Bugs you can eat, from A to Z!
(This is a work-in-progress. Please feel free to add to it. Also, Worpress does some funky stuff with formatting this page…)
Agave worm: Also known as the maguey worm, these larvae of either the Hypopta agavis moth or the Aegiale hesperiaris are sometimes included in tequila bottles as proof of authenticity and alcohol content (tequila must be of high enough proof to preserve the worm). In Mexico, they are also eaten as part of a meal, and are highly nutritious. (Image via Ianchadwick.com)
Ant: there are several varieties of ants that are eaten: Carpenter ants, leaf-cutter ants, honeypot ants, and even lemon ants.
Honeypot ants have abdomens swollen with a nectar-like substance, which is used to feed other ants, sort of like a “living larder.” An excellent “bush food,” they are dug up from the ground and eaten raw by aboriginal peoples in Australia. (Image via Thinkquest.org)
Leafcutter ants, also known as Hormigas Culonas in Spanish (which means big-butted ant) are eaten mainly in South America. They are said to taste like a cross between bacon and pistachio, and are usually eaten toasted. In Colombia, they are sold like popcorn at movie theaters. (image via Bugman on http://www.whatsthatbug.com)
Lemon ants are found in the Amazon jungle and are said to taste like just that: lemons. (Image via http://www.learnsomethingnewtoday.us)
Bamboo worm: Often eaten fried in Thailand, they are the larvae of the Grass Moth, and eat their way through bamboo before metamorphosing. (Image via Changmai News)
Bee: Bee larvae, especially, are prized in many cultures as tasty morsels. Think about it, all they eat is royal jelly, pollen, and honey! The larvae, when sauteed in butter, taste much like mushroomy bacon. Adult bees may also be eaten, often roasted (roast bee!) and then ground into a nutritious flour. In China, ground bees are used as a remedy for a sore throat. (Image via www.weirdmeat.com)
Centipede: Most often found as a street food in China. (Image via biscuitswithhoney.blogspot.com)
Cicada: Periodical cicadas, primarily found in the Eastern US, live underground for 17 years before emerging and molting into adults. Just after they molt, they have soft, juicy bodies, and are said to be very tender and delicious. Different species of cicada are also eaten in many Asian countries, such as Japan, Thailand, and Malaysia. (Image via huntingboots.com)
Cockroach: Yes, you can eat cockroaches! Just not the ones you find around your house. Contrary to popular belief, cockroaches can actually be very clean and tasty insects, especially if they are fed on fresh fruits and vegetables. They can be eaten toasted, fried, sauteed, or boiled. Madagascar Hissing Cockroaches have a taste and texture like greasy chicken. (Image via Shoichi Uchiyama.)
Cricket: eaten fried, sauteed, boiled, and roasted, these are amongst the most common insects eaten. Eaten in Mexico, Thailand, Cambodia.
Dragonfly: eaten in Indonesia and China. Can be eaten in adult or larval form. In Indonesia, these are caught by dipping a reed in sticky palm sap and waving it through the air. Often eaten boiled or fried.
Dung Beetle: despite the strange-sounding name, dung beetles, often eaten fried, are quite tasty.
Fly pupae: the fatty acid pattern of house fly pupae (Musca domestica L.) has been found to be similar to that of some fish oils. Shaped like small red pills, the “flavor is rich with a hint of iron, sort of like blood pudding,” says David Gracer of Small Stock Foods. (image via http://www.smallstockfoods.com)
Flying Ant: Also known as Sompopos, the flying queens are collected in Guatemala and roasted on a comal with salt and lime juice. They are said to taste something like buttery pork rinds. Because of their territorial nature, flying ant queens are sometimes pitted against each other, cock-fight style. (image via antiguadailyphoto.com)
Grasshopper: in Mexico, these are eaten roasted with chile and lime, and are known as chapulines. They are high in protein and calcium. (image via FoodGal.com)
Hornworm: David George Gordon, author of The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook, says that Tomato Hornworms can be fried up much the same as the fruit of the plant on which they feed. They taste a bit like green tomatoes, shrimp, and crab.
Jumiles: also known as stink bugs. High in B vitamins, these are said to taste either bitter or like cinnamon, and may have tranquilizing and analgesic properties. Apparently, they can survive the cooking process, and thus are often eaten alive. The yearly Jumile Festival involves the eating of thousands of jumiles, and the crowning of a Jumile Queen.
June bug: June bugs (Phyllophaga) can be eaten at both the larval and adult stage. Native Americans roasted them over coals and ate them like popcorn. (Image via slice.seriouseats.com)
Locust: the locust is one of the few insects condoned by the bible. Leviticus 11:22: Even these of them ye may eat: the locust after its kind, and the bald locust after its kind, and the cricket after its kind, and the grasshopper after its kind. (image via blogjam.com)
Louse: ‘“I have seen the Cheyennes, Snakes, Utes, etc., eat vermin off eachother by the fistful,” wrote the nineteenth-century chronicler Father Pierre-Jean de Smet. “Often great chiefs would pull off their shirtsin my presence without ceremony, and while they chatted, would amuse themselves with carrying on this branch of the chase in the seams. As fast as they dislodged the game, they crunched it with as much relish as more civilised mouths crack almonds and hazel-nuts or the claws of crabs and crayfishes.” — excerpt from The Eat-A-Bug Cookbook by David George Gordon. (Image via Entnemdept.ufl.edu)
Mopane worm: largely eaten in Southern Africa, during their season, mopane worms can fetch a higher market price than beef. When dried, they are said to taste like an earthy jerky. (Image via SmallStockFoods.com)
Mealworm: Mealworms are found wherever there is, well, meal! They are the larva of the mealworm beetle. They are often prepared boiled, sauteed, roasted, or fried, and taste like a nutty shrimp.
Midge fly: in East Africa, these are pressed into 
solid blocks and cooked into Kunga Cake. (Image via Haraprasan)
Nsenene: This tasty grasshopper is a Ugandan delicacy. Usually prepared fried. David Gracer suggests that they taste like “a cross between chicken, shrimp, and croutons.” (Image via shout-africa.com)
Pill-bug: AKA sowbugs, roly-polies, woodlice, these are actually terrestrial crustaceans, closely related to lobsters, crab and shrimp. When boiled, they are said to turn red. (image via PestMall.com)
Sago grubs: the larvae of the Palm Weevil. Sago Delight, or fried Sago grubs, is a specialty in Malaysia and Indonesia. In Borneo and Papua New Guinea, they are often cooked in Sago flour, and wrapped in a Sago leaf like a tamale. They are said to taste somewhat like bacon, and are an essential source of fat. (Image via Deliciouslytasteless.com)
Silk worm: A popular dish in Korea, these are known as Bon Daegi, and are an edible byproduct of the silk-harvesting process. Image via TLC.com)
Scorpion: Often found skewered and fried in Thailand and China. Scorpions tend to have a flavor like soft-shell crab. (Image via Traveljournls.net)
Tarantula: Primarily popular as a food in Cambodia, tarantulas are high in protein, and are believed to help boost virility. They taste somewhat like an earthy crab. (Image via blog.asiantown.net)
Termite: Termites are often eaten raw straight out of the mound in places like Kenya. (Image via nationalzoo.si.edu)
Wasp: Wasps are eaten in both adult and larval stages. Boiled, sauteed, roasted and fried, they taste somewhat buttery and earthy. Emperor Hirohito of Japan favored boiled wasps with rice. (Image via yeinjee.com)
Walking stick: Eaten in Asia and Papua New Guinea, Walking Sticks taste somewhat leafy. Their legs can be used as fish hooks, says Aaron Dossey of All Things Bugs. (Image via annonces-gratuites.index-net.org)
Water Bug: AKA Toebiter, the giant water bug is popular in Thai cuisine, both c0nsumed whole (steamed or fried), and as an extract in sauces. Raw, the bugs have a scent like a green apple. Steamed, their flesh (plentiful enough to make small filets), tastes like a briny, perfumy banana/melon, with the consistency of fish. (Image via foxnews.com)
Waxworm: The larvae of the wax moth, in the wild wax worms are a parasite of bee hives. In captivity, they are fed on a diet of bran and honey. Roasted or sauteed, they taste like a cross between a pine nut and an enoki mushroom, and are high in essential fatty acids. (Image via Songbirdgarden.com)
Wichetty grub: Eaten by Aborigines in Australia, often roasted in coals or over a fire, wichetty grubs are high in protein and fat. According to Peter Menzel in Man Eating Bugs, “Witchetty grub tastes like nut-flavored scrambled eggs and mild mozzarella, wrapped in a phyllo dough pastry.” (Image via alwaysfoodie.com)
Zaza-mushi: “Zaza-mushi — zaza, the sound of rushing river water, and mushi, insect — are the larvae of aquatic caddis flies.” – Man Eating Bugs. Zaza-mushi are boiled then sauteed in soy sauce and sugar in Japan. (Image via loneleeplanet.com)
This is so exciting! I am really motivated to find edible insects and see for myself if they taste good enough to make a dietary change. I can’t wait to see your next video
)
The periodical cicada are fantastic when they emerge, and very easy to capture. They reminded me very much of soft shell crabs.
Can’t wait until 2025 when they hatch again!
Cicadas sound tasty, but I would be sad to eat one after it spent 17 years underground, only to emerge and be eaten.
Well they only live for a month above land to breed them die
I’ve been looking for a list of edible insects in the U.S. southeast as dietary supplements for the increasing failures of our food production networks that are causing serious injury and death to Americans. I think you’re doing a fantastic job and encourage you to keep it up. I’ve eaten fried grub worms in Guatemala, some meal worms and crickets here at home, but I haven’t been able to catch a locust yet ! (LOL) ! But anyway, keep fryin’ ‘em !
I’m working on native N. American edible insects. Check out our stuff at the Missouri Entomophagy group at Facebook.
Pingback: bugs to explore | herro brainmeats
hi i really like your work, keep it up!
on the other hand i have a question for you.
are stink bugs eatable? (halyomorpha halys)
Good Question!! – are halyomorpha halys edible??
Yes, stink bugs aka conifer bugs are edible. See the above example on conifer insects.
I see scorpions listed but no details. Are they eatable? Do you remove the stinger? I’ve seen the chickens eat them and the army ants here in Costa Rica devour them.
Soon i’m going to start eating bugs since most of the meats in USA are made with nasty antibiotics and hormones and i cant grow pigs,cattle or any other farm animals in my neighborhood is its better to eat some insects or guinea pigs that are small and manageable. Looking forward to read some farming tips for insects.
Love and equality for all.
I think I may starting eating the little grasshoppers that are eating most of my veges. They are small (2cm) and bright green, with stripey legs. Do I just stir fry them whole?
It would be fantasic and realy handy to have a list of these bugs with pictures and maybe a some descritions compiled in a small set of flash cards or a pocket book for camping, or just on the go meal!
Love the site!
The cicada, sometimes locally called a “Katydid”, is actually quite large as an adult. You don’t have to wait every 17 years to find one however as they don’t all go underground at the same time. There easy to find in the summer months because they leave large brown shells from molting on walls, trees, doors (most any vertical surface). I can’t wait catch a few and try them this summer!
Hey,
Fantastic site you’ve got here!
It would be great to see a breeding guide for all these bugs it’s the only real way to garauntee the absolute best quality food I think. Youtube can be ok, there are multiple guides for mealworms and waxworms etc for example.
I’m trying to come up with a way to breed house flies as they multiply like nothing else and their pupae are supposed to be very highly nutritious.
Thank you so much for taking the time to compile this list. As homeschoolers, my son and I are having a lot of fun exploring science together through edible weeds and bugs. We like the malva weed (www.squidoo.com/malva) so much we freeze and dehydrate some each year.
Now we are exploring bugs and found “Man Eating Bugs: The Art and Science of Eating Insects” by Peter Menzel and Faith D’Alusio to be an excellent resource with lots of photos and recipes.
Last summer, I encountered hornworms on tomato plants that were as big as my ring finger! Now that I know they are edible. I am gonna try them. For a good story and illustration on how to prepare them: google “Society for Culinary Arts + hornworms.”.
Currently, I am looking for bugs and weeds that would make a good-tasting bread flour. I think that will be the easiest way to encourage most of my friends and their children to give these foods a try.
I’d suggest ground dried mealworms as an additive to the flour. Ground crickets would work too–and grinding them makes them more digestible (the chitin otherwise tends to pass through the digestive tract unless it is ground.)
Baked, ground dandelion root, or cattail root are possibles, (Cattail stalk crunches like celery, and the taste is kind of peppery.)
I would NOT tell them in advance, and provide both regular and adulterated bread to see if they can tell the difference. Children generally need to be presented with a new food up to 20 times before they will try it (of course, toddlers will put anything that fits into their mouths,,,,)
I dehydrated a bunch of musk melon and water melon one year because I had extra and wanted to see how it worked. The result is incredibly sweet, and I served strips of the orange and red stuff to my daughter’s birthday party (Halloween) telling them that it was ‘dried human flesh’ and not a single kid would even taste it….
Note that a lot of kids are shocked by the idea that things growing outside can be eaten! My daughter was appalled the first time I found wild black raspberries and showed her while harvesting and eating them.
Many kids seem to have no idea where food comes from–I expect that this is true of many parents too!
Given the substantial amounts of insects eaten along with ordinary foods, it’s surprising how detestable most people in the West think that insects are to eat. Look at snails, in most US restaurants, they seem to feel that the purpose of butter & garlic is to hide the flavor of the snail rather than enhance it.
thanks for thus
Hi folks, I love eating bugs, such as crickets, grubs, mealworms, and any other edible bug. Bugs are full of protein and tasty. I gross alot of my friends out, but I eat alot of strange foods that most people wouldn’t dare eating. So next time you lift up a log and find a grub or earthworm, eat it, someday your survival might depend on it.
Anyone have a somewhat comprehensive list of known edible ant species?
Anyone try carpenter ants for instance?
Haven’t found one either…post it here if you find one.
Looking for recipes….
Pingback: A N I M A L : A COLLECTION OF
Wow I found a group of crazies!, Ok like me I must add. For you survivalist types, have you tried eating weeds. Also good to have a familiarization with these readily available food sources.
Understanding that insects were a staple for our earlier ancestors, I wanted a list of today’s insects which could be decent edibles for today’s modern man…thanks
Of interest…
I was looking at the FDA contaminate sheet and realized that there was no definition for “insect parts.”
So I called and was told “There isn’t one. It’s up to the inspector.”
So the amount of insect material in the food you eat is basically uncontrolled so long as the inspector doesn’t know/care….
So how about food that IS insects?
They’re exempt.
So, to be honest, you can figure out what percentage of your product are insects, and list them under the ingredients, and no longer be inspected….
The government allows itself to redefine common words when used in law.
Thus, a “fresh” turkey is one which hasn’t been frozen below 0F
I defy anyone to tell the difference between that and “frozen” turkey once they are both at 0F….
Oh, and those regs on insect parts & rodent hairs & various turds?
They’re aesthetic only. No health risk according to the FDA.
Omnivores. They’ll eat ANYTHING!
My best guess for ‘safe’ insects is o stay away from the brightly colored ones–which are usually advertising bad taste or death. And cook them. Microorganisms represent a larger threat than whatever toxins are in the insects…though like all new foods, try a small quantity and wait for at least 72 hours before deciding if it had adverse effects.
(Interesting that the insects most beautiful to us are advertising bad taste….)
Stinkbugs, annual cicada, hackberry butterfly larvae, giant waterbug, mayflies, tent caterpillars are a few more tried and testeds. Darkling beetles (adult mealworms) are tried and tested, too, HOWEVER, there’s some conflicting claims on their edibility.
Hey, I am looking to start breeding mealworms but don’t want the breeding beetles to go to waste. Can you tell me how they taste and how you prepared them? why is their edibility in question? thanks a bunch!
Sorry for the delay in response! I read somewhere, and I don’t remember where, that darkling beetles (adult mealworms) contain some chemical that might not be so good for ingestion. I want to find that source, so I can see just what sort of chemical it is. Sorry. I don’t remember. Other sources say they don’t know why darkling beetles (Tenebrio molitor) wouldn’t be OK to eat. BUT! The ones I did eat/prepare, amounted to nearly 2 cups-worth of ground cookie additive. I guess the flavor would be most-closely compared to adding a subtle roasted nut flavor to the cookies. I ate lots of the cookies, and unknowingly served them to many people who’d often come back for seconds and thirds. We didn’t note any ill effects.
The name of the country is spelled ColOmbia, not ColUmbia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colombia
Thanks! Edited.
Pingback: Grownups get to eat all the cool stuff « The Wish To Find Out
OK, so I live in a wacky community of people in Colorado on a lot of land. And we have a grasshopper infestation this year of biblical proportions. And I got it into my mind to push the collective envelope by cooking up a big Grasshopper Gumbo for an upcoming community meal.
Yeah, it’s that kind of place.
I’m basically going to substitute grasshopper for some of the shrimp in this recipe: http://tinyurl.com/4ygxkws
My question is how to prep the shrimp? After de-legging and winging them, Should I just throw them in the stew and let them simmer for 30-45 minutes? Or sautee them in butter first? Would like them to be not too crunchy if possible.
Thanks for the help!
Wow, what a great-sounding community. I wish I could attend that meal!
Here are two recommendations:
1. Watch this video of how they prep and eat grasshoppers in Laos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6jfcHwT5_w&feature=player_embedded#at=312
2.Check out Zack Lemann’s Grasshopper Gumbo recipe (it’s delicious!): http://www.faculty.de.gcsu.edu/~cbader/ghprecwithinsects.html
Best of luck to you!
Oh maaaannn! I missed it! I’d been hearing about the infestation for the western states and kept hoping Missouri would be among them. I collected maybe 5 cups-worth all season! Boil in favored seasoning, then lightly oil them and bake at 250 for about 2 hours. Mine didn’t get quite crisp enough that way, so I threw ‘em in a dehydrator overnight, and they got nice and light/crispy. I did June bugs in mulberry sauce, and Japanese beetles in my hot fish and rice sauce that way. They turned out great!
D-oh! Not how to prep the shrimp, how to prep the grasshoppers, natch!
I keep looking for info online if mayflies can be eaten raw. I know they are edible, but does anyone know if they can carry parasites that can transfer to humans and should therefor be cooked for safety? I just collected a decent amount, but I’m afraid that they will diminish to next to nothing if I cook them.
I have eaten several types of insects, just about threw my grandson into barfville. I told him, there may come a point in when we all will eat bugs. Meat prices are out of line and only getting worse, besides it is gross to eat! Because I have several health problems, it is important I get high protien, low fat foods, this might be the answer!
Ha! You’d think a kid would be proud of a bug-eating grandma!
Pingback: Stink Bug found in Salad | What's That Bug?
Pingback: Τρώγοντας έντομα… (Girl Meets Bug – Blog) « FUGAZI.gr
Great article with me being unemployed I now have the option to go to my backyard and dine on some fine bug cuisine. I think I will have rice and a side of waterbugs, since I find so many in my garage.
Daniella, how do we add to your list, such as annual cicadas are just as edible and lots bigger, though not hatching in such bulk as the periodicals.
Hi Paul, sorry for the late reply! Have been a busy bee. In order to add to the list, if possible please email a photo with a short blurb (as above) with your name and photo credit (as above). When I have time, I’ll add it in to the list, crediting you of course!
Wow, Cool list, never knew there were soo many edible bugs out there.
P.s. I think you picture is depicting centipedes on skewers, not millipedes. Happy munching!
Right you are! I changed it.
I grew up in Australia, so I’m used to idea of people eating honey ants and witchetty grubs. I’ve travelled a lot, and lived in Asia.
And I still say “Bleuuuch”. You eat all the bugs you want to. I’ll stick to MacDonalds, like nature intended.
Wow, McDonalds? I don’t even consider McDonalds food. You need to watch the documentary Super-Size Me.
I’ve never eaten insects knowingly (yet!), but I have to say, they sound much more attractive than McDonalds as a food source to me.
Same here, Dave. I stopped eating McDonalds years ago.
Pingback: Bugged By Diets « The Meandering Matriarch
I’ve had pondegi (silkworm grubs) in Korea; they weren’t to my taste, but anyone curious can easily find them canned in Asian (or at least Korean) markets. In one awesome Chinese market in San Jose CA, I saw massive bags of frozen grubs, but I’m not certain what they were.
Oh, please tell me/us which market! It’s likely they were also bon daegi, actually – the fresher, frozen version, much like frozen shrimp or the like. I’m with you, though, they aren’t my favorite either. However, in the past my opinions have been changed with the right preparation…
Pingback: Social Location « socl120
http://importfood.com/thai_insects.html
Pingback: Eat more bugs? « twiddlebugs
Well…don’t know about you Ozzies, but the regulations on insects & pieces & fragments in the USA for food products are ‘esthetic only’ rules, and there is no definition of ‘insect fragments’ other than “It’s up to the individual inspector.”
Any processed food, including McD’s ‘food-like substances,’ and nearly 100% of raw foods, contain a substantial portion of insects….
Enjoy your ‘Big Mac’….
Well, I’ve heard that the early mammals were insectivores. I guess we could return to our ancestral ways if we had to.
love chilli crickets & mexican escamoles… this ones are like larvae of ants and taste great sautee in butter with onions– was a prehispanic royal meal!
in addition I go 4 the cause for future foods like chia seed and soy.
just now considering eating bugs to survive,dont think i can eat anything to do with a fly though.
I wish this was the menu at a restaurant that I owned.
So! whet else would you put on the menu?
.
Recopies folks!!
Pingback: I, eye, aye, Italian insects « WomanNeverSleeps
I don’t see why marmorated stink bugs wouldn’t be edible. I eat the green and brown ones so common in my area. Marmorateds might be more aromatic and stronger flavored, from what I’ve read. Cooking reduces the scent, as well as making the flavor less chemical. Eating them live tends to motivate them to employ all their defenses, making them QUITE flavorful.
If you’re already eating them, they’re edible.
Very few things are truly inedible to humans compared with those which we omnivoures can and will eat.
This is forecast to be a poor crop season world-wide, we may all be eating insects due to a lack of options soon….
Honey bee is most benefit for humans.
Crickets, katydids and June beetles have a nice flavor, and curly dock seeds and foxtail grass seeds should grind up nicely for flour.
catail, corn & other pollens make good flour…but you’ll need to add levening…chocolate sweet ground bug, pollen, & seed cookies using baking powder! Chocolate hides color differences well. Also, choc chips in or on top, or dried fruits, nuts…
Adter they like them, teach them to make them…then ask the to think of things to add or put on top like: whole dried bugs mixed in or a bug stuck on top of each one…
have to fiddle for a recipes after checking the internet for recipies using pollen & seeds as flour.
WARNING! Naming them is important…I dried strips of cantelope & other melons and presented them to my 12 yo girl’s Halloween party, but they refused to try them after I introduced them as ‘dried people strips’ even after I explained and ate several (way…sweet!) If even one had tasted them, they’d of eaten them all…I know better now.
Even with adults, where we’ve used flour w/ weevils for cinnimon buns after people devoured them and loved them, they’d stop when told there were insects…sugh, cultural conditioning.
On the other hand, 2 & 3 yo kids will put anything tht fits in their mouths–they’d continue eat bugs except that insted of teaching them which bugs and specifics about things like removing sharp bits. If they’ve been eating the stuff all along & liking it, the gross-out factor is gone.
Since there are, in fact, insects in every bakery product they eat already, all you’re really doing is being up front about it, and increasing the quantity! Everyone eats insects every day w/o knowing it….
Introduction to their friends is importaasnt too, as their friends will probably have been trained not to eat bugs. Parents can be dealt with by quoting the FDA regs, and what child won’t dare their parents to try something the kid likes!
this is sick>>>>>>>>NASTY BUGS
just playin
Pingback: Pork prohibited not only for muslims - Page 3 - Religious Education Forum
Gross
Are Tent Caterpillars edible?
Yes, but “edible” doesn’t necessarily mean “good”. I tried a few times and was never successful scorching off the hairs. Bagworms, hard as they are to extract from their cases, are quite good!
the picture placed for nsenene actually shows centipedes although the correct photo of nsenene is placed lower down this can be confusing to a reader who has never seen nsenene kindly make the correction and edit the photos
cathy – good eye! Edited.
Tonight there was a big grasshopper that got into in my kitchen. I have read a lot and seen plenty of videos about edible insects, and was curious to see how it tasted, so I grabbed it, put it in a ziploc bag in the freezer for a half hour, then fried it in olive oil and sprinkled some salt. I removed the end of the legs and the wings, and got to say it was very tasty – nice and crispy! Wish I had a few dozen more! The only problem was that the moisture in it made the grease splatter.
Centipedes in general: Are they edible?
When you fix grasshoppers or crickets, don’t forget their drumsticks! I usually boil before I cook them again for serving. Right after boiling, take the drumsticks and bit the tip off the thick end of the hind jumping leg and squeeze the meat out with your teeth. There’s a fairly sizable chunk there, and it’s pretty tasty.
I thought this article was fairly interesting, wouldn’t mind trying a grasshopper or two
I have eaten grubs in hard woods,raw just bight the hard head of and eat the inside mush>tasted like a sweet corn.When eating grasshoppers tear the head off, it will come out wit all the guts that may harbor parasites.
>that brings me to the questions.They all may be edible, but what cautions one have to take to not get sick?
Hi David,
Yes, as I’ve mentioned several times on this blog, it is always safest to cook your meat (esp. if it is bushmeat, like your wild-caught grubs and grasshoppers). Insects, like other animals, can indeed harbor the unexpected. This is why, for hundreds of years, man has cooked his bugs: roasted them over a fire or in coals, boiled and then sun-dried, etc. I recommend boiling, sauteeing until firm, or baking until crunchy. Best of bug luck to you!
“Is _____ edible?”
You are an omnivore. You can eat nearly anything if yuou can fit it intoour digestive system.
There are a number of things which may require pre-treatment for safety–though far more require it for palatability or efficiency in extraction of nutrients.
The most common pre-treatment is cooking, which breaks down many larger toxins, and which enables nutrients to be more easily extracted.
Generally, venomous species should have venom removed before consumption (though many venoms are dangerous only when input directly into the bloodstream, being neutralized by the acid then alkaline treatment of the stomach and small intestine.
AOf course, ANY normally edible material can contain toxins or disease organisms which are not normally found there.
Many toxins are not particularly harmful in small doses, though they may alter your reality experience (remember, reality is in your brain.) For instance, bamboo caterpillars are perfectly edible…but hallucinogenic if you fail to remover their guts.
Rye ergot in small amounts is not dangerous, but again, can vastly change your reality–which may or may not be dangerous.
At one point or another, humans have attempted to eat nearly all life forms we know of–if only out of extreme need for nutrition.
Safety is also variable dependent upon the individual, their environment, their ancestry and many other factors–and such things are not frozen.
You can develop an allergic reaction to anything–even things you’ve consumed all of your life. By the same token, such reactions may diminish or fluctuate over time (as a child I was unable to drindk cow’s milk, and drank soy milk, by the time I can remember (around 4,) This was no longer the case, and for many years I could and did drink as much as a gallon a day with no problems (except my mother’s internal wince of anticipation when she saw me.)
With insects, it’s a good precaution to remove things like legs and pointy hard portions, as they seldom contain much nutrition, and can be physically dangerous. Removing guts and venom sacs will avoid many problems with disease, parasites and toxins.
Note that taste is not a reliable indicator! One of the latest mushroom poisoning victims in the past decade stated before dying that “they were the best tasting mushrooms,’ he’d ever had.
The easiest way to determine potential edibility is to research and see if there are any past or present humans who devour the item. Anthropology departments are good sources for this information.
A great many other mammals diets include substantial amounts of insects, bears, cats, dogs and other small carnivorous or omnivorous animals are opportunistic eaters, and will grab the odd bug if available, others search them out. None have precisely the same biology as ourselves, so any other species is only a semi-reliable indicator of toxicity.
My advice regarding untried specimens is to do research, if possible by library or other humans, if not, find yourself a ‘Little Mikey’ who will eat ANYTHING, and monitor his health for several days. (food poisoning in general often takes 24-72 hours, and can, in some cases, take much longer. Always start with small quantities and long monitoring periods. Even things which are safe, may not be safe in large amounts.
And remember, it may be o.k. for ‘Little Mickey,’ and not for you!
Pingback: Saving the Environment One Cockroach at aTtime! - Turning the Clock Back
Ew!
Last i heard you need to roast/ cook grasshoopers. Do not eat raw.
Like most things, preparation is optional, though everything from safety to flavor and texture are affected.
One reason turkey was poorly accepted in Japan for decades was that raw turkey has even less flavor than roasted turkey.
There are a great many different ways to prepare any food–raw has always been an option, although we have been cooking, pickling, smoking, drying and such for thousands of years.
While raw grasshoppers are not recommended, the more important thing for such exoskeleton critters is the removal of sharp pointy exoskeleton bits like legs, which can and will cause physical distress.
Please note that while raw is a possible form, it is seldom the recommended form to eat anything. Sushi is not particularly safe either, like most critters, fish carry parasites both visible and invisible, most of which are rendered much safer through some form of cooking. Even fruits and vegetables should have their outer skins removed or cleaned before eating.
But there’s no reason that insets can’t be prepare safely by acid treatment (marinaded in citric juices or vinegar,) smoked, dried, deep-fried, roasted or prepared in any of a number of different methods.
I’m not eager to to try the half-gestated duck eggs foisted upon foreigners and drunks in Singapore, but so far as I know they aren’t particularly dangerous to eat, despite their lack of preparation.
No matter what you you eat, or where you eat it, or how carefully it has been prepared, you are almost certain to consume live microorganisms, insects, hairs, scales, molds, mildews, yeasts, fecal matter, dirt, sand, toxins and metal particles along with your food. For the most part, these are consumed in small enough quantities that your digestive and immune system can easily deal with the threats they represent, and most of us can go our entire life unaware of the variety and quantities we consume.
If truly concerned about health safety issues, you should never walk barefoot or travel in cities wearing flip-flops, as they will expose your feet to injury and infection….eating food from street vendors is also statistically quite dangerous…but none of these things are very likely to result in you even getting ill, even if you have a compromised immune system. Merely associating with large numbers of people can be dangerous—but so can avoiding these things, and not eating at all is definitely fatal.
No matter how good our medicine gets, you will die–you cannot avoid it, and you can only spend so much energy staying safe before the effort of doing so leads to your death.
Try grasshoppers sauteed in sesame seed oil…..
You will never find a boyfriend.
You mean besides my existing boyfriend, who helps me invent and test bug recipes?
You have a loved one who does that for you?
That’s amazing. I wouldn’t be surprised if you two are married by now. 
I live in Asia, in Cambodia, and I taste some of them.. my favorite is silkworm. But I eat like starter not like main dishes. hi hi hi
Pingback: What Google doesn’t know | Where Did All The Good Times Go?
Pingback: Zombie Prep Tip Of the Day: Food Is Everywhere « You'd Only Slow Me Down
Thank you so much for this list! If/When “teotwawki” or the shtf, it’s nice to know there are alternatives to our traditional western diet.
Just an awesome site! Love it! I love trying new things, but wonder if anyone would really eat the American Cockroach – those have such an off-putting odor. I ate some of their fecal pellets and chewed into one by accident and could not imagine ever willingly putting them in my mouth.
dang no flies??????
Are corn earworms edible? They’re always plentiful in sweet corn.
I believe so, though I’ve yet to try one. Julieta Ramos-Elorduy, in Creepy Crawly Cuisine, says they taste like corn on the cob! http://books.google.com/books?id=Q7f1LkFz11gC&lpg=PP1&dq=recipes%20insects&pg=PA15#v=onepage&q=recipes%20insects&f=false
Yes, of course, I forget my source, but some native Americans even considered it a special bonus to get worms with the corn.
Wow. Kinda speechless.I am from nigeria in west africa, and trust me our dishes are mostly leafy not insects,so all these things look very strange and some unthinkable. I would call this my 11th wonder of the world.
hey check ou this list http://www.ent.wur.nl/NR/rdonlyres/43E83A3F-F469-4E7E-BDC6-3963DC906A1F/162423/Worldlistofedibleinsectspecies42012.pdf
sorry about the long link.
Gee whizz, this sure is swell. Next time I’m about to eat a fruit, a confirmed and internationally accepted nutricious food, I’m gonna toss it and eat an insect, because that makes sense……..nutjob
Actually, it could make sense, depending on what nutrients you were looking for. If you were going for protein, say, or iron, then yes, the insects might be the better option.
But in general, while edible insects are also a “confirmed and internationally accepted nutritious food,” no one is suggesting you should toss your fruit. Those promoting awareness of edible insects seek largely to add to, rather than subtract from our global nutrition options. Why limit ourselves by excluding a logical, historic, nutritious, tasty and sustainable alternative?
No need to toss the fruit, you already eat plenty of insects…and thre are probably some in the fruit.
The US AG DEPT rules on insects in food are ‘esthetic’ and the limits on ‘insect parts’ don’t really exist, as that is up to the inspector, which usually means ‘didn’t see m any, it’s clean.’ How visible are ground insect parts in , say, salsa?
I’d looked at raising insects as food additive/flavorings, but found that they’re far more profitable to raise as pharmaceutical precursors, pet food and fish bait…
What I’m searching for is something that will eat fish guts and can in turn be eaten by fish for fish farms. Fish farms feed manufactured food mad from…wild-caught fish, ad the feed is by far the most expensive part of the process. In theory, fish food could be made of offal on the farms, in fact, the process doesn’t scale down well and most arms pass their offal on to pig farms.
Pingback: Teaching Your Child to Survive Outdoors | Top Secret Writers
I hope i can taste june bug and also wonder where i can buy them in what season.
Pingback: How To Eat a Live Bug « vsvevg
I was Wondering what type of cricket is edible and where I can purchase them live. I would like to raise my own as an alternative food source. Thanks and God bless.
June Bugs. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_bug
In season, they swarm, and collecting large numbers is not difficult. If truly large numbers are needed, recruit children & pay by volume or mass.
So far as I know, all crickets are edible, the easiest to find are at pet store or on line, and once you have some, raising them is trivial (though they can be annoyingly noisy.)
Be careful when eating anything with sharp points like cricket legs & such.
Bugs can be pureed and incorporated into other dishes as desired.
Cooking is optional, but recommended for all bugs, especially wild-caught.
Bugs, like snails, can be ‘cleaned’ by holding them for a couple days and feeding them clean feed…depending upon what they’ve been eating this can make either no or a large difference.
You can also adjust flavors by feeding flavored feed for awhile just before preparing them for consumption.
Junebugs (and other bugs, too) are excellent marinated in a favorite sauce, then dehydrated ’til crispy. My favorite sauce is sweet, hot and spicy, with an Asian bite. Dehydrated or roasted crispy bugs chew lots more easily than when cooked other ways.
That sounds yummy!
Looks like an earlier comment didn’t post. Here’s a re-attempt: Kingsurvived, I’ve not yet found a cricket that can’t be eaten. I commonly eat field, house, tree and camel/cave crickets. Field and house crickets are easy to find at bait and pet stores, and I catch my own tree crickets from foliage (sweeping with nets) and camel crickets by hand in my basement and back porch. Also, hunt grasshoppers bu flashlight on cool nights. They pick almost as easily as berries.
Daniella, can I post a plug for our Facebook group?
Sure!
Hey, I have eaten normal black ants before. They taste like pepper. Also mountain ants, as I know them, taste like lemon.
I really like bugs, but eat them?
I’m an Exterminator Yuba City and I have to say that this is the coolest blog article that I have ever came across. It shows how much time you put into this post. I will definitely have to put a link to this post on my site if that’s alright. I just think that my customers would get the biggest kick out of edible insects.
Thanks for the awesome post!
I really like steers, deer, pigs. But I love tenderloin of any of them too:>P
Which is stranger? To like bugs? Or to eat bugs? We’re omnivores. soon as we move, like most lifeforms, we start ticking whatever we run into into our mouths to see if it’s food or not.
Until we are sane in energy harvesting, feed/resources to protein ratio will remain vital in feeding our population. Insects do 1:1 but perhaps bacteria can do better yet. Bugs have the advantage of being a 1 or many cycle system…you can always change the qualities of a protein in exchange for increased energy/resource input.
I haven’t seen any studies, but one would think that feeding grain mixed with larva to poultry would produce a different sort of chicken than grain alone.
Of course, increasingly it seems that what you eat may control your behavior in quite complex fashion…a change in diet, or even a change in the environment producing a food can have behavioral changes in complex mammals–potentially displayed for 7 or more generations after exposure. These later appear to be semi-permanent genome expressions.
Even tiny amounts of specific molecules, on up through parasites you can see naked eyed, can exert tremendous control upon behavior, or even physical characteristics, we are, individually and as a group, in essence, run by a committee of lifeforms ranging from unliving to the Universe itself. All truly is connected…and we are largely ignorant of how those links function, nor how to best use them to maintain the system in a more or less stable balance because it would make things convienent. We’re clever. We’ll figure it out baring major disaster. We cannot be said to have free-will until we understand the mundane physical realities that these mechanisms function. Though perhaps, to understand would be to become one with god and the universe.
We may be unique. Everything we ever were can be destroyed in an eye–blink. But we are life, and we represent chaos out order, and purpose to events.
C’mon out to Facebook’s “Missouri Entomophagy” group https://www.facebook.com/groups/118150804885025/ We talk edible bugs there, too!
I am so glad I found this blog just now!
I have to say first that I have a really hard time with people who say you will never find a boyfriend (and I see you have one – and with brains like yours it’s no surprise!), or that you’re a nutjob, etc. Wow. Really? Insects – why are they any different from, say, shrimp, crabs, etc? They’re “odd looking” too, but I personally think they’re delicious, and people pay plenty to get them from the market all the time. Actually, I have a really hard time with people who say “Ew!” like an obnoxious kid but they’re in fact, a chronological adult. (I hear that a lot when raw fish is talked about, too – “Ew!”) Food choices are very personal – so get over it. I personally think a lot of common, processed “foods” are disgusting – and will not prepare them for my family or eat them myself – but I am not going to squeal “Ew!” like a rude person. It’s your choice, right?
Anyway, excellent article, great info, and great info in the comments section (minus the obnoxious older “children,” of course). My daughter – she’s 9 – is all for our trying some insects. My husband is supportive, although he’s not sure he’ll try them, and that’s OK. I think we’re most interested in trying some of the Mexican-style recipes we’ve seen the most often, although I saw someone mention a preparation using fish sauce and chilies, and that’s a favorite combination at my house, so who knows?!
Thanks so much for the food for thought!
Sounds like your husband is like my wife. She tolerates my entomophagy and says, If things get really bad, I know we won’t starve, but ’til then… The most fun I have with ento-cuisine is at public programs like with our MO Dept of Conservation, Scout groups, public libraries and schools. You might like Our Facebook group, Missouri Entomophagy. We stay pretty active there, too.
Paul, I requested to join Missouri Entomophagy last night, and was very warmly welcomed!
I tried to look up sources for the maguey “worm” last night and can’t find a way to get them sent to me (live). I might try some other work soon, but since I am in Western New York (so, cold and snowy for many months), I may wait until closer to spring time when the shipping weather is a bit more tolerable…
Pingback: Micro-Livestock: Why More Preppers Should Consider Farming Insects - SchemaByte
Nsenene from Uganda is one of the best tasty insect u will ever have tasted some while I was down on a holiday and left me waning more
I was just breaking up some wood for my grandma and found a grub Worm. Little while later what out and found a lago grub bout 5″ long and as big around as my finger. Interesting bug, planning on eating it.
These actually sound very tasty, provided that I could get over my “ick, I’m eating a bug!” fear. I’d probably have to pull the wings off too, it seems like they’d get caught in my teeth.
Don’t worry about the wings, but if you’re squeemish about parts, you might like to break off legs or wing covers.
Pingback: Edible Insects? | Noah's Ark
Could you tell me any websites where I can buy some bugs? It’s just in the uk people never really eat bugs and I wana try it out!
We’ve got a group member in UK who just ordered some edible insects and was quite pleased with her purchase. I sent you a Facebook message, I think, –if I got the right person. It’s got the link to our ento-group. If you didn’t get the message, get back to me.
I ate an ant! it didnt taste to bad. It’s a good start to eating instects. It tasted like a peanut! I was astounded by the phenomenal manifestation of deliciousness!
Pingback: List of Edible Insects | veilleagrosupdijon
Remember that raw isn’t necessrily good.
Google ‘fish bait’ and ‘reptile bird pet food’ to find insects for eating and raising.
Waxworms are particularily easy to raise and to prepare.
With wild insects it might be a good idea to ‘cleanse’ them the way you would snails for a day using known feed.
Cooking is always a good idea, but particularly important for water bugs.
‘AN ant?’ And there was enough to taste….Bigger rather than smaller ant I guess. Avoid live fire ants….
Caught a solid 8 oz of pillbugs. Man, they were good! Crunchy as all get outta town(hard to not eat the shell), but were really tasty! Like overly sweet lobster to me. Even steamed em and served em with lemon butter. Got the parents to try a bite, and while grossed out, they loved it!
Love it!
I just fried an ate a bee that came through the window
Pingback: What’s for dinner?! | It's a Beetleful World!
hi
i am liudong
we are insect farmer from china , we can offer you many insects
edible and dried or fried
if you are intested in , pls contact me liudongray@msn.com
and also you can order some sample
I am interested in wondering if any of these insects can be eaten raw/uncooked, other than the ones some have said. I’m trying to make up a list of random insects for a book I’m writing. (The character is doing a survival test, in a country I made up; hence the random list.)
I just wanted to say that I think you are doing great work Daniella! I raise my own mealworms, eat ants, junebugs, grasshoppers, cicadas, and earthworms. I am branching out to other species as well. My husband finally is starting to try some recipes, and has been supportive the whole time. We had already caught and cooked fish, crawdads, and lobster for several years, and harvested wild plants every year prior to eating insects. They’re tasty, readily available, more nutritious than the pesticide ridden, genetically modified crap, free, and renewable! Amazing site, and thanks again
We’d be happy to have you over at our Facebook group, Missouri Entomophagy.
Aliqua:
Most survival manuals strongly recommend cooking insects from the water, though most dry land insects aren’t as likely to carry harmful microrganisms.
If your are truly in a survival situation….well, everything you eat should be ground or chewed throughly to enable your stomach acids to help reduce infection risks and extract maximum food value.
With some insects (and other animals) you need to be concerned about parasites too.
In general, cooking is recommended as a precaution–how much that precaution is needed varies with location and species.
Note that some things are toxic without cooking, and even professionals have difficulty telling larva/maggots of differing species apart.
Thank you so much, Chuck. You helped me a lot.
Aquatics often taste like their water. Make sure it the cleanest of water. The mousie grubs i ate tasted fairly nasty.
A good choice with aquatics is to ‘cleanse’ them by giving them some time in clean water before cooking.
I have a question I live in Kansas and I love catching scorpions bark scorpions and I have decided to try eating them so tonight I froze them fried them and dipped them in chocolate is this safe
Shouldn’t be a safety problem.
Pingback: When food is needed and survival is on the line, eat a bug. | Geekation, Geeks go here
Do vegetarians eat bugs?
Do vegans eat bugs?
Todd, if you eat, you eat bugs. It’s impossible to avoid it.
I like Chuck’s answers, but try the scorpions simply fried –without the chocolate. You can make anything taste good in chocolate. Might break off the stingers, too.
Yeah, breaking off the sharp bits is usually a good idea.
In general, before doing a great deal to anything before eating it, it’s a good idea to try it done as simply as possible…if only to get a good idea of what will go well with it’s natural flavor (thhere was a bit in the Inscect Newsletter stating that ‘insects are largely flavorless and take on the flavor what they are cooked with.’ I assume it was a misquote…since most things seem to have quite distinct flavors according to my experience and everyone I’ve heard.
Scorpions are pretty mild.
and simmered, then dehydrated, squash bugs are excellent with no flavoring at all.