It is well known that the Japanese generally experiment with their diet, consuming delicacies that most of us not only do not know, but would never dare to try.
So on hearing that they pay up to $ 200 for a dish of a certain kind fish we are not very impressed. However, it is particularly surprising that this fish is one of the most poisonous in the world and can even cause death, as has already happened, as it is 1.200 times more poisonous than cyanide!
The reason for the fugu fish, which according to experts is the second most poisonous vertebrate on earth, which contains a highly toxic substance for humans.
It is a particularly tasty dish with an excellent texture, at least so claim those who enjoy it - most, however, consider it tasteless and the taste of the soy sauce that accompanies it - with a delicate taste, which is a favorite choice of the most adventurous. connoisseurs who pay grossly for a dish with finely chopped fish fillets.
What is fugu fish?
Fugu or pefferfish, globefish and blowfish as it is widely known has more than 100 different types worldwide with each of them being exceptional noxious.
It belongs to the family of fish called "Tetraodontidae", which have the ability to swell by swallowing water or air, looking like a small ball, when they feel threatened.
The deadly toxic substance they contain is called tetrodotoxin and is found mainly in the skin, offal and reproductive organs of fish. In fact, there are many who consider that the liver, which is one of the most dangerous parts of the fish, is its most delicious part.
Symptoms of poisoning include dizziness, exhaustion, headache, nausea and difficulty breathing, and can sometimes lead to death by suffocation - the esophagus swells and, within minutes, one can die of suffocation. The first bell, however, rings from the stinging sensation on the lips and tongue, which develops into numbness and paralysis of the whole face and then spreads to the extremities and the rest of the body. The total time in which the poison can act and cause death is from just 20 minutes to 24 hours.
Let the numbers speak
It is estimated that every year in Japan There are about 20-40 cases of poisoning from these fish, while in the approximately 3.800 certified fugu restaurants, about 10.000 tons of the 40 different species of this extremely dangerous fish caught in the country are consumed annually. Although it is illegal in most parts of the world, the Japanese consider it a delicacy, so they do not hesitate to pay another $ 200 for just one dish of finely chopped fish fillet.
A single fugu fish contains a sufficient amount of the deadly toxic substance, capable of killing up to 30 people, while a lethal dose of it is even smaller than the head of a pin.
Since 2000 a total of 25 people have lost their lives, while the deaths from fugu venom have been observed since 1975, with actor Kabuki Mando Mitsuogoro VIII giving up his last breath from consuming four servings of fugu liver. According to the Fugu Research Institute, 50% of the victims were poisoned by the fish's liver, 43% by its reproductive organs and 7% by its skin. It is noted, however, that most of them occurred after consuming fugu at home.
His special preparation
The preparation of fugu in restaurants is strictly regulated by law in Japan and can only be performed by chefs who have specialized in it after three or more years of rigorous training in public schools, over hundreds of fish at a cost of thousands of dollars, which partly explains its high price. , while the species recommended for consumption is "torafugu" which contains less than the deadly toxic substance. The chef's slightest mistake is enough On the other hand, his home preparation is recommended to be avoided.
That is why knives must always be sterile chef should not touch anything else before and after cleaning the fish. After opening the fish, it removes the parts that carry the venom: the intestines, the liver and especially the ovaries.
The fugu is usually eaten raw cut into very thin slices, like sashimi, it is a high culinary delight and is placed in such a way on the plate that it forms a flower. Its consumption is recommended mainly in the winter months, when the levels of toxicity produced as a mechanism of reproductive defense are relatively low.
Hareheads in Greece
Ο rabbit head, with the Latin name Lagocephalus sceleratus, which also belongs to the family Tetraodontidae, is one of the invading fish that crossed the Indian Ocean into the Mediterranean through the Suez Canal. Since 2003 it has made its presence felt in the Mediterranean, with its first appearance being observed on the shores of Turkey, while two years later it was located in Northern Crete. Their population was launched in 2007 due to the higher temperatures in the waters of the Aegean Sea.
According to the researchers, it is now intensively caught in Northern Crete, while it has spread to both the South Aegean and the Dodecanese, with scientists worried about its dominance in the waters of the southeastern Mediterranean, due to the deadly toxic substance it contains. skin, liver and ovaries. Note that it is expressly forbidden to unload, sell and consume it, as it is one of the most poisonous fish in the world, as is fugu.