Fermentation Secrets & Bizarre Meats

Preservation before refrigeration required extreme measures. Salting, smoking, and burying foods in the ground led to flavors that would challenge the most hardened modern food critic.

Kiviak: The Winter Survival Food

Originating from Greenland, this Inuit preparation involves stuffing hundreds of whole little auks (a small seabird) into a seal skin, removing the air, sealing it with fat, and burying it under rocks for several months.

During the harsh winter months, the skin is unearthed, and the fermented birds are consumed raw. The fermentation breaks down the bird, rendering the bones soft and the meat akin to a pungent cheese.

Century Eggs

A Chinese delicacy where duck, quail, or chicken eggs are preserved in a mixture of clay, ash, salt, quicklime, and rice hulls for several weeks to months. The yolk becomes dark green and creamy, while the white turns into a dark brown, translucent jelly with a strong flavor of sulfur and ammonia.