In Japan, this dinner takes years of training to serve, and one wrong cut can be the last.
The tastiest part of a pufferfish is also the deadliest. Which organ did Japan ban restaurants from serving?
The liver Fugu lovers have long prized the liver as the most flavorful bite, but it carries the most poison, so restaurants were forbidden from serving it.
In an old Japanese comedy tale, three men test their risky fugu stew on a beggar. What sneaky move makes the beggar the real winner?
He hid it instead Once the beggar saw the three men alive and well, he knew the stew was safe, so he finally ate the share he had secretly saved.
Pufferfish are famous for their deadly poison, but they don't actually make it. Where does it really come from?
Bacteria in their food Because the poison builds up from what the fish eat, farmers can now raise poison-free fugu just by keeping them away from those bacteria.
What glowing decorations do people craft from dried, puffed-up fugu bodies to hang outside restaurants?
Lanterns Preserved fugu also become toys, folk art, souvenirs, and even wallets made from the fish's tough skin.
In western Japan, people nickname fugu after a weapon, because the word for getting poisoned also means getting shot. Which weapon?
A gun The slang word teppo comes from the Kansai region, where the same verb, ataru, can mean being shot or being poisoned.
