Even Grosser Cheeses
You may think unpasteurized cheese is bad and icky. And you’re not wrong, it can be pretty dangerous, but it’s not the worst thing the FDA has banned in the U.S.
Introducing, casu martzu, sometimes spelled casu marzu, a type of cheese whose name translates to rotten cheese. It’s native to the Italian island of Sardinia- strange, considering the fact that it is also banned all across the European Union, too- yeah! It’s that bad!
This type of cheese is fermented, then literally left to rot while becoming infested with maggots. The maggots play a crucial role in the process. As they eat the rot away, they change the cheese’s texture, making it feel soft and liquidy.
Similar to marzu, Mimolette is a type of cheese infested with mites. They’re used to refine the cheese’s flavor, also giving it a distinct orange-red hue. Mites can cause severe allergic reactions, so we’re not even surprised this type of cheese is banned in the U.S.
