heard of it before but never actually come across the real deal so one day when I did, I decided to brave the stench and take a bite. It really wasn’t that bad, in fact it was quite good. Much like the durian or stinky cheese, if you can get past the smell the rest is just pleasantry. Plus it doesn’t look unpleasant…still just like tofu.
Dr Oz Health Verdict: works miracles for digestion by working as a pro-biotic and the tofu is protein packed.
This one I’ve seen but haven’t yet mastered the guts to try. Somehow the sight of corn smut just makes me doubt I won’t get sick from eating moldy food. Huitlacoche is a black fungus that infects corn fields, making the kernels bulbous and swollen as they fill with spores. To me it looks like having worth and mold stew – everything looks slimy green and black.
Dr. Oz Health Verdict: Huitlacoche has lysine in it. Lysine fights off infections and helps strengthen your bones. Huitlacoche is also complete protein, vegetarians can opt to get their protein from this fungus.
Weird foods…surely there must be easier ways to get nutrients.
