Taco Tuesday with a Twist

  Posted on March 25, 2015  by insectrecipes  No comments

If you sauté the grasshoppers with lime and garlic, they make an excellent addition to salads, tacos, and other dishes.

It’s Tuesday night and your family is demanding Mexican food yet again. In recent weeks, you’ve been though the usual round of taco fillers: carne asada, chicken, refried beans, and even fish. Maybe it’s time to try a healthier, more authentic approach to Mexican-style cuisine. Step out of your routine, and  introduce your family to Chapulines, a delicacy from Oaxaca that’s becoming popular in the United States.

Chapulines are Mexican chapulin grasshoppers. In the late summer and early fall, agricultural workers gather them from corn, alfalfa and bean fields in the Oaxaca region. They blanch the grasshoppers, toast them, and then bag them up to ship around the world.  Chefs say that the smaller chapulines have a better taste than the larger ones.  If you sauté the grasshoppers with lime and garlic, they make an excellent addition to salads, tacos, and other dishes.

So, are you ready to introduce your family to this healthy Mexican delicacy?  Here are a few things to consider before you try chapulines.

1. You may not have to cook them yourself. If you live in a major metropolitan area, your local restaurants may be serving chapulines, at least when they’re in season. Restaurants in Washington, DC, Houston, and Los Angeles have gained national recognition for their grasshopper-inspired dishes. New York City has also become home to these delicious insects.
2. You can find them online. During the season, you may be able to purchase chapulines from online retailers and have them shipped to your home. Chefs recommend avoiding the grasshoppers when they’re out of season – they’re not as tasty, and you won’t get the full chapulines experience. If it’s the wrong time of year or you can’t find a supplier, try preparing Thai grasshoppers as if they were chapulines. The taste won’t be exactly the same, but you’ll be able to add a Mexican flair to your healthy entrees.
3. Check your suppliers carefully. When you do buy chapulines, or any grasshopper for human consumption, research your suppliers. You’ll want to avoid grasshoppers that have been exposed to pesticides. Also, find out how your supplier cooks his chapulines. While Mexican grasshoppers are normally safe, improper cooking methods can render them toxic. California suffered from an outbreak of lead poisoning after certain suppliers cooked their chapulines in pots with an unsafe lead glaze. If you can’t find chapulines that have been cooked safely, it’s better to buy live grasshoppers and to blanch and toast them yourself.
4. Be aware of your family’s allergies. Grasshoppers are very similar to their sea-dwelling arthropod cousins. That means that if you’re allergic to shrimp or lobster, you may have a severe reaction to grasshopper. If your family suffers from shellfish allergies, check with your doctor before you add chapulines to your diet.

Once you’ve acquired your Chapulines, it’s time to enjoy them. Fry them up with some garlic and lime, serve them with tortillas and sides like guacamole, sour cream, and beans, and you’ll have a feast that breaks your family free from the typical taco rut.  Let us know how it works out!