A student from a university in southern China found a dead rat in the food she got as a takeaway dinner from her school on Saturday, May 7.

The student, from Hengyang Normal University in Henan province, was shocked to find a black hairy thing hiding behind some ingredients included in her meal taken from the school canteen, according to People’s Daily Online affiliate Huanqiu. The black thing was a dead rat, which was perfectly camouflaged behind some wood ear fungus in the dish.

Like Us on Facebook

The student posted photos of the rat and the food on Weibo, explaining that she initially thought the black thing was pig’s trotter.

“I took it out [from the meal box], oh my god, it was a whole rat,” she wrote in her post. “I felt sick. I had a breakdown.”

The disgusted student added that she will never again touch any of the food from the university canteen.

On Sunday, May 8, school officials launched an investigation to confirm the authenticity of the student’s post. They declared in a statement that the school’s chef and his assistant were to blame for the incident, and immediately fired them both without payment.

The school added that it will tighten its control over food ingredients, as well as increase the frequency of pest control operations. The school authorities have failed to explain how the rodent made its way into the student’s meal box.

Rat Meal

While the news of a dead rat hiding inside a school-prepared meal is disgusting, a Chinese delicacy composed of baby mice seems attractive to adventurous eaters.

Video footage posted online in November 2015 shows a Chinese dish called “San Zhi Er,” or “Three Squeaks,” according to the Daily Mail. The delicacy is made up of living baby mice served with a plate of sauce. It is believed to be served in a restaurant in Guangdong in southern China. The video can be seen at the end of this report.

The dish is given the name because of the sound the poor rodents make: first when the diner picks up the mice, second when it is dipped in the sauce, and third when it meets its demise. Although it is not widely known, the dish has existed since 1949.

It is not clear if the dish is illegal.

 

TagsHengyang Normal University, Rat, Henan Province, wood ear fungus, San Zhi Er