The larvae of the cheese fly (Piophila casei) are deliberately introduced to pecorino cheese, where their digestive action produces an advanced level of fermentation, including a breakdown of the cheese's fats. The cheese's texture softens, and a liquid called làgrima ('teardrop') may seep out.
Original Title: TIL Casu martzu (rotten cheese) is an Italian cheese that contains live maggots from the cheese fly used for fermentation in Sardinia. Despite the EU ban for hygiene-health concerns, it is still sold on the black market. In 2019, the illegal production worth was estimated to be €2–3 million
The name literally means rotten cheese, it's intentionally filled with maggots to "ferment it," 'aficionados' specifically think it's unsafe if the maggots are dead so you're supposed to eat them live BUT THEY CAN SURVIVE IN YOUR GI TRACT and make you very sick. The fucking maggots can jump 6 inches!
What the fuck is wrong with people?
I learned about this because I guess I'm supposed to make a vegan "Dublin coddle" tomorrow for work and I was like, what the fuck is a Dublin coddle? and the wikipedia mentioned how it looks gross so Dubliners get defensive about it the same way others do about their weird national delicacies
The thing is though it's just slow simmered sausages and potatoes and shit, it looks gross because it's sad peasant food. This rotten cheese shit is on an entirely different dimension of "fucking gross"
Original Title: TIL of the "Casu martzu" - a sardinian fermented sheep cheese that has live maggots in it. It's considered unsafe to eat if the maggots have died, and is served alongside strong red wine. The larvae in the cheese can launch themselves distances up to 15 centimetres when disturbed.