Eating raw meat

A friend of mine is a classically trained chef, and she often invites me over to her house to eat whatever goodies she has concocted. I was expecting something exotic and packed with intense flavors, like roast quail with plum sauce. Instead, she looked at me like nothing had ever been more obvious, and said: "Steak tartare, of course. While sushi may be romanticized by most eaters, other raw meats—such as tartare, carpaccio, and raw shellfish—are a little less common.

Health authorities recommend cooking beef to kill any harmful bacteria that can cause severe illness or even death. Raw beef dishes are popular worldwide 1. Consuming raw beef is dangerous, as it can harbor illness-causing bacteria, including Salmonella , Escherichia coli E. Ingestion of these bacteria can lead to foodborne illness, more commonly known as food poisoning. Symptoms like upset stomach, nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, which can range from mild to severe, can occur within 30 minutes to 1 week after consuming contaminated raw beef 5. The Food and Drug Administration FDA recommends that populations susceptible to developing foodborne illnesses completely avoid raw or undercooked beef 7.

Meet Derek Nance. Five years ago, Derek had some mystery illness that killed his appetite and made him puke up everything he ate. The doctors suspected it was an allergy thing, so Derek changed his diet. First he cut the wheat and dairy, but he still continued losing weight.

A short summer-cooking series of recipes that don't require any heat. Read more here. Eating raw meat comes with risk. Honestly, that's a little bit of the fun.