A Japanese author behind an insect recipe book says that spiders are his favourite dish.
Julian Ryall, The Telegraph 24 Oct 08;
"In order to get 1 kg of beef, we have to raise cows on huge areas of land and give them many more kilos of fodder before they are ready to be slaughtered," he said. "Insects eat the things that humans don't and can be kept in much smaller spaces.
The onset of autumn in Japan means that spiders are presently Shoichi Uchiyama's preferred insect dish, gently boiled and served on a bed of rice. The meat, he said, is soft and reminiscent of simmered soy beans.
"Domestic spiders are large at this time of year and the females are carrying their young in their stomachs, so they're both tasty and healthy," said Mr Uchiyama, who has published a book of 79 insect recipes.
But of the 1,000 or so insects from around the world that are considered edible - most of which Mr Uchiyama has sampled - his favourite are spring cicada larvae.
"They have a slightly nutty flavour, but the texture when you bite into the body is like that of a good prawn," he said.
Mr Uchiyama traces his interest in insect cuisine to his boyhood in the northern prefecture of Nagano, where shops would sell bags of grasshoppers cooked in sake, soy sauce and sugar. Now 58, he believes insects can be the healthy and nutritious answer to the world's growing food shortages.
"In order to get 1 kg of beef, we have to raise cows on huge areas of land and give them many more kilos of fodder before they are ready to be slaughtered," he said. "Insects eat the things that humans don't and can be kept in much smaller spaces.
"Most importantly, insects are very nutritionally balanced, have little fat and are the perfect food source."
Insects have been eaten for centuries, he said, with the Chinese fond of scorpions, huge spiders a delicacy in parts of South America and water bugs popular in Thailand. Although he admits that not all insects make good cuisine.
"The worst one I ate was the larvae of wood beetles, which tasted like leaf mould," he said. He also recommends that anyone trying his cockroach recipes not think about what they are eating when it is served.
To illustrate his point, Mr Uchiyama produced a selection of snacks for The Daily Telegraph to try. Giant brown Colombian ants were crunchy at first and had a roasted-nut aftertaste, while grasshoppers tasted of the soy and sugar they were cooked in. Be warned: they can leave a leg stuck between the teeth of the unwary diner.
Mr Uchiyama has baked crickets and silkworms into heart-shaped biscuits, taking the edge off the taste, but he tucked happily into a live weevil.
Trying a fat weevil, or zomushi, it wriggled on the tongue before finding its feet and starting to explore. It popped between my teeth with the slightest pressure, though it helped that it could be washed down with green tea.
"Look at all the problems we have had with traditional foodstuffs in recent years; mad cow disease, pesticides in food imported from China; processed food with high levels of fat and so on," said Mr Uchiyama.
"I'm not sure if my recipes will actually catch on, but I firmly believe they are a natural resource that benefit mankind."
Recipes
Yellow Hornet Larvae
Blanch the larvae in boiling water for 30 seconds, cool them off and serve with soy sauce and wasabi (Japanese horseradish). Mr Uchiyama says: "The larvae need to be fresh and the best ones are those that you have just taken from a nest, still moving. Then they are sweet and creamy."
Argentine Cockroach
Cut open shell, scoop out meat and fry with butter. Replace in shell to serve on top of salad. "It has no smell at all, but the texture of tender fish," says Mr Uchiyama.
Hornet or Silkworm Pupae
Fry at a high temperature for a very short time and serve wrapped in slices of "kamaboko" fish paste.
