Blood Cockles: Thailand’s Most Dangerous Delicacy
Blood cockles are a popular seafood in Thailand, especially along coastal regions where they are lightly blanched and served with spicy dipping sauce. Known for their deep red interior, they often surprise first-time visitors. Despite their appearance, blood cockles have long been part of everyday Thai seafood culture. Blood cockles have a reputation in Thailand. At a Thai seafood stall along the coast, vendors blanch them briefly in boiling water, crack the shells open, and reveal flesh stained deep red at the hinge. The liquid that gathers inside looks unsettlingly like blood. It makes first-time diners pause. No, it’s not dramatic lighting. Blood cockles contain hemoglobin, yes, the same oxygen-binding protein that makes our blood red. The color feels risky. Shellfish are not supposed to look alive. Yet along Thailand’s eastern and southern coasts, blood cockles have been eaten for generations without drama. The question is not why they look dangerous. It is why they ever became nor...