And we call that glerhákarl. Iceland is famous for fresh fish and our delicious lamb that roams free during the summer. Greenland shark is the most toxic shark in the world. Often the shark was eaten, like, with the food that was, like, on the limit of being good or bad, or probably bad, because he helps the digestion. This is not for everybody. It’s Iceland’s infamous national dish with quite the notorious reputation for testing even the most adventurous of stomachs. But you see here, when I slice it open, that he still has this beautiful white color at the inside. Guðjón: I've been eating the shark since before I got teeth. Especially not if you have a shot of Brennivín liquor to wash down with it! Due to its rich ammonia concentration, eating its fresh meat could even lead to death. The Top Tourist Attractions in Iceland . So, would you recommend eat it before smelling it? Heading to the market by the old harbour in Reykjavik (the capital), I prepared myself. USD. Guðjón: This boat is around 8 meters. The meat is first fermented in cold storage rooms, like this one. Spending time traveling you often spend much of your money of food especially when traveling to Iceland. That's really nice. Ju: I can taste the ammonia kind of smell now. He described it as reminiscent of “. The food in Iceland is excellent, superb even so you will have plenty of other opportunities to try some tasty things. Guðjón: Next, I'm gonna open it up, and you're going to put your head in it. It's also different after where the shark has been, and what depth, and what temperature he was caught. Most Icelandic restaurants will have it on the menu all year round for travelers and locals to try. Serving those who crave all things Icelandic. And they could feel when the shark was testing the bait. It’s become something of a tourist favorite, a “you haven’t been to Iceland if you haven’t tried rotted shark” kind of thing. There are chemical changes that are happening, that are making the meat untoxic. Ju: It's the meatiest fish I've ever seen, yeah. Ju: All right, I'm just gonna try to chew this a bit. And then death after that. Ju: Yeah, it's like sandpaper. The fillet we call skyrhákarl. Guðjón: The second one was also a little bit bigger. But, after all, what does one expect when consuming rotting, dried, fermented shark flesh? Following is a transcript of the video. For some reason, the fermented rotten shark gets the most hype out of all the sour cuisines above. And it's very important to have the skin on, because the meat, it's so loose itself that if it's no skin, then the meat just basically stretch. And then he had been working on this boat at least since he was 14. And then, of course, the shark on his own. He has white meat. Or you can simply purchase the product at a local grocery store or at Kolaportið flea market during the weekend and taste in a setting of your choosing. Guðjón: Yeah. Ju: So what exactly does it take to make it safe to eat? Update, June 2018, after Bourdain's untimely death: When Anthony Bourdain visited Iceland to eat the worst food he'd ever taste But before, fresh meat, something small, you would get very sick. And then, if I... you see how smoothly it cuts. They just flip over, and the old ones, they just fall off. Well, fermented shark is an Icelandic delicacy and one of the small Nordic island’s national foods. Guðjón: So, the Greenland shark, he lives so deep that he's not in our swimming waters. Guðjón: This is my grandfather's shark-fishing boat. Then a little bit more, you could probably go blind. Guðjón: Yeah, yeah. And in the drying, the piece, it gets this dried crust around it. Do you ever get over that? Then it's doing what we want it to do. since. So that's why they don't taste the same. We want it to give us, like, a kick. What is the liquid that's coming off, then? You're gonna inhale. It's Greenland shark that's been laboriously fermented, dried, and cured. Just shark, shark, shark. He's running his family business of shark curing here in Bjarnarhöfn. If you are sensitive to strong smell you are more likely to dislike the shark but if you are a fan of strong cheese, for example, and don’t mind the smell you might just fall into the latter category. Now it changes a little bit to maybe a little like a licorice flavor. And according to them, the shark is the healthiest food that is made in Iceland. And under here we have the fillet. One of those „delicacies“ and one of Iceland‘s national dishes is the fermented shark or kæstur hákarl, which we, of course, offer a taste of on our Reykjavik Food Lovers Tour for those who dare to try. There's no smoking. Guðjón: It's good. He used to catch sharks and other fishes in this boat. What would happen to me? So there was big waste of meat. That is very interesting. [both laugh] But yeah, this is really rough. And airplane food. Guðjón: And now you feel it, it's coming up in your nose. It tastes much better than it smells. chef Gordon Ramsay challenged James May to sample three “delicacies” one of which was the Icelandic Hákarl. And then in the drying process, it loses, like, 50, 70%. Or that they have been purely bread since the Vikings brought them? Shark has been involved with my family for 600 years, I guess. And it also works like, gives him a little bit more insulation in a cold ocean. Just shark, shark, shark. So, this is just, like, all my life. I mean, is it, it's OK to be - I mean, you've got, like, I've got boots on, and you've got little sandals and socks. Ju: Yeah, that's what I'm getting at the moment. Arctic Adventures. And we want it strong. He does not have a fat layer. 17 Write a comment. Guðjón: Now it's that far in the fermentation that you would be fine. We don't catch them ourselves, not anymore.