9 of the Most Expensive Foods in the World

When asked to think of expensive food, most of us immediately think of caviar. Sure, caviar is expensive and features high on the list of the world's most expensive foods, but there are plenty of other delicacies that will give it a run for its money in the cost stakes. Here are nine of the most expensive foods in the world.

Caviar

Caviar has always been known as one of the most expensive foods in the world and enjoyed at the lavish parties of the rich and famous. Traditionally, caviar is the salt-cured eggs or 'roe' from fish belonging to the family Acipenseridae. The common name for this family is sturgeon, and around 27 species belong to it. The term caviar generally refers to the roe of wild sturgeon from the Caspian Sea and the Black Sea; however, some countries use the term to include caviar garnered from other fish such as trout, carp, and salmon. Premium caviar such as that from beluga sturgeon is one of the most expensive varieties costing around $16,000 per kilogram. The eggs from a rare albino sturgeon can cost up to $35,000 which is quite a hefty price for something to spread on your toast.

Wagyu Beef

Wagyu is a term given to any of the four breeds of Japanese beef cattle. The cattle produce meat with a high percentage of marbling which makes it very tender and tasty. Wagyu beef is also healthier than other varieties. It has more monounsaturated fat than saturated fat, and 40% of the good fat is in the form of stearic acid, which has little impact on human cholesterol when consumed. This expensive meat can cost around $200 per pound, and the cattle can sell for $30,000 each.

Saffron

Costing up to $11,000 per kilogram, saffron features high on the world's most expensive foods list. Saffron is the most costly spice. It is used in dishes to provide seasoning and color, as the stigma and styles from the Crocus sativus are collected and dried. Saffron has been used as an ingredient in alternative medicine, and countries such as China and India use it as a fabric dye.

Foie Gras

Foie Gras is the liver of a goose or a duck that has been fattened up through force-feeding—making this delicacy a bone of contention with animal welfare laws. The liver is made into a pate, mousse, or parfait and sold for about $90 per pound.

Truffles

A fungus known as the ascomycete fungus grows near the roots of trees and produces fruiting bodies known as truffles. There are hundreds of different varieties of these black potato-like fungi. Truffles are so expensive as they are difficult to find in the wild. Specially trained dogs can sniff truffles in the ground to help harvest them. White Alba truffles sell for around $40,000 per pound.

Kopi Luwak Coffee

Only true coffee aficionados will try this—Kopi Luwak coffee or 'civet coffee'. This drink is so-called as it is made from coffee cherries that have been consumed by a small mammal known as the civet, defecated, and then collected. While inside the animal's digestive tract, the cherries ferment. The coffee retails for $100 per kilogram.

Matsutake Mushrooms

Like truffles, matsutake mushrooms are super expensive at $1,000 to $2,000 per pound because they are near impossible to grow artificially and are very scarce in the wild. They have a robust taste and give off an aroma not unlike cinnamon mixed with pine needles.

Puffer Fish

The Tiger Pufferfish or Torafugo is the most poisonous edible species of fish. Chefs train for over three years in the art of preparing this fish for consumption, and this is why it is so expensive at around $50 per kilogram. Pufferfish is served raw and sliced into very thin slices. If the fish isn't prepared by a specialist chef, diners are at risk of death if they consume any of the poison found in some of the fish's inner organs. This poison can paralyze a person's muscles leading to possible death from asphyxiation.

Donkey Cheese

This cheese is made on a farm in Serbia where they keep an endangered breed of donkey called the Balkan donkey. It is the only place in the world that produces the cheese. It is costly because there are only 100 female Balkan donkeys. It takes approximately 25 liters of milk to produce one kilogram of cheese, or 'Pule'. Donkey cheese is the most expensive cheese and retails at about $600 per kilogram.