The most expensive delicacies in the world (8 photos). The most expensive seafood dishes

It is difficult to make a list of the most expensive products in the world, because everything is so changeable in the world of elite gastronomy. And yet there are products that in any season, regardless of fashion and the economic situation in the world, are in relentless demand, which determines their high price.

1. Beluga caviar

Beluga caviar is the most expensive product in the world, as a kilogram of beluga caviar costs up to $5,000. Beluga is one of the rarest sturgeon species that lives in the Caspian basin. Caviar is obtained from adult sturgeons (20 years and older), whose weight reaches at least 2 tons. Beluga caviar ranks first in terms of the size of eggs (up to 2.5 mm in diameter) and nutritional value. The criterion for assessing the quality of beluga caviar is its color: the lighter the caviar, the higher the price (the color ranges from black or dark purple to pearl gray). When you bite into a caviar, it bursts, and you feel a sharp, salty taste that cannot be confused with anything. Beluga caviar is usually served with toast and butter, which emphasize its specific taste.

2. Saffron

Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world. Depending on the season, saffron prices range from $1,500 to $2,500 per pound (0.450 kg). Saffron is obtained from saffron flowers, harvested by hand. To get a pound of dry saffron, you need 50 - 70 thousand flowers (this is a crop from the area of ​​​​a football field). This is a very long and laborious process, which explains the exorbitant (as for a spice) price of saffron.

3. White truffles

The white truffle is the most expensive mushroom in the world. Truffles are a genus of marsupial fungi with underground tuberous fruits that grow underground in forests, often "hiding" in tree roots. They look for truffles by smell - mushrooms have a specific aroma comparable to the smell of roasted nuts - using specially trained dogs and pigs for this, which have a phenomenally fine sense of smell (unfortunately, not all people can boast of a fine sense of smell). White truffles are especially highly valued. As a rule, in cooking they are used to decorate and complement other gourmet dishes. A few years ago, a 1.2 kg white truffle (a phenomenal rarity) was sold for $150,000.

4. Marble beef

Real marbled beef is the meat of Japanese black Wagyu cows, which are grown only in Japan, in the province of Kobe, in Hyogo Prefecture. Cows are raised according to a special centuries-old method, which is kept in the strictest confidence. Cows are allegedly given only beer to drink, fed with the best herbs, massaged and rubbed with sake. This exceptional care results in meat so tender and fatty that it rivals foie gras in texture. Half a kilogram of Japanese marbled beef costs from $300, and the price of some pieces of especially tender meat exceeds a thousand dollars.

5. Bird (swallow) nests

The birds that make these edible nests live in caves along the coast of Southeast Asia. The fact is that to build a nest, swallows use something like saliva - a complex chemical compound that hardens upon contact with air. This delicacy is in particular demand in China, where it is eaten by the ton. One nest weighs no more than 10 grams. Bird nests are used exclusively for making soup, to which chicken is also added. When liquid is added, the texture of the nest changes from solid to gel-like. It is believed that bird nests have healing properties, restore strength after an illness, and even increase potency.

6 Puffer Fish

Fugu is a fish from the pufferfish family, which is considered a delicacy in Japan, however, quite dangerous. The fact is that fugu contains a deadly dose of tetrodotoxin poison, the concentration of which must be reduced during the cooking process, so only highly qualified chefs who have completed special courses and received a license can cook fugu. In 2004-2009 In Japan, 35 people died from fugu poisoning, because there is no antidote for its poison. It is possible that it is this unusual property that ensures the popularity of pufferfish and its high price (in some countries of Southeast Asia there is even a ban on catching pufferfish).

7. Foie gras

Along with caviar, foie gras is one of the most expensive delicacies in the world. Foie gras is the liver of a forcefully overfed duck (foie gras de canard) or goose (fois gras d'Oie). The main producer of foie gras is France (about 20,000 tons per year). In order for the liver of birds to increase in size and become fatty, they are fattened according to a special method (the so-called "gravage") - food is directly pushed into the throat through a special tube. Every day, up to 2 kg is dropped into the throat of a bird. grains. As a result of such intensive force-feeding, the bird's liver increases several times (weighs up to 2 kg) and becomes very fatty. The texture of foie gras is very similar to butter. Foie gras is widely used in French cuisine, most often for making pâtés. Not so long ago, the National Assembly of France recognized foie gras as part of the "protected cultural and gastronomic heritage of France."

8. Lobster

Lobsters are marine animals of the crustacean family, the fishery of which brings up to 2 billion dollars annually. In cooking, lobster is considered a delicacy, as it has a crispy, tasty meat that turns pinkish red after cooking. In food, meat from under the lobster shell, its tail and legs, as well as liver and caviar are used. Cold appetizers are mainly prepared from lobsters - salads, aspic, croquettes, souffles, mousses, as well as soups. Lobster dishes are most common in European cuisine - Dutch, Belgian, English and French.

9. Matsutake mushrooms

Matsutake is a fungus that grows in Japan where it is considered a delicacy and is even used to prevent diabetes, cancer and other diseases. Matsutake has been used in Japanese cuisine for over 1,000 years, and today the tradition is experiencing a renaissance. Matsutake mushrooms are not only ordered in restaurants, but also given to each other - this gift is very much appreciated, because a kilogram of matsutake costs from 700 to 2000 dollars. Recently, the matsutake crop in Japan has declined significantly, so mushrooms are exported from North Korea, China, and even the United States.

10. Oysters

The name "oysters" is used to refer to various types of molluscs that live in sea or brackish water (less salty, like sea water, but more salty than fresh water). Oysters often form pearls, but the pearls formed in edible oysters are of no value. Oysters are usually eaten raw, in their own juice and with lemon. In addition, oysters are known as a powerful aphrodisiac.

Important additions: abalone, exotic chocolates, musk, sea bass and sea salmon.

Each of us loves delicious food. Are you ready to pay for an unsurpassed dish of delicacies an amount comparable to the price of your car? But some gourmets are ready. Therefore, we have prepared a list of the most expensive seafood dishes. One has only to lick one's lips and admire these masterpieces, and perhaps try them.

Designed to impress diners at Norma's. It includes 6 chicken eggs, green onions, sturgeon black caviar (280 grams) and lobster. An omelette can be much cheaper if it contains only 30 grams of caviar, which cost about $65.

Price: 1000$
Where to try: Norma's restaurant (New York)

Florette Sea&Earth considered the most expensive salad in the world, which is the author's work of the top chef Raymond Blanc. The composition of the dish includes white beluga caviar, meat of Cornish crab, lobster, lobster, Floretta young salad, olive oil, red pepper, grated truffles, potatoes and asparagus. Florette Sea&Earth is decorated with gold foil on top.

Price: 1000$
Where to try: Restaurant Le Manoir aux Quat Saisons (British City of Oxford)

Golden Gates dumplings are blue-green in color due to the dough, which contains torchfish iron. In the dark, the dish glows thanks to this gland, which does not change the taste of the dish. The filling of dumplings includes veal, pork and salmon.

Price: 2400$
Where to try: Golden Gates restaurant (New York)

Or "Seafood Treasure" from the London restaurant Bombay Brasserie is considered the most expensive stew in the world. Valuable seafood is used to prepare the dish: lobster, lobster, Devonshire crab, snails and abalones. In addition, the recipe includes beluga caviar, truffles, abalone and quail eggs. The author of Samundari Khazana is chef Pralad Hedge, who based it on his mother's recipe.

Price: 3200$
Where to try: restaurant Bombay Brasserie (London)

Sushi with pearls Angelito Araneta created for lovers who want to present an original gift to their soul mate. Chef Angelito Arenato Jr. uses Japanese rice, muscovado sugar, 70-year-old artesian water, 12-year-old balsamic vinegar from Italy, foie gras, Norwegian salmon, mango, pickled cucumber, crabmeat, wild saffron and mayonnaise to prepare them. butter. The highlight of the sushi is their 24 carat edible gold foil, 15 pearls and 5 0.2 carat diamonds decorating the top of the dish.

Price: 4300$
Where to try: in Manila (Philippines)

is the gold standard for all caviar, which belongs to the Beluga fish, which is a species of sturgeon. The older the fish, the higher the cost of the product. The high price of the delicacy is explained by the fact that the beluga needs about twenty years to mature and reproduce offspring. That is why you will have to wait several years before you can enjoy the exquisite and delicate taste of Almas caviar.

Price: 5000$ for 100g
Where to try: Caviar House & Prunier restaurant (London) or Punier Caviar House store (also London)

Prepared by the best chefs in Italy according to a unique recipe, and the process of its preparation takes 72 hours. The price of the most expensive pizza in the world is determined by its expensive "minced meat" - a special kind of flour, several types of caviar soaked in Krug Clos Du Mesnil champagne, shrimp, lobster, lobster and exclusive Bufalo Mozzarella cheese, filled with Remy Martin Cognac Louis XIII cognac.

Price: 8300$
Where to try: Restaurant Agropoli (Salerano)

8. And for dessert - Fisherman on stilts

Dessert Rybak on stilts is described as "an Italian cassata (traditional round cake) with gold leaf". The cake is decorated with fruits and Irish Cream liqueur. The basis for the dessert is compote of mango juice and pomegranate with Dom Pérignon champagne. Dessert is served with a handmade chocolate figurine of a fisherman and an 80 carat aquamarine.

Price: 14500$
Where to try: restaurant The Fortress (Sri Lanka)

Some of these food ingredients are astronomical in price - do you know the most expensive delicacies?

If your rice glows like gold, it's most likely cooked with saffron.

The spice nicknamed "red gold" is the bright orange pterostigma, or stigma, of the crocus flower, which is used as food coloring. And it is valued not just "for its weight in gold", it is more expensive than gold, if we compare the cost per gram. But why is saffron so expensive?

2. The reasons are simple. Saffron crocuses only bloom for a week or two a year, in the fall; harvesting spices is labor intensive as they can only be harvested and processed by hand.

3. Each small flower has only three stigmas, which means that it takes about two football fields of crocuses per kilogram of saffron. That's 300,000 colors.

Sturgeon caviar is considered one of the greatest delicacies in the world. It is difficult to process and pack, but more importantly, it is very rare in nature. The most famous caviar is beluga caviar, a fish of the sturgeon family that lives in the Caspian and the Black Sea.

5. Since the beluga is endangered, very little of its caviar can be sold legally. It takes up to two decades for a beluga to start producing caviar, but the fish must be killed to extract the caviar.

Albino sturgeon caviar is even rarer; this species is almost completely extinct in the wild.

According to the Guinness Book of Records, the caviar of an elderly albino beluga aged about 100 years became the most expensive. Her white caviar was sold for 34,500 dollars per kilogram.

6. Oysters

Oysters, now considered a luxury, were not always a delicacy of the wealthy class.

At the beginning of the 19th century, oysters were as cheap as potatoes and were eaten by simple hard workers and villagers. There were so many of them that pies were stuffed with oysters. But overfishing and pollution have devastated oyster supplies, and shortages have increased their value.

Prices vary in different restaurants around the world, but a dozen of these clams in one of the best London seafood restaurants will set you back about $65. At the famous Borough Market, you can buy oysters for 10 pounds ($13) for 8 pieces, but they are served on a paper plate and crushed. On the coast - even cheaper, but still you can’t call them an affordable product for everyone.

7. Truffle

The highly prized white truffle is one of the rarest underground mushrooms in the world and is very hard to find. It grows only in the Piedmont region of northern Italy among the roots of certain trees. The white truffle is much rarer than any other.

8. The white variety has a very intense taste and aroma, which makes it even more attractive. They cannot be cultivated or obtained artificially: for centuries, people have tried to grow truffles, but they are still only available in the wild.

9. It is this unpredictability, along with the laboriousness of collection, that is the reason for such a high cost.

Macau casino owner Stanley Ho paid the record amount for a single white truffle in 2007. He paid $330,000 for one of the largest truffles discovered in decades - weighing 1.5 kg. Incredible price for an underground fungus.

10. Iberian jamon

There is jamon and there is Iberian jamon.

This type of cured meat is produced in a certain area in Spain and Portugal where black Iberian pigs (or mixed pig breeds at least half Iberian) live in oak forests. This area is called Deheza. Here the pigs roam freely and enjoy acorns - and only acorns - before slaughter.

11. The classification of the Iberian ham is very, very strict: the ham with a "black label" is considered the best and is made from purebred Iberian pigs.

In addition, this expensive ham is dried for 36 months, and sometimes up to 48 months, under special drying conditions. The high price is due to the rearing process: in order to qualify for the Wagyu brand, cows must be raised and fed according to strict rules, with calves given special feed to ensure the formation of fatty veins - "marble".

Such beef can cost up to $640 per kilo in Japan.

12. Wagyu Beef

Wagyu simply translates to "Japanese beef," but you can only get it from one of four types of Japanese cow. The meat is tightly mixed with fat, which melts during the cooking process, making the steak tender and juicy. This meat almost melts in your mouth.

Some fans say that it looks like a soft fish that falls apart while eating.

13. Luwak coffee

Technically, it's a drink, not a food, but since luwak coffee costs up to $700 a kilo, it certainly deserves a spot on this list.

Luwak coffee, or civet coffee, is made from coffee beans that have been eaten, partially digested, and then discarded in the feces by the Asian palm civet (marten).

14. Doesn't sound very appetizing. But there is an opinion that the aroma of coffee is enhanced by the acids of the animal's stomach - since digestion and fermentation add a special taste, zest to coffee beans.

It's possible that this is just a trick, and the espresso comes out just awful, but you have to try it to understand.

There is a really sad side to the story, for the poor civets: more and more animals are raised on special farms, where they live in cages like laying hens and are force-fed with coffee beans.

15. Foie gras

Foie gras is a very expensive pâté made from duck or goose liver. Birds for this purpose are fattened to incredible sizes - up to ten times larger than usual.

As a result, the pate is fragrant, fatty and tender.

Gourmet lovers are willing to pay a high price for a delicacy. But the real high price is paid by the birds themselves - to get fatty liver, these geese and ducks are fed corn through feeding tubes.

This practice is four and a half thousand years old. Then the ancient Egyptians discovered that the meat of many birds becomes much more flavorful after artificial overfeeding.

16. These days, many countries have laws against the practice, production, import, or sale of foie gras, but the product is still popular.

Japan's most expensive delicacies July 29th, 2014

Moose milk cheese in Sweden is valued at $1,000 per kilo; La Bonnotte potatoes from western France cost $1,543 a kilo; Almas caviar from Iran sells for $25,000 and is packaged in a 24 carat gold tin. Of course, luxurious and wildly expensive food is in every country in the world. But there is one country that has a much larger number of luxury products than any other in the world. The Japanese city of Tokyo is known for having one of the highest cost of living on the planet. That is why many of the most expensive products in the world can be found in stores and markets throughout the country. Some foods in Japan are not just expensive, but also quite unique.

You definitely won't find them on the shelves of your local grocery store. Japan has a long tradition of giving gifts to business associates and bosses as a token of appreciation. In the world of business, giving a gift shows the importance the giver places on the business relationship. Expensive fruits are especially popular options. To meet the mass demand, luxury fruit shops have sprung up all over the country, catering to a wealthy clientele. From the world famous Wagyu beef to melons and milk, Japan will surprise you with a dizzying array of exotic and unique delicacies and foods. If you are a foodie at heart, a trip to this charming country can be a unique culinary experience. Delight your taste buds, expand your palate and taste the most expensive foods on the planet.

Here are the ten most expensive delicacies in Japan.

Produced by Nakazawa Foods, this special brand of milk sells for $43. This price is almost thirty times higher than the price of regular milk. The product is aimed at "adults who live in a stressful society", the dairy product comes with special elements to relieve stress. Milk is collected from cows once a week at dawn, when the animals release higher levels of melatonin. This hormone can reduce anxiety and even overcome some forms of depression in people, which is extremely important in a highly stressful environment among the Japanese.

Photo 2.

In a country known for its exceptional and expensive beef, it's no surprise that this pizza has found itself at the top of the fast food chain's menu. Kobe beef pizza is available at Domino, topped with potatoes, onions and a sumptuous sauce, along with high-end marbled Kobe meat. You will have to pay $66 for this delicacy.

Photo 3.

If puffer fish is cooked incorrectly, the consequences will be deadly, as it contains a deadly poison. Despite this, fugu has become one of the most famous Japanese dishes. A Japanese chef goes through rigorous training and certification before being allowed to prepare fish for human consumption. Fugu is usually prepared in such a way that a tiny amount of poison remains on the fish, which gives the dish a special stunning effect. The cost of a dish with this fish starts from $100 per person. Fugu is one of the main dishes of the country, part of the integral traditions of Japan.

Photo 4.

There is a very practical reason why Japan started growing square watermelons. Space is sorely lacking here, including space for refrigerators and transportation. Solution: Making a square watermelon that is much easier to store and transport is a huge benefit. To shape them, these watermelons are grown in special square glass containers. They are sold in specialty fruit shops in Japan for about $200. In Moscow, wealthy Russians are snapping up this specially designed fruit for as much as $800.

Photo 5.

In the 80s and 90s, matsutake mushrooms were an expensive and very popular food. Today it is an extremely expensive and extremely rare food, due to the invasion of its environment. The annual harvest of matsutake mushrooms in Japan is less than one thousand tons. The price for such mushrooms in the Japanese market is very dependent on the quality, availability and origin of the matsutake. Japanese matsutake is highly valued at the start of the season, and can sell for as much as $2,000 per kilogram, depending on supply and demand.

Photo 6.

Wagyu literally means Japanese cow, and refers to several breeds of cattle. This beef is known for its distinct marbled hue. Depending on where the cattle are raised, different feeding methods are used. Some farms even massage the cattle, or give the cows a drink of beer. The goal is to produce cattle with special marbled meat. The most exclusive Wagyu in the world comes from Kobe, Japan. An average steak can cost around $500 but can reach the mind-boggling price of $2,800.

Photo 7.

Roman Ruby is a type of table grape grown strictly in Ishikawa Prefecture. First introduced in 2008, these grapes are rigorously tested to ensure quality. Each grape is the size of a ping-pong ball, but red in color, must weigh more than 20 grams and have a sugar content of more than 18%. A "premium" grape must weigh a minimum of 30 grams, and the entire fruit bunch must be at least 700 grams. In 2010, only six grapes were eligible for the “premium class”. In 2011, no grapes met the standard. In July 2013, a single bunch of Ruby Roman grapes was sold for $4,000. Each grape cost $110.

Photo 8.

Grown on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, these rare black watermelons are known for their elegant freshness and level of sweetness. Only 10,000 Densuke are grown annually. Their limited supply at harvest time makes auction prices skyrocket. In 2008, an 8kg black watermelon was sold for $6,100, making it the most expensive watermelon in the world.

This orange-fleshed melon is a hybrid of two musk melons. Yubari is prized for its juicy sweetness as well as its beautiful proportions. Most often they are sold in pairs. Royal melon Yubari is often given as an expensive gift to respected people. A first-class melon should be perfectly round and have an exceptionally smooth rind. In Japan, these melons can be found in stores for $50-$100 each. They are much more expensive at auctions. The most expensive pair of melons was sold for $26,000.

Photo 10.

Toro is a special tuna meat that is commonly used for sushi. True toro comes exclusively from bluefin tuna and stands out for its marbled hue. The most valuable toro, known as otoro, is cut from the underside of the fish, close to the head. The lowest grade, chutoro, is taken from the belly in the middle and back of the fish. It is less marbled than the otoro. Toro is always the most expensive item on the menu, the price of which is constantly changing depending on market prices. You can never accurately predict the price of this exceptional Japanese delicacy, it all depends on supply and demand. This is one of the most expensive and rare seafood delicacies in Asia.

Let me remind you about and how it looks. And here is also The original article is on the website InfoGlaz.rf Link to the article from which this copy is made -

Just take a look at the delicacies listed in this article - a real madness of our time!

People are happy to part with hundreds and thousands of dollars just to try exclusive products.

Half a kilogram of Kopi Luwak coffee, which passes through the digestive tract of musang animals before drying, leaving in the form of excrement, costs about $ 230.

Moose milk cheese can cost up to $1,000 per kilo and can only be found on private moose farms in Sweden.

Marble Kobe beef, which is produced in Kobe Prefecture in Japan, can cost between $770 and $1,000 per kilo. The best beef in the world comes from cows that receive daily massages and are fed the best grass and beer. All this provides a special tenderness to marbled meat, which, of course, can hit your wallet.

One kilo of La Bonnotte potatoes can cost up to $630 per kilo. This potato is cultivated only on the island of Noirmoutier in the western part of France. It is expensive because only a small amount of this potato is grown each year, which has a unique and complex taste that combines the taste of sea salt, lemon and nuts.

Bluefin tuna can cost $1,365 per pound. So a 269-kilogram tuna was sold at an auction in Japan for $736,000.

Matsutake mushrooms are another Japanese delicacy that can cost up to $2,000 per pound. The fungus only grows on red pine in Japan, Korea and China and never grows in the same place twice. It has a sharp, spicy flavor and a meaty texture.

Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world, whose price can reach $2,700 per pound. Although saffron is quite easy to grow, it is obtained by picking up to 75,000 flowers by hand, and this is to get only half a kilogram of the spice.

European white truffles can be sold for $3,600 per pound. These mushrooms only grow underground on the roots of certain trees in parts of Italy and Croatia, and farmers use dogs to find them.

A black Densuke watermelon weighing 7.7 kg was sold in 2009 at an auction in Japan for $6,100. This type of watermelon is grown only on the Japanese island of Hokkaido, where about 10,000 fruits are produced per year.

Tieguanyin tea is an exquisite oolong tea and can cost up to $6,600 per kilo. Luckily, its leaves can be brewed up to 7 times before it starts to lose its flavor.

Almas caviar, which comes from an albino beluga that lives in the Caspian Sea, is sold in a jar of solid gold for $25,000. The eggs have a pale amber color, and the caviar itself is produced in Iran.

Royal melon Yubari is a rare variety of melon from Japan that sold for $26,000 a pair in 2008. Outwardly, such a melon is similar to the most ordinary, except that it is perfectly round and has a smooth skin. In addition, the presence of volcanic ash in the soil where it is grown is said to make it the sweetest and juiciest melon in the world.