Here are the 14 most expensive foods in the world!

Some foods are worth gold: from truffles to caviar, including Iberian ham, saffron and certain Grands Crus Classés, you will have to break the bank or dip into your savings plan to obtain these ingredients.

Here's how to prepare the most expensive meal in the world! While millions of people do not have enough to eat, the price of certain foods equivalent to a car or a precious stone seems indecent.

Those who can afford them are willing to spend a fortune to obtain them. You will notice that Japan is a land of overpriced ingredients.

Pata negra from Spain Almas caviar from Iran Romanée-Conti bottle from Burgundy saffron fugu Matsutake mushroom watermelon Densuke Yubari melon and Kobe beef from Japan White truffle from Italy swallow's nest and Da Hong Pao tea from China Kopi coffee Luwak and black chicken from Indonesia here is the shopping list.

Don't look at the expense and good tasting!

1) Saffron

This red-orange spice is the most expensive in the world. It is an ancient spice that is worth more than gold itself. Prices for 500 grams start at 2,000 dollars or 1,778 euros and can climb beyond 8,000 euros! The price is explained by the fact that the flower that produces the spice blooms only once a year and is very labor intensive to cultivate. It takes nearly 50,000 flowers to obtain 40 grams... Fortunately, we only use a pinch to enhance our dishes!

2) Pata negra ham in Spain

It is in Andalusia and Extremadura that we find the best ham in the world: Iberian ham from black pig farming (the famous pata negra). For a total guarantee of quality, ask for the cinco jotas label from the Sanchez Romero Carvajal brand (Osborne group). The prices are high because it is truly a luxury product! Pillar of regional gastronomy, dozens of Iberian hams hang above the counters, notably at Jabugo, the temple of ham. There is even a ham route in the Sierra de Aracena.

3) Runaway

Fugu is a deadly food both literally and figuratively. Also called puffer fish, this tetrodotoxin-filled animal is all the rage in Japan! This chemical species with an enigmatic name attacks the nervous system and causes progressive paralysis until death. Note that there is no antidote to this poison... Restaurant owners preparing this dangerous dish must obtain a special license from the Japanese government. That's why it's not cheap: count 50 euros minimum or even several hundred euros in some restaurants in Tokyo. Enjoy at your own risk!

4) Alba white truffle

Everyone knows the Périgord black truffle, the luxury mushroom for gourmets. The most expensive variety remains by far the white truffle of Alba, a small village in Italy which is distinguished by its scent of wild garlic. The kilo reaches 2,500 euros!

5) Matsutake Mushroom

In the same line as the Italian white truffle we find the Japanese mushroom called Matsutake. This variety grows under pine trees hence its nickname pine mushrooms and has a unique flavor. Very rare it is nicknamed King Matsutake or the King of Mushrooms and is priced at 2,000 dollars per kilo or around 1,700 euros!

6) Densuke Watermelon

In the land of the rising sun, watermelons are rare! The watermelon variety called Densuke is only grown in Japan on Hokkaido. The greenhouse and labeled cultivation of this watermelon with its black skin and rough rind only yields 60 to 65 watermelons per year, hence its exorbitant price of 1,000 euros per kilo! A Densuke watermelon was sold for 9,300 euros at an auction in 2014!

7) Kobe beef

These Japanese are definitely the kings of high prices! Kobe beef is a breed of beef raised only in Japan. The animal receives a special treatment that results in the most tender meat in the world. It will take 2,500 euros for the top of the range... Its export being prohibited, it will have to be tasted in Japan!

8) Yubari melon

The Yubari melon comes from a crossing of several seeds. It is cultivated with great care and has a sweet and very fresh taste. On average, the Yubari melon sells for 30 euros each, but at auction a pair of this variety was sold in 2008 for 22,872 dollars!

9) Almas caviar

Caviar is already a particularly expensive and refined dish. But Almas caviar, which means diamond in Russian, is the most expensive in the world. It comes from Iran and was served in the shah before the Islamic Revolution of 1979. It comes from the Iranian Beluga fish, an albino sturgeon from the Caspian Sea whose price can reach more than 18,300 euros per kilo or 37 euros per spoon. The box containing the fish eggs is obviously a golden box...

10) Da Hong Pao tea

This premium tea grown in China is highly prized due to the legend surrounding it. The story goes that during the Ming Dynasty a magistrate fell ill and miraculously recovered after drinking a few sips of Da Hong Pao tea literally: Big Red Robe. This prestigious oolong tea from the Wuyi Mountains 1,250,000 dollars per kilo anyway..

11) Black Chicken

Ayam Cemani chicken literally all black chicken originated from the island of Java in Indonesia. With the exception of his blood everything is absolutely black from his feathers to his flesh through his tongue and his organs! Extremely rare, this breed of poultry costs the handsome sum of 2,000 euros!

12) Kopi Luwak Coffee

Originally from Indonesia, this coffee is the most expensive in the world! At 1,000 dollars per kilo, the coffee beans are given to an Asian civet, the luwak, which ferments them in its stomach and then defecates them. It's all this rather special preparation work that would give this apparently exquisite taste.

13) Swallow's Nest

Swallow's nests are very popular in China and sell for exorbitant prices. Actually made by swifts they are made from an edible slime. The latter is highly sought after by Asian countries for its medicinal properties. At a rate of 4,500 euros per kilo, the nests are nicknamed the “eastern caviars”.

14) A bottle of Romanée-Conti

The Côte de Nuits vineyard in Burgundy, Romanée-Conti, produces one of the best wines in the world and certainly the most expensive, in particular because of the very small size of the estate. The average price per bottle is 13,000 euros but can reach 59,000 euros depending on age.