© Shutterstock

Religious considerations -

The consumption of blood is not allowed in Judaism and Islam. As for Christianity, it depends on which denomination. Jehovah's Witnesses, for instance, are known for not consuming any blood-based products.

© Shutterstock

Nutrition -

Blood is quite a nutritious ingredient. It's mostly made up of water and protein, but it also contains vitamin D, and is rich in iron and other minerals. Blood from a variety of animals can be consumed. Let's take a look at a few popular dishes.

© Shutterstock

Blood tofu - China -

Pig blood curd, also known as dark tofu, black tofu, or blood tofu, is made of coagulated pig blood. Unlike real tofu though, these bloody blocks are not suitable for vegans or vegetarians!

© Shutterstock

Blodplättar - Sweden and other countries -

Everyone loves pancakes, right? Well, Northern Europeans perfected the art of adding whipped blood to theirs. You can find these in countries such as Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Estonia.

© Shutterstock

Czernina - Poland -

This Polish soup is traditionally made with duck meat, but can also be made using chicken, pork, or rabbit. Regardless of the meat used, blood (usually duck's) is mixed with vinegar, and a sweetener like honey is added.

© Shutterstock

Hematogen - Russia -

These are sold in Russia as a sort of nutrition bar. Indeed, it being rich in black food albumin, AKA cow's blood, hematogen is a great iron supplement for those who need it.

© Shutterstock

Dinuguan - Philippines -

The Filipino dinuguan dish consists of pork organs simmered in pork's blood and then cooked with vinegar and mahaba chilis.

© Shutterstock

Sundae - South Korea -

Be careful when ordering a sundae in South Korea—you might not get the ice cream you expect! Instead, you might just get a traditional Korean blood sausage.

© Shutterstock

Sanguinaccio dolce - Italy -

This creamy "sweet blood pudding" is made with sugar, chocolate, milk, pine nuts, raisins, and its special ingredient: pig's blood. Neapolitans traditionally eat it during Carnevale.

© Shutterstock

Cabidela - Portugal -

Usually served as arroz de cabidela (cabidela rice), this is a dish made with chicken and rice. The blood usually comes from chicken, and it's mixed with vinegar.

© Shutterstock

Coq au vin - France -

Nowadays, those cooking France's famous dish mostly use flour as a thickening agent, but traditionally the dish calls for fresh chicken blood to thicken the sauce.

© Shutterstock

Black pudding - United Kingdom and Ireland -

There are numerous blood sausages around the world, but the one known as black pudding is one of the most popular. This is a mix of animal blood (often pork or beef), animal fat, and a cereal (usually oats).

© Shutterstock

Ti hoeh koe - Taiwan -

If pig blood covered with sticky rice and peanut flour is your thing, then you must try these traditional Taiwanese street food rice cakes!

© Shutterstock

Boudin noir - France -

The French version of the blood sausage is quite versatile. It's used in French cuisine in a variety of dishes and can be made with the blood of chicken, pork, sheep, lamb, beef, or goose.

© Shutterstock

Boat noodles - Thailand -

Traditionally, cow or pig's blood was used to season this Thai dish. In addition, duck and goose blood is used as a thickener in noodle broths.

© Shutterstock

Papas de sarrabulho - Portugal -

This thick blood stew from northern Portugal mixes a starch (e.g. bread, potatoes, or corn flour) with a variety of meats, including chicken, beef, and pork. And the key ingredient? Pork blood.

© Shutterstock

Cháo huyết - Vietnam -

Vietnam's pork blood congee, or blood porridge, is made with pork blood and pork flesh. There are also veggies thrown into the bloody mix.

© Shutterstock

Svartsoppa - Sweden -

This Swedish "black soup" is traditionally made with goose blood, but can also be made with pig's blood.

© Public Domain

Pig's blood ice cream sundae - USA -

Pig's blood ice cream is not your average sundae, that's for sure. Before closing down, The Pig in Washington, D.C. used to serve these, which they called Sundae Bloody Sundae. Nowadays you may be able to find pork blood ice cream at other locations.

© Getty Images

Yaguarlocro - Ecuador -

Also known as Yawarlukru or Yawar Lukru, this is a traditional stew of the Andes made with lamb's entrails. It's usually sprinkled with fried blood.

© Shutterstock

Bún bò Huế - Vietnam -

This Vietnamese rice noodle dish, also known as Hue beef noodle, uses congealed pork blood as an ingredient.

© Shutterstock

Haggis - Scotland -

Haggis is a quintessential Scottish dish. It's made by mixing a number of ingredients, including sheep's organs, oatmeal, and spices. While this is no longer the case, some old recipes included blood.

© Shutterstock

Khao soi - Thailand -

This is not your average Thai coconut curry noodle soup! Some variations of khao soi also contain curdled blood.

© Shutterstock

Sarapatel - Portugal, India, and Brazil -

Sarapatel is a traditional Portuguese dish that gained popularity in India's Konkan region. It was also taken to Brazil and is still consumed in the northeast of the country. It consists of a mix of pork meat (mostly organs) and pork blood.

© Shutterstock

Nam ngiao - Southeast Asia -

You may find this dish in Myanmar, China, and Thailand. It's made with diced curdled blood cake, usually of chicken or pork.

© Shutterstock

Saksang - Indonesia -

This spicy Indonesian dish is made from minced pork. The meat is stewed in the animal's blood with coconut milk and spices.

© Shutterstock

Blood jelly - Kenya and Tanzania -

The Maasai people include blood in their diet. They sometimes drink it mixed with milk, but cooking it into jelly is also a popular way to consume it.

© Getty Images

Nam tok - Thailand -

The broth of this Southeast Asian dish is enriched with cow or pig's blood.

Sources: (Listverse) (Fodor's Travel) (Ranker) 

See also: Foods you didn't realize contain dairy

© Shutterstock