Food Adventure 8: Sannakji

Hey Guys, welcome to the latest installment of Food Adventures! Today I'll be writing about the deliciously deadly dish known as Sannakji, a delicacy native to South Korea which consists of live octopus tentacles cut up into small pieces and lightly seasoned with oil and sesame seeds.

Bon appetite!

This dish is considered to be the ultimate challenge for food adventurers who have a penchant for the bizarre, but has gained significant notoriety in recent times due to the number of people choking to death on the octopuses' (yes, that is a correct plural for octopus) flailing limbs.

It is reported that in South Korea, up to 6 people a year die  from asphyxiation after tentacles become lodged in their throats. This is due to their powerful suction cups, which have a nasty habit of attaching to the inside of diners' throats after the tentacle is swallowed.

"But Drew", I hear you asking, "how can the octopi (also a correct plural for octopus) still be alive and use its suction cups after it is cut up into tiny pieces? Don't you mean RAW octopodes?" (seriously, there are so many ridiculous plurals for octopus). "How can we believe anything you say after this erroneous piece of shoddy journalism? No wonder your blog only has 300 views". "Just because it's on the internet, doesn't make it true".

First of all: ouch. Secondly, the octopus tentacles served in the dish, although cut up, ARE considered to still be alive thanks to the octopus's incredible nervous system and the sheer amount of  neurons that reside in their tentacles. These neurons are responsible for cognitive coordination- movement, problem solving and reaction, so even if the brain is no longer functioning, the the octopus's tentacles can still respond to stimuli and function normally, even if they are severed from its body.

Looks delicious.....

This means that even when swallowed the tentacles can still react to their environment and move independently. In South Korea, there are even reports of people eating and swallowing live octopus tentacles only for them to squirm and crawl out their mouth and/or nostrils. To combat this, Sannakji chefs recommend that the tentacles be chewed as thoroughly as possible and drink lots of liquid whilst doing so to encourage the tentacles to move to the stomach.

Would you ever consider eating Sannakji or any food that is alive? What is the most bizzare food you have ever eaten? Sound off in the comments below.