Eating ‘Live’ Octopus Dish: A senior citizen in South Korea perished of a heart attack after choking on san-nakji, a ‘live’ octopus dish. Monday, according to The Independent, the incident occurred in Gwanju, a city in South Korea’s southwestern region.
The fire station authorities received a report that a san-nakji piece was lodged in the trachea of an 82-year-old man. The initial responders discovered the individual suffering from cardiac arrest. They performed emergency cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) on the elderly man but were unsuccessful in reviving him. The man was subsequently pronounced deceased at a local hospital.
In order to prepare the controversial cuisine san-nakji, the octopus is killed and its tentacles are cooked in sesame oil. It is distinctive in that the tentacles are served while they are still moving.
The dish has attracted the attention of animal rights activists as inhumane to animals. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) protested outside two Korean restaurants in New York named Sik Gaek and East Seafood in 2010, according to the Korea Times. PETA demanded that restaurants cease dismembering living octopuses.
Top 10 K-Dramas on Netflix 2023: Your Ultimate Guide to Korean Entertainment
Korean Man Chokes To Death After Eating ‘Live’ Octopus Dish
In defence of the restaurant, a representative stated, “All this attention and criticism seems excessive. In addition, the octopus is technically not alive. The octopus is killed prior to serving, but the nerve activity of the animal is what maintains the tentacles writhing on the plate. There is nothing barbaric about consuming dead animals.
In addition, proponents of san-nakji assert that even as the tentacles move, they experience no pain because their output from the brain is severed after the octopus is killed. This makes it identical to any other non-vegetarian dish, except for the momentary visual differences.
The salty, sticky, and chewy food has frequently posed fatal swallowing risks. According to data accessed by the Korean Herald from the Seoul Metropolitan Fire and Disaster Headquarters, at least three individuals died after consuming the dish between 2007 and 2012. Before consuming san-nakji, it is recommended to cut the pieces into tiny pieces to reduce the risk of choking.
