What do Chicatana ants taste like?

What do Chicatana ants taste like?

These ants are very aggressive, and when caught they can pinch with the small pincers found in the back of their bodies. It is hard to describe their flavor, as they don’t taste like anything else: they are reminiscent of something that is burned, bitter, salty and earthy.

What is Chicatana in English?

chicatana [f] MX. a large, brown or reddish ant, with smooth, shiny head, developed jaws and chest well separated from the abdomen.

What are chicatanas good for?

When mixed with spices and seasoned with salt, the crunchy chicatanas are often served as an accompaniment to mezcal. They’re very nutritious and a great source of protein, while the flavor is often compared to pork rinds.

How to prepare chicatanas?

In their most traditional preparation, chicatanas are lightly toasted on a comal, mixed with spices and seasoned with salt, then blended using a molcajete (a traditional Mexican mortar and pestle made from volcanic rock) to create an aromatic, rustic salsa.

Is it safe to eat ants?

Well, there’s no reports of anyone dying or gotten sick from eating food ants have eaten, so it’s kind of safe to still eat your food. In fact, these ants are sterile and loaded with antimicrobial agents, which makes it even safer.

How do you store Chicatana ants?

Chicatanas are perishable and should be kept in cool, dry conditions for immediate use or refrigerated/frozen for extended use.

What is a flying ant?

Flying ants, or ‟alates,” as entomologists refer to them, are simply ants that are sexually mature. When the ant colony is naturally ready to expand, the winged ants get ready to take the stage. Mature male and female ants fly out of their colonies with one purpose in mind: to mate.

What is an ant mole?

Every spring, Oaxaca residents await the arrival of the chicatanas, a flying ant that has become a delicacy in high-end restaurants throughout the region. “It’s like it is literally raining ants. They fall from the sky, and you can sweep them up into big piles and then toast them on the comal [a flat griddle].”

How do you eat flying ants?

Children and adults alike run to the streets to gather them, and then fry them up, grind them and put them in various sauces. Spread them out on a thick tortilla topped with beans and cheese, and you’ve got lunch.

Can you eat food that ants crawled on?

Can I still eat food ants have nibbled on? Well, there’s no reports of anyone dying or gotten sick from eating food ants have eaten, so it’s kind of safe to still eat your food. In fact, these ants are sterile and loaded with antimicrobial agents, which makes it even safer.

What is chapulines English?

Chapulines, plural for chapulín (Spanish: [tʃapuˈlin] ( listen)), are grasshoppers of the genus Sphenarium that are commonly eaten in certain areas of Mexico. The term is specific to Mexico and Central America, and derives from the Nahuatl word chapolin [t͡ʃaˈpolin] (singular) or chapolimeh [t͡ʃapoˈlimeʔ] (plural).

What do they do with chicatana ants in Mexico?

In Mexico, people collect them and prepare specialty dishes such as salsa de chicatana, a sauce that’s ground in a molcajete with salt, chile de arbol, avocado leaves, and garlic. The smoky sauce is folded in quesadillas, added to soups, or mixed with eggs. The ants can also be toasted on a comal griddle, then consumed as a snack.

Where can you find chicatanas on masienda?

They are a rare delicacy and notoriously tricky to catch (not only do they fly, but they also bite!). The Vásquez family, long-time Masienda producer partners on the coast of Oaxaca, saved a small amount of its chicatana surplus exclusively for Masienda this year.

What kind of sauce do they use for chicatanas?

In Mexico, people collect them and prepare specialty dishes such as salsa de chicatana, a sauce that’s ground in a molcajete with salt, chile de arbol, avocado leaves, and garlic. The smoky sauce is folded in quesadillas, added to soups, or mixed with eggs.

When do chicatanas come to Oaxaca, Mexico?

At the start of the rainy season in late spring, families in Oaxaca venture outside with pails and plastic containers. As storms roll in, flying ants known as chicatanas will flee their nests, filling the sky with swarms. Making for the ultimate foraging experience, the bugs are plentiful, free, and a short-lived seasonal delicacy.