Cheese is a beloved food throughout the world. From creamy brie to salty Parmigiano, cheeses delight foodies and certainly aren’t typically thought of as dangerous. However, one cheese from Sardinia, a large Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea, pushes the boundaries of food safety and even earned the nickname, “the most dangerous cheese in the world.”
Meet the World’s Most Dangerous Cheese — Casu Marzu
The world’s most dangerous cheese is casu marzu. This traditional Sardinian sheep’s milk cheese was given this title in the Guinness Book of World Records in 2009. The name casu marzu literally translates to “rotten cheese” in Italian. So, what makes Casu Marzu so dangerous and unique?
It turns out that this cheese gets its unique flavor and reputation due to the introduction of maggots into the aging process. At some point in the cheese’s maturation, the top of the wheel is partially removed to expose the developing curds, writes The Cheese Professor.
After that, the eggs of a cheese fly known as Piophila casei are deposited inside. The rind is replaced and eventually, the fly eggs hatch into maggots and begin to feast on the cheese.
The maggots’ digestive processes cause fermentation to take place, resulting in the casu marzu’s soft, creamy texture. Eventually, a fatty liquid known as làgrima (Sardinian for “teardrop”) begins to seep out of the exterior of the cheese wheel.
Until the maggots are introduced, the process of making casu marzu is similar to that used to make Sardinian pecorino.
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Why Is Casu Marzu Dangerous?
Knowing how casu marzu is made, it probably won’t come as a surprise that health concerns surrounding the consumption of the cheese are prominent. Casu marzu earned the title of the “world’s most dangerous cheese” due to reports from food scientists stating that the larvae could potentially survive being eaten and lead to a condition called pseudomyiasis.
Is Casu Marzu Legal in the United States?
Due to health concerns surrounding the consumption of casu marzu, the cheese has been outlawed in the United States and in most other countries, including its country of origin.
According to CNN Travel, the Italian government deemed casu marzu illegal, thanks to a 1962 law that prohibits the consumption of food infected by parasites.
Violators selling casu marzu face hefty fines of up to €50,000 (about $60,000). However, it’s not impossible to find the cheese, if you know where to look.
Where to Find Casu Marzu
In more recent years in Sardinia, a shift in classification allowed casu marzu to be considered a “traditional food”, exempting it from most of the food laws in place. It’s not impossible to find the cheese legally in Sardinia, though some locals choose to make it under the counter.
Additionally, ideas surrounding casu marzu may be changing. Some research shows that eating grubs may help reduce carbon dioxide emissions associated with animal farming and even aid in alleviating the climate crisis.
In many cultures, the consumption of insects isn’t a strange idea. Countries such as Thailand often serve fried insects like crickets, grasshoppers, and worms as bar food snacks, and eating insects such as termites is an important way to get protein in African countries such as Ghana.
In countries such as Thailand, eating insects like fried grasshoppers is not uncommon.
©Charoen Krung Photography/Shutterstock.com
Not everyone shares the health concerns associated with casu marzu. It’s worth noting that the cheese (not the maggots) is the real prize to be eaten in casu marzu. While it’s certainly possible for pseudomyiasis to cause significant medical symptoms, some research suggests that this illness may pass unnoticed.
Roberto Flore, the Sardinian head of Skylab FoodLab, has his own opinions about the consumption of casu marzu. “I believe that nobody has ever died eating casu marzu,” he told CNN Travel. “If they did, maybe they were drunk. You know, when you eat it, you also drink lots of wine.”
How to Eat Casu Marzu
The process of eating casu marzu is quite an experience. According to The Cheese Professor, those wishing to partake are advised to wear glasses and use their hand to protect themselves against the larvae potentially wiggling into their eye socket or nasal cavity.
Another method to eat casu marzu is to place a chunk of the cheese in a paper bag and seal it up, suffocating the live maggots. Either way, the maggots are reportedly supposed to be alive up until the cheese is eaten. Dead larvae signify that the cheese has gone bad.
In Sardinia, casu marzu is sometimes considered an aphrodisiac. As Flore mentioned, consuming casu marzu with wine (preferably a strong red wine like Cannonau) is essential. The cheese is also often eaten with freshly baked bread.
Casu marzu is often served with bread and a strong red wine such as Cannanau.
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What Does Casu Marzu Taste Like?
Most of us probably won’t try casu marzu for one reason or another. Still, that doesn’t mean we can’t wonder what it tastes like or how the locals in Sardinia consume it.
Descriptions of the taste of casu marzu can vary, but CNN Travel describes it as “intense with reminders of the Mediterranean pastures and spicy with an aftertaste that stays for hours.”
The Cheese Professor spoke with cheese professional Andiy Wagner, who tried casu marzu in Sardinia at age 19. Wagner attended an amazing dinner. At the end of the meal, one man left the table and returned with a plate containing something “pungent.”
Wagner bravely tried the casu marzu and her review of the cheese was more positive than you might expect. “It was salty and pungent,” she told The Cheese Professor.
Casu marzu is a traditional delicacy in Sardinia, with a salty, pungent flavor, odd texture, and aftertaste that lingers for hours.
©Fotopogledi/Shutterstock.com
“The cheese has an odd texture. It’s not horrible, but odd. It was a little like cream cheese but with harder bits. Maybe more like cottage cheese,” she continued.
Wagner also noted that the cheese “actually wasn’t as bad as you would think it might be,” though she’d never considered eating maggots before. “But honestly, considering everything I have eaten in my life. Not bad,” Wagner concluded.
Cazu Marzu in Pop Culture
While this cheese probably elicits shock and confusion, it may also sound a bit familiar. Casu marzu has made its way into pop culture thanks to celebrity chefs like Gordon Ramsey.
During a 2008 episode of his British cooking series, The F Word, Ramsay traveled to Sardinia, where he met with British food writer Tom Park Bowles.
Together the pair sampled a bite of casu marzu and as expected, Ramsey didn’t hide his feelings about the cheese. The celebrity chef took a swig of water and swore before noting, “It’s sour.”
Casu marzu has also been featured in an episode of the American horror anthology television series Into The Dark. The cheese shown at the beginning of the episode is casu marzu. This cheese has also been highlighted and even sampled by writers for major news outlets such as Vice Magazine.
Conclusion
Casu marzu is the most dangerous cheese in the world, due to the process of allowing maggots to ferment the cheese. Though casu marzu is banned almost everywhere in the world, it is considered a “traditional food” in Sardinia, exempting it from certain food laws in this area of Italy.
If you ever get your hands on casu marzu, understand the risks of falling ill before eating the cheese. You should also know that you’re in for an intense flavor with an aftertaste that will last quite some time.
The photo featured at the top of this post is © Gengis90/Shutterstock.com
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