7 Repulsive Things the Romans Considered Food Somehow

From the famously putrid fish sauce garum to exotic dishes like flamingo tongues and lark tongue pie, the culinary adventures of ancient Rome showcased some shockingly bizarre delicacies.

7. Garum - A Fermented Fish Sauce

Let's start with something that would make any modern nose scrunch up - garum, a fermented fish sauce. This thick, stinky condiment was a kitchen staple, used to add umami flavor to dishes. The ingredients? Just some fish guts, salt, and a few months under the sweltering Mediterranean sun. Yum!

The making of garum was a smelly affair. First, fish guts and other unsavory bits were layered with salt in a vessel. As the mixture fermented over weeks or months, the liquid drained off was collected as the prized garum sauce. Some even aged it for years like fine wine! Despite its putrid aroma, the sauce added a delicious savory punch to Roman meals. Imagine dipping your bread in a chunky slurry of rotten fish...delightful.

6. Fried Dormice

You read that right - fried mice were a delicacy in ancient Rome. Baked in a pastry crust, these poor little rodents were considered an exotic, costly treat. Just picture a mouse being popped into your mouth like a breakfast sausage. Finger-licking good?

The Romans didn't stop at just frying up any old urban mouse. These were specially fattened dormice, raised on farms for their meat and fur. Popilli, as they were known, would be gutted, dipped in porridge or cameline sauce, encased in pastry, and baked. Crunchy on the outside, piping hot rodent meat on the inside - a real gourmet experience! For added flair, the pastries were sometimes molded into whimsical shapes like miniature pigs.

5. Flamingo Tongues

The Romans didn't just stop at mice. For the truly adventurous eater, there were flamingo tongues. These bright pink delicacies were believed to be an aphrodisiac. Talk about a romantic meal!

Preparing flamingo tongues was a laborious process. After hunting the birds, the tongues would be carefully extracted and preserved. This time-consuming preparation made them an exclusive and expensive dish reserved for the wealthiest citizens. Flamingo tongues exemplified the lengths to which some Romans would go to showcase their status and indulge in rare, extravagant foods.

4. Silphium - The Extinct Spice

Here's one you definitely can't try at home - silphium, an extinct plant from ancient Libya. This pricey seasoning was so over-harvested that it vanished forever. The last-known Silphium stalk was apparently given to the emperor Nero as a curiosity.

What made silphium so irresistible? Well, it was said to taste like a blend of garlic, fennel, and something resembling asafetida. The versatile spice was used in all sorts of dishes, from stews to desserts. It even had supposed medicinal properties as a contraceptive. With such high demand, the precious plant was harvested to oblivion across the Mediterranean region by the 1st century AD. All we have left are some silphium images on ancient coins.

3. Dolphin Meatballs

You may want to skip this one if you're a dolphin lover. The Romans went as far as making meatballs from dolphin meat. These maritime mammals were considered a seafood delicacy in coastal cities. Not very eco-friendly, Romans!

While today's sensibilities may find it appalling, coastal Romans had no qualms about hunting dolphins for food. Their tender, reddish meat was ground up and seasoned into succulent meatballs called dolphin nuggets. These were often served swimming in a rich sauce made from - you guessed it - garum fish sauce. An elegant pairing of dolphin and decomposing fish intestines, fit for the finest Roman banquets.

2. Lark Tongues in a Pie

A pie filled with just the tiny tongues of larks? That's just showing off at this point. This dish was likely created solely to flaunt wealth, as plucking all those minuscule tongues must have been excruciatingly tedious work.

Imagine the poor kitchen slaves, hunched over trays of tiny bird carcasses, meticulously extracting each pencil-eraser sized tongue one by one. All to fill a pie meant to showcase the host's bottomless pockets at their next Bacchanalia. Talk about diminishing returns on flavor! With seasonings like silphium and garum, you'd think the minor lark tongue garnish was purely ornamental. But no, these delicacies were indeed meant to be consumed by Rome's elite gourmands.

1. Jellied Meats

Last but not least, let's talk about the jellied meats that graced the Roman table. Using natural gelatin from calves' feet, the Romans would suspend chunks of meat in a jiggly, gelatin mold. A meat jello salad, if you will - the ultimate springtime potluck contribution!

Don't let the jiggle fool you - these savory gelatin molds were no simple dessert. Pigs' trotters, fish, shellfish, and more could all find themselves embedded in the protein-packed aspic. Sometimes the aspic was even tinted festive colors using food dyes made from substances like mulberries and exotic spices.