Most Bizarre Hangover Cures From Around The World

The previous night was an unending blur of fun, debauchery, and lots and lots of alcohol, and today you seem to have woken up to Sivamani playing the drums in your head. If the excruciating migraine isn't a reminder of the crazy night gone by, the intense dehydration and waves of nausea washing over you definitely are. You may reach for your favorite tried and tested hangover cure, but just count your lucky stars that you don't live in the Philippines or Sicily, because that would mean you would have to chow down on a fertilized duck embryo or dried bull's penis, respectively. Hangover cures from around the world range from mildly bizarre to full-blown oddities! So without further ado, here are some of the most bizarre hangover cures from around the world. Which one are you brave enough to try?
Germany: Pickled herring
When Germans have a hungover, they turn to something called KaterFruhstuck, which translates to 'hangover breakfast'. This breakfast comprises marinated or pickled herring, which is prepared by wrapping a fillet of herring around chunks of sliced gherkin and onion.

Rome: Deep fried canaries
This hangover cure isn't popular today (thank goodness) but it was widely believed to be effective in among the Ancient Romans. Urban legends claim that Romans used to deep fry canary birds in hot oil, season them with pepper and salt, and snack on them to get rid of a hangover.

Poland: Sour pickle juice or brine
The Polish have been known to drink pickled juice or brine from the jars of pickled fish or vegetables when they suffer from the familiar but nasty symptoms of a hangover. They believe this liquid to be as hydrating as water and say that its high electrolyte contain can help to repair the damage done to the liver after a night of heavy drinking.

USA: Prairie oyster
The Americans love to party, but when the time comes for them to recover they will be seen reaching for a Prairie Oyster. A Prairie Oyster is an unsavory drink that is made from Worcestershire sauce, tomato juice, a raw egg, and some black pepper. From the ingredients you have probably gathered that this drink isn't much to taste, and you are right. But it is supposed to be rather effective, and is usually just gulped down. Some people like to add some 'hair of the dog' and add a splash of alcohol in it.

Romania: Tripe soup
Tripe is the stomach lining of the cow. Relatively unheard of in most part of the world, but it is widely used as the perfect remedy for a hangover in Romania. This edible offal is boiled in a greasy, salty broth and eaten in a soup with garlic, cream, and onions.

Japan: Pickled plums
Compared to everything else on this list, pickled plums don't sound, too, bad, do they? The Japanese swear by the tiny, sour, red 'umeboshi' plums as a popular post-drinking remedy. These are pickled in acidic vinegar as opposed to its sweeter counterpart. They are sometimes consumed whole or put in green tea, so that the salty flavor amalgamates into the liquid.

Mexico: Shrimps or menudo
The Mexicans sure know how to have a party, and after a rough night, they wake up to 'Vuelva a la Vida', which translates to 'return to life'. This aptly titled hangover cure includes eating plenty of shrimps. The most popular way to eat shrimp in Mexico is in a salad. This seafood cocktail is mixed with tomato juice and pico de gallo. In Mexico, 'menudo' is another popular hangover cure. It is a broth made from cow stomach, garlic, onions, and a chili pepper base. 

Namibia: Buffalo milk
If you find yourself in Namibia after a long night of painting the town red, the locals will probably give you a bizarre concoction called 'buffalo milk' to help you get through the day without feeling like a zombie. The strange part about this drink is that it doesn't have any buffalo milk in it at all. It is actually an alcoholic cocktail made from dark rum, clotted cream, spiced rum, cream liqueur, and whole cream. These ingredients produce a curdled beverage which is either believed to cure your hangover symptoms, or get you drunk all over again. 

Mongolia: Pickled sheep eyeballs 
Fancy a truly bizarre hangover cure? How about some pickled sheep's eyeballs in tomato juice, as the brave people of Mongolia have them. This vomit-inducing concoction is swallowed to cure hangovers, if it doesn't make it worse that is.

Sicily: Dried bull's penis
The Sicilians have always been an adventurous lot, and this translates into their choice for a hangover cure as well - dried bull's penis.

Russia: Kvass
The Russians drink a slightly alcoholic beverage known as Kvass. Kvass is made by soaking dried rye bread with sugar and yeast. They drink their Kvass in a sauna while being whipped with birch branches, believed to cure a hangover. True story. 

Scotland: The highland fling
Scotland is the whiskey homeland of the world, and here, 'The Highland Fling' seems to do the trick. This is a traditional mix of buttermilk, corn flour, salt and pepper.

Britain: Bacon sandwich
In Britain, nothing seems to do the trick quite like a greasy bacon sandwich. In fact, this hangover cure has even been scientifically proven by a Newcastle University study in 2009. They found that the amino acids that the combination of bacon and bread provided were able to cure a hangover.

Peru: Leche de Tigre
In Peru, leftover marinade from ceviche known as the Leche de Tigre eases a throbbing migraine caused by a hangover. It is made from fish scrap, lemon juice, ginger, fish stock, and garlic.

Philippines: Balut 
Eggs are known to be quite a popular hangover cure all over the world, but not quite how they have it in the Philippines. A hangover cure called 'balut' is very popular in the Philippines, which is a poached, fertilized duck embryo. You have to be really brave to eat balut, which also means swallowing a partially formed duck chick whose beak is still attached to it.