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There is nothing better than bringing culinary treasures home with you from foreign countries.
One of the regions that have a lot to offer for this purpose is the Mexican province of Oaxaca.
Here things come on the table that we in Europe would rather locate in the feed department of a pet shop: spiders, ants or grasshoppers are part of every traditional meal.
And while tarantula tacos are only partially suitable as souvenirs, small, crispy roasted grasshoppers are the perfect disgust and horror souvenir for those who stayed at home.
Locusts are called
chapulines
in Mexico
and are a very popular snack.
They are also used in various traditional dishes.
The creatures end up as a crunch on the obligatory guacamole, sometimes they are also incorporated into the fish dish ceviche, rolled into tacos and served with the sauce called “mole”.
Even for the inexperienced palate, they taste more like triple-fried bacon than crawling animals.
Grasshoppers are breeding animals
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Food made from insects has been popular as a meat alternative and a newfangled protein snack for several years.
The protein content of insects is similar to that of beef, chicken or pork, but they can be bred in large quantities in a small space and with comparatively low water consumption and CO2 emissions.
The insects for sale in Oaxaca are mostly raised specifically for consumption.
Often, however, they are also caught in the wild with nets.
Depending on which plants they feed on, grasshoppers have completely different tastes.
For example, they should taste much more bitter in the barren mountainous regions than in other regions.
Small chocolate snack: Chapulines are used in many ways
Source: Getty Images
Insects used to be a staple food for the Aztecs.
They did not know the livestock that lived with us;
They met their need for animal protein with armadillos, crocodiles, iguanas and other native wild animals.
The word "chapulín" comes from the Aztec language
,
which roughly translates as: "insect that bounces like a rubber ball".
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The chapulines season lasts from spring to autumn.
Usually they're blanched, then deep-fried or pan-fried and flavored with salt, lime, chilli, and garlic before being put up for sale in large baskets in Oaxaca's state markets.
Mexican delicatessen
The perfect place for insect shopping is the Sunday market in Tlacolula, a small town around 30 kilometers south of Oaxaca City.
Magnificently dressed Indian women come here from the villages in the surrounding area.
Some of them wear checked skirts in a tartan pattern with brightly colored floral scarfs, others have finely woven silk scarves artfully wrapped around their heads.
The whole market is a cheerful homage to colors and patterns of all kinds.
If you can't make it to Mexico: We now also offer chapulines in delicatessen shops specializing in Mexican food.
So you can get used to the food of the future in peace and quiet.