A TikToker has left social media users stunned after reviewing a restaurant’s specialty dish of raw chicken.
While there are some meats, such as beef, that can be served undercooked, chicken has not notoriously been one of them, thanks to the risk of salmonella.
However, that didn't put off British-Korean blogger Johnny Kyunghwo - who goes by the handle @johnnykyunghwo on TikTok - who was in Haenam, South Korea when he decided to try the unique dish.
In a 40-second video shared on the platform, the man explained that he went on a food tour led by fellow content creator Austin Givens, of the YouTube channel Eat What is Given.
As one of the "local delicacies" in the area is chicken, the group went to an eatery that specializes in locally raised free-range chicken and serves a dish called "chicken sashimi," which he said was "essentially raw chicken".
Watch Kyunghwo's TikTok below:The TikToker said: "I’d never tried completely raw chicken but you know what, I’ll try anything once, and let me tell you it was better than I expected," and showed viewers a clip of him eating the meal.
He explained that it actually didn’t taste like chicken at all, adding: "The meat didn’t have much flavor so most of the taste came from the sesame oil and seeds the raw chicken was coated in, but the texture was almost like raw fish. Not slimy at all. It was firm but still very easy to chew into.
"I didn’t think I would like it that much but I ended up eating quite a few bites of it including a Korean-style raw chicken lettuce wrap. I give it an eight out of 10. Highly recommend," he concluded.
Kyunghwo shared a full documentation of his experience on YouTube and noted that all the chicken dishes they ate at the restaurant, both raw and cooked, were from one chicken.
He also clarified that he was fully aware of the "potential dangers" of eating raw chicken but put his trust in the popular restaurant, and said: "I'm now a fan of raw chicken."
Safe to say, the blogger - who has 1.1 million followers on TikTok and 605,000 subscribers on YouTube - left many people in shock as they flocked to the comment section to share their reactions.
One stunned user wrote: "The smell of raw chicken makes me want to barf. Never ever ever."
Another awe-struck person chimed in: "Please talk about how this didn't kill you. Many of us simply cannot comprehend raw chicken."
A third user warned others: "ONLY DO THIS IN RESTAURANTS THAT SPECIALISE IN THIS. only specific places has safe raw chicken. Don’t make this at home if [you're] not a trained [professional]."
A fourth shared their own experience: "Once I ate raw chicken and almost threw up. Not because it made me sick, the knowledge I was willingly eating it, made me sick."
Needless to say, this is definitely not a dish you should ever try to recreate at home.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, raw chicken can be contaminated with Campylobacter, Salmonella, or Clostridium perfringens germs.
However, Brisbane-based chef Eugene Lee previously told SBS Food that there was "an art to preparing raw chicken," which meant chicken sashimi was done in a specific way.
"Most of the meat actually comes from the most inner part of the chicken breast, nearest to the soft bone. That is the safest part and is less likely to be infested with microbes," he said.
Lee explained that in his experience overseas, the chicken was butchered on the farm, delivered to the restaurant within hours, and slaughtered by the chef at the restaurant using tools only for that purpose.
"It shouldn’t be butchered [on the farm] because if the butcher starts preparing it then you won’t know if the chicken feet has come into contact with the chicken breast," he told the outlet. "We want to get the chicken whole so that the inner breast is still intact."
Would you try raw chicken sashimi? Share your thoughts!
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