NOTE! This article contains the food you will likely agree to taste. If you are looking for something you will probably never dare to try, it’s in the next article – Weird things Chinese people eat you should never taste.
“Do you know where H1N1 swine flu came from? It happened because someone in Canton ate the stuff people should not be eating”, my teacher once said. “There is a saying that Chinese people eat everything that has four legs except for chairs and tables”, he added. Having read this article you will be an expert on what weird stuff to eat in China. The next one is about what not to eat in China.
Edible weird things
Sesame balls – gooey and sticky, once you bite them apart, black sesame and sugar liquid flows out. For most of Chinese kids and adults it is one of the most blissful desserts, especially in Sichuan.
Instant noodles – you are likely to recognize them by their smelly smell at the train stations and on trains. When you see someone pouring hot water in one of those boxes, run! It smells bad. Or at least get yourself a Tsingdao beer to get drunk and not care.
Chicken feet – they can be grilled, deep fried or pickled, you can find them in supermarkets and corner stores. The Chinese like them for crunchiness, they go well with beer.
I was offered those once when I was sitting in hot springs with my mother. We had to lie we were vegetarians. The family who offered us chicken feet agreed that we do not eat them, but asked to at least take a photo with us =)
Tofu – they call it soy cheese in the West, but it has nothing to do with cheese. There are about ten different kinds of tofu, most of them disgusting, but if you taste all, you may find one or two that are actually ok. The one on the picture is my favorite.
Stir fried potato shreds or 土豆丝 － this potato is quickly stir fried with chillies and vinegar, so it remains crunchy inside. It is weird for a westerner to eat raw potato. However, it is my number one all time favorite dish in all the Chinese cuisines. I can eat it every day!
Rose cakes – speciality of Yunnan, my home province in China, they are made of rose petals and sugar baked into dough. If you like the taste of roses, you will like the rose cakes.
Three fresh things from earth or 地三鲜 – this one is actually delicious, I had to add it in the end, so you have at least something tasty in China to look forward to. The dish is made of potatoes, aubergines and bell peppers, and is speciality of Dongbei (NorthEastern) cuisine.
Let me know in comments if
- you want to add something to this list
- you have tasted one of these and how did you like it
Enjoy China!
mehmehsasa 
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