Jiminy Crickets!!

To most of us in the 20’s-30’s age range, weekends are a time to do stupid stuff.  Stupid, weird, bonkers, ill-advised stuff.  We go wild!  Like, really wild!  Like, eating bugs wild!

Well, don’t you?

It all started with a conversation between my boyfriend and his roommate about eating bugs.  No stranger to bug-eating, my boyfriend then ordered, off Amazon, 500 live crickets.  I know what you’re thinking, ladies, but HANDS OFF, he’s all mine, and I’m damn lucky to boot. 

His roommate cooked them three ways, pausing each time to sample the newest “batch.”  Pan-seared and crunchy, I was a little hesitant myself at first.  I’ve eaten escargot many times, but that’s a different texture entirely!  How would it be???

Well, lightly salted and crunchy, like chickpeas.  They also, we agreed, tasted somewhat like the kernal-heavy popcorn at the bottom of the bag.  Crunchy.  As you would expect.  But with legs.  I availed myself of the spicy aioli that was made specifically to accompany the crickets, and we ate them with chopsticks (as you can see) to be classssy.

1.) How great is this shot?

2.) How cute is my boyfriend?

3.) Would you dare?

If you do, we (and by “we” I largely mean my boyfriend’s roommate, seen in the background above, who was a Master Chef of bug-cooking) recommend a mixture of coconut oil and ghee to cook in.  The tastiest batch was the last one, with hot peppers, rice vinegar, fish sauce, and a last-minute squeeze of lime over the top.  They do benefit from a minute of “cooling” to crisp up, and be sure to have a beverage ready to wash down those legs I AM NOT KIDDING HERE.

You’re probably thinking, “I would have to be pretty drunk to eat a bug.”  Well, for my part, I would like to add that I entered into this endeavor stone-cold sober (thanks, antibiotic I’m taking!) and don’t regret it one bit.  They were just fine!  I could see these being a nice crunch on top of a salad, or dusted with spicy seasonings as part of a Chex mix type snack.  Next time, we’re experimenting with cutting-edge cricket flour, which works 1:1 like regular flour in recipes!  Hello, cricket pizza crust!  Cricket cupcakes!  I’m stoked for cricket madeleines!

Would you dare eat a cricket?  How about cricket flour?  What creative cricket creations should we bake next time??