10. Foie gras
Foie gras is an expensive luxury food made from the liver of a duck or goose fattened by gavage. It is a popular cuisine in French and has been a popular delicacy since Roman times. It is either sold whole or as another side dish. its taste is rich, buttery, and delicate unlike that of an ordinary duck or goose. It is so expensive because foie gras ducks and goose are expensive to raise. They eat a lot more food especially during the last few days of their lives when they are force-fed.
9. Edible gold
Edible Gold, a type of gold authorized by the European Union and the United States as a food additive. It is made with pure gold ( between 22 and 24k) or a mix of metals like silver. It can be used in food and liquors for decoration. It is biologically inert which means it passes through the human digestive system without getting absorbed hence it is harmless for humans. The gold leaf has no fat or calories. It also has no nutritional value.
8. Dry-cured Iberian Ham
Iberian ham is one of the most expensive meats in the world and the most important food item of Spanish cuisine. It comes from an Iberian pig, which farmers breed in southwestern Spain and southwestern Portugal and they feed mostly on acorns during the 14 to 36 months they live to give them a special flavor. Guinness World Records has also recognized it as the world’s most expensive ham.
7. Kopi luwak
kopi- luwak coffee is the most expensive coffee in the world. It is an Indonesian coffee that is digested by an animal called Asian Palm civet that lives in the forest of Bali. Those extracted coffee are then gathered, cleaned, and roasted. It is also called civet cat coffee or cat poop coffee. Now cats poop coffee may sound gross but its quality is exceptionally good because these cats eat the best and ripest cherries. It has a nutty, earthy, and smooth taste, and most of its bitterness is lost during the process. It is very unusual and high in demand. It is processed specifically which makes it less in quantity and very expensive.
6. Japanese wagyu steaks
Wagyu beef is produced in Japan, the most expensive beef in the world. These Japanese cows are bred for physical endurance giving them more intramuscular fat cells. The fat is distributed evenly throughout the muscle making them taste so tender, buttery, and rich. The Japanese government highly regulates wagyu production to maintain the value and quality of meat. Wagyu cattle are fed for around 3 years making it costly. Some even say that wagyu cattle are given messages every day and they are fed beer.
5. Moose Cheese
Moose cheese is one of the most expensive cheeses in the world. It is available only at the Eik house in the Bjurholm region, Sweden. The source of milk for making this cheese is three moose named Juna, Haelga, and Gullan. They are handled tenderly especially during the milking or they become disturbed which can cause the milk supply to dry up. The Johannson farm is the world’s only producer of moose cheese and hence it is only available close to the farm or at select local restaurants. the cheese is soft with a creamy texture and smooth flavor. It contains 12% protein and an equal amount of fat. Also they are available in a limited quantity because the Eiks lubricate only from May to September producing about 5 liters of milk every day making it rare.
4. Matsutake
Matsutake mushrooms have a truly unique and intense flavor. They grow on the roots of red pines( therefore also known as pine mushroom) and other trees. It is very difficult to grow them artificially. They are most common in Japan and the picking season is between September and October. They have a strong spicy smell. They are free of fat ,cholesterol and have a high protein content. The mushrooms contain a list of nutrients including calcium, copper, iron, zinc, and many more vitamins hence providing a lot of health benefits. They are truly special and have a high status. They are one of the great wonders of the gastronomy world due to their unique smell.
3. Piedmont white truffle
Truffles are one of the world’s priciest foods as they grow in close association with trees such as oak, chestnut, hardwood, and linden, but among them, the most expensive truffle is white truffle. It grows in soil that is rich in calcium carbonate. They are known for their quality of taste and storing aromatic musky flavor. They are round in shape and can grow as big as 9 cm in diameter making them one of the most desirable truffles. Its rarity and milder taste make it costly. They are hard to find and even if they are found they are found in very little quantity like a few ounces per location. Hence its price is comparable to diamonds. They are only found in select areas in Italy, France, and Croatia. The best truffles are harvested in Alba. Its peak season is from late October to November.
2. Saffron
Saffron is a purple flower that is harvested from crocus Sativas. Each bloom from this Crocus produces three yellow styles each of which ends with a crimson-red stigma. The combination of golden style and crimson stigma constitutes a saffron thread. They are used for distinctive yellow color, sweet-herb smell, and bitter taste. Since each flower contains only 3 delicate stigmas it takes upwards of 50000 flowers to yield one pound of dried saffron. Also, all the harvesting has to be done by hand making it very rare and expensive.
1. White Pearl Albino Caviar
White pearl albino caviar is perhaps the most expensive food item in the world. It is known for its unique taste and delicious looks. It is collected from the fish named Albino Beluga Sturgeon found only in the black and Caspian seas pristine water. The strange thing about these rare fish is that they produce eggs very rarely and sometimes when they are 100 years old is one reason for its costliness. Another reason is that caviar is the pickled roe of the sturgeon fish which makes it very tricky to process and package.
