Yum. Cicada Recipes for this summer's cicada apocalypse!
Jun 5, 2021 00:42:40 #
The 17-year cicadas have started to emerge from their underground homes and, soon, billions of them will be crawling, flying, and creating their tedious droning noise 24 hours a day.
While snacking on a cicada may not be your idea of a delicious treat, they're high in protein, low-fat, low-carb, gluten-free and, over the course of the next several weeks, will be plentiful and fairly easy to forage. The clock is ticking, though.
People are grilling, sauteeing, and serving up cicadas, called Brood X, this summer. Early morning is the ideal time to collect them.
Millions if not trillions of cicadas are taking over some areas of the eastern United States for the first time in 17 years, and will not appear again until 2038. While annoying, loud, and intrusive to some, others have waited almost two decades for this tasty treat, and they are reveling in their cicada recipes.
With approximately 1.5 million of them per acre, there's plenty to pass around the table to guests, or for a snack, maybe as Spicy Popcorn Cicadas or Cicada Cookies?
There are differing opinions as to their taste:
Bon Appetit says cicadas are similar to soft-shell crab, "but with subtle overtones of boiled peanuts, the kind only a backroads gas station can really do right."
They allegedly have a "sweet, bitter flavor reminiscent of walnuts, chestnuts and adzuki beans" with a "gently crunchy exterior giving way to creaminess, like a soft shell crab," Bun Lai, the chef of Miya's Sushi in New Haven, Conn. told The New York Times. Putting it this way makes Cicada Casserole or Cicada Chowder or even Cicada Carbonara sound somewhat delectable.
"They're really good on salads or tacos, or pretty much anyway you prepare shrimp," TikToker Shane The Ninja said about them in a cooking tutorial video. He used garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, but notes that you can use any seasonings you like.
Freshly hatched cicadas are recommended for cooking because their shells are not yet hardened. Be aware that cicadas are from the same family as shrimp and lobster, so if you have food allergies, please consult a doctor before trying cicadas.
Simple Cicada Ice Cream Topping
via Time Magazine
Remove wings from Cicadas and boil to cook
Cover in Brown Sugar and melted milk chocolate and let harden
Serve over your favorite ice cream, peanut butter is a recommended flavor.
Crispy wok tossed cicadas
Source: AndrewZimmern.com
Ingredients:
2 cups cicadas
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 hot dried Asian chile
4 tablespoons minced lemongrass
1 cup chopped scallions
1 clove minced garlic
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons Toban Djan (fermented bean paste with chiles)
1 cup minced celery
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon corn starch
3 tablespoons rice wine (or sake)
1. Collect roughly 2 cups of cicadas, keep them in a bucket (with a lid) with an inch of water inside. Wet wings means they won't fly off! Dry on a towel, pluck wings and legs, and set aside.
2. Preheat a large wok over high heat. Add the peanut oil, and swirl.
3. Add the minced ginger, hot dried Asian chile (tsin-tsin work great), minced lemongrass, chopped scallions, minced garlic, sugar, Toban Djan (fermented bean paste with chiles, Lee Kum Kee brand is fine) and toss for 15 seconds. Add the cicadas. If you can't find fermented bean paste, use a few tablepoons of Chinese dried salted black beans instead.
4. Toss for one minute to cook. Add the minced celery, toss. Mix the soy sauce, corn starch and rice wine together in a separate bowl, then add the mixture to the wok. Toss, cooking for another minute or so until sauce tightens.
Emergence Cookies
Ingredients:
1/2 cup shortening
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 beaten egg white
1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional)
about 60 parboiled dry roasted cicadas (roast for only 8 minutes so that they retain some moisture)
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, beat shortening with eggs, the 11/2 cups sugar, cooled chocolate, baking powder, and vanilla until well combined, scraping sides of bowl.
2. Gradually stir in flour till thoroughly combined. Stir in the nuts. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours or until dough is easy to handle.
3. Meanwhile, stir together the 1/3 cup sugar and beaten egg white. Place cicadas on waxed paper; brush with egg white mixture and set aside.
4. Shape dough into 1inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Place a cicada on top of each ball, pressing lightly.
5. Bake in a 375 oven for 8-10 minutes or till edges are set. Transfer to a rack to cool.
While snacking on a cicada may not be your idea of a delicious treat, they're high in protein, low-fat, low-carb, gluten-free and, over the course of the next several weeks, will be plentiful and fairly easy to forage. The clock is ticking, though.
People are grilling, sauteeing, and serving up cicadas, called Brood X, this summer. Early morning is the ideal time to collect them.
Millions if not trillions of cicadas are taking over some areas of the eastern United States for the first time in 17 years, and will not appear again until 2038. While annoying, loud, and intrusive to some, others have waited almost two decades for this tasty treat, and they are reveling in their cicada recipes.
With approximately 1.5 million of them per acre, there's plenty to pass around the table to guests, or for a snack, maybe as Spicy Popcorn Cicadas or Cicada Cookies?
There are differing opinions as to their taste:
Bon Appetit says cicadas are similar to soft-shell crab, "but with subtle overtones of boiled peanuts, the kind only a backroads gas station can really do right."
They allegedly have a "sweet, bitter flavor reminiscent of walnuts, chestnuts and adzuki beans" with a "gently crunchy exterior giving way to creaminess, like a soft shell crab," Bun Lai, the chef of Miya's Sushi in New Haven, Conn. told The New York Times. Putting it this way makes Cicada Casserole or Cicada Chowder or even Cicada Carbonara sound somewhat delectable.
"They're really good on salads or tacos, or pretty much anyway you prepare shrimp," TikToker Shane The Ninja said about them in a cooking tutorial video. He used garlic, lemon juice, salt, and pepper, but notes that you can use any seasonings you like.
Freshly hatched cicadas are recommended for cooking because their shells are not yet hardened. Be aware that cicadas are from the same family as shrimp and lobster, so if you have food allergies, please consult a doctor before trying cicadas.
Simple Cicada Ice Cream Topping
via Time Magazine
Remove wings from Cicadas and boil to cook
Cover in Brown Sugar and melted milk chocolate and let harden
Serve over your favorite ice cream, peanut butter is a recommended flavor.
Crispy wok tossed cicadas
Source: AndrewZimmern.com
Ingredients:
2 cups cicadas
2 tablespoons peanut oil
2 tablespoons minced ginger
1 hot dried Asian chile
4 tablespoons minced lemongrass
1 cup chopped scallions
1 clove minced garlic
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons Toban Djan (fermented bean paste with chiles)
1 cup minced celery
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon corn starch
3 tablespoons rice wine (or sake)
1. Collect roughly 2 cups of cicadas, keep them in a bucket (with a lid) with an inch of water inside. Wet wings means they won't fly off! Dry on a towel, pluck wings and legs, and set aside.
2. Preheat a large wok over high heat. Add the peanut oil, and swirl.
3. Add the minced ginger, hot dried Asian chile (tsin-tsin work great), minced lemongrass, chopped scallions, minced garlic, sugar, Toban Djan (fermented bean paste with chiles, Lee Kum Kee brand is fine) and toss for 15 seconds. Add the cicadas. If you can't find fermented bean paste, use a few tablepoons of Chinese dried salted black beans instead.
4. Toss for one minute to cook. Add the minced celery, toss. Mix the soy sauce, corn starch and rice wine together in a separate bowl, then add the mixture to the wok. Toss, cooking for another minute or so until sauce tightens.
Emergence Cookies
Ingredients:
1/2 cup shortening
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups sugar
4 oz. unsweetened chocolate, melted and cooled
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups all purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 beaten egg white
1/2 cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional)
about 60 parboiled dry roasted cicadas (roast for only 8 minutes so that they retain some moisture)
Directions:
1. In a large bowl, beat shortening with eggs, the 11/2 cups sugar, cooled chocolate, baking powder, and vanilla until well combined, scraping sides of bowl.
2. Gradually stir in flour till thoroughly combined. Stir in the nuts. Cover and chill for 1-2 hours or until dough is easy to handle.
3. Meanwhile, stir together the 1/3 cup sugar and beaten egg white. Place cicadas on waxed paper; brush with egg white mixture and set aside.
4. Shape dough into 1inch balls. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Place a cicada on top of each ball, pressing lightly.
5. Bake in a 375 oven for 8-10 minutes or till edges are set. Transfer to a rack to cool.
Jun 5, 2021 10:11:58 #
Zemirah wrote:
The 17-year cicadas have started to emerge from th... (show quote)
Cicadas are a pretty decent snack...
I like them lightly stir fried, with chili peppers and diced garlic... A dash of lemon juice is nice too...
The trick is to fully cook them without burning them... I've found that using a wok with a gas burner on high, no oil to start, just use the wok to keep the moving...Once they're properly cooked (you can tell because they've browned evenly and make a sharp rustling sound when shaken) turn the temperature down, add just enough oil to coat the wok as they're swishing around (do it in steps so as not to add too much... Chinese use peanut or soy bean oil, but I find olive has a nicer taste...Add a little sesame at the end) and add the chiliss and garlic... Salt to taste...
Add the lemon juice later if desired...
Takes some getting used to... But they're like popcorn or peanuts.... Great for movie night
Jun 5, 2021 15:32:16 #
Thanks for the recipe, Canuckus,
I've never tasted Cicadas, but certainly would if given the opportunity. They're possibly a step up from French Escargot (snail), which are a good appetizer.
Actually, if physically able, I could probably find dinner-on-the-hoof, so to speak, on the trunks of the trees in my yard, at present.
I just took the picture below (visible through the venetian blind) as one landed on the outside of the window closest to my computer desk.
I've never tasted Cicadas, but certainly would if given the opportunity. They're possibly a step up from French Escargot (snail), which are a good appetizer.
Actually, if physically able, I could probably find dinner-on-the-hoof, so to speak, on the trunks of the trees in my yard, at present.
I just took the picture below (visible through the venetian blind) as one landed on the outside of the window closest to my computer desk.
Canuckus Deploracus wrote:
Cicadas are a pretty decent snack... br br I li... (show quote)
Jun 5, 2021 18:32:59 #
Zemirah wrote:
Thanks for the recipe, Canuckus,
I've never tasted Cicadas, but certainly would if given the opportunity. They're possibly a step up from French Escargot (snail), which are a good appetizer.
Actually, if physically able, I could probably find dinner-on-the-hoof, so to speak, on the trunks of the trees in my yard, at present.
I just took the picture below (visible through the venetian blind) as one landed on the outside of the window closest to my computer desk.
I've never tasted Cicadas, but certainly would if given the opportunity. They're possibly a step up from French Escargot (snail), which are a good appetizer.
Actually, if physically able, I could probably find dinner-on-the-hoof, so to speak, on the trunks of the trees in my yard, at present.
I just took the picture below (visible through the venetian blind) as one landed on the outside of the window closest to my computer desk.
Must admit to not being a fan of escargot... The taste is fine, I just have trouble with the texture...
Have the kids swing buy and grab you a pot full... Make it a family day
Jun 7, 2021 00:25:23 #
All fun aside, Canuckus,
I wouldn't taste Cicada unless a local reputable restaurant started advertising it in some delectable format, which I can't, at present, imagine.
It is, however, entertaining to see the imaginative ways in which it is being portrayed, especially the "dream sandwich" below.
It adds an all new dimension to packing a lunch...
I wouldn't taste Cicada unless a local reputable restaurant started advertising it in some delectable format, which I can't, at present, imagine.
It is, however, entertaining to see the imaginative ways in which it is being portrayed, especially the "dream sandwich" below.
It adds an all new dimension to packing a lunch...
Canuckus Deploracus wrote:
Must admit to not being a fan of escargot... The taste is fine, I just have trouble with the texture...
Have the kids swing buy and grab you a pot full... Make it a family day
Have the kids swing buy and grab you a pot full... Make it a family day
Apr 9, 2022 08:33:06 #
Zemirah wrote:
The 17-year cicadas have started to emerge from th... (show quote)
I'm dying of starvation this summer....
Apr 9, 2023 00:46:57 #
I wouldn’t eat a bug if I was in the last throes of starvation.
Ribeye steak or New York strip, baked potato and some salad. No bugs!
Ribeye steak or New York strip, baked potato and some salad. No bugs!
Apr 9, 2023 04:27:46 #
Never say never, Marty.
The Lord sometimes humbles us in miraculous ways.
God bless this Resurrection Commemoration Day for you and your loved ones with His peace, love and joy.
The Lord sometimes humbles us in miraculous ways.
God bless this Resurrection Commemoration Day for you and your loved ones with His peace, love and joy.
Marty 2020 wrote:
I wouldn’t eat a bug if I was in the last throes of starvation.
Ribeye steak or New York strip, baked potato and some salad. No bugs!
Ribeye steak or New York strip, baked potato and some salad. No bugs!
Apr 9, 2023 17:13:32 #
Zemirah wrote:
Never say never, Marty.
The Lord sometimes humbles us in miraculous ways.
God bless this Resurrection Commemoration Day for you and your loved ones with His peace, love and joy.
The Lord sometimes humbles us in miraculous ways.
God bless this Resurrection Commemoration Day for you and your loved ones with His peace, love and joy.
Oh I have had bugs covered in chocolate, ants and grass hoppers! Nasty chocolate 🤮
Some times they fly in my mouth when I’m scooting around the fields on a quad, but it’s not a meal!
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