Monkey brains facts for kids

Simulated monkey brains displayed at Tao Heung Museum of Food Culture, Hong Kong, as part of a Manchu Han Imperial Feast

Monkey brains is a supposed dish consisting of, at least partially, the brain of some species of monkey or ape.

While animal brains have been consumed in various cuisines (e.g. eggs and brains or fried brain sandwiches), there is debate about if monkey brains have actually been consumed. In Western popular culture its consumption is repeatedly portrayed and debated, often in the context of portraying exotic cultures as exceptionally cruel, callous, and/or strange.

Consumption

An edible fungus species, Hericium erinaceus, also called monkey head mushroom, which bears a superficial resemblance to the fur of certain Asian primates such as macaques.

Initial confusion over a translated term for the edible mushroom Hericium erinaceus may have played a part in the belief that monkey brains were used in Asian cuisine, as this mushroom is called hóu tóu gū in Chinese (simplified: 猴头菇; traditional: 猴頭菇; lit. "monkey head mushroom"). The mushroom itself bears a superficial resemblance to that of the fur of certain primates found in Asia, such as macaques.

Actual monkey brains were historically part of the Manchu Han Imperial banquet of the Qing Empire held during the 17th century, where they may have been eaten directly from the skull. One modern account from travel writer Leila Hadley details a meal in a restaurant in Macao near Hong Kong where monkey brains were eaten from a monkey's skull, though there is skepticism as to how common the practice remains today. Official Chinese policy on the procurement of certain wildlife species in the 21st century makes the serving of monkey brains illegal, with sentences of up to 10 years in prison for violators.

Beyond Asia and into Africa, naturalist Angela Meder has described in Gorilla Journal a cultural practice of the Anaang people of southeastern Nigeria and southwestern Cameroon whereby a new tribal chief would consume the brain of a hunted gorilla while another senior member of the tribe consumed the heart. According to this account, the practice occurred only in the specific instance of a new chiefdom, as the killing of gorillas would otherwise be forbidden. This tradition was reported as deprecated by the beginning of the 21st century.

The writer Albert Podell claims to have eaten live monkey brains in his book Around The World in 50 Years.

See also

In Spanish: Sesos de mono (gastronomía) para niños