8 Most Delicious Insect Delicacies on Earth

[J T]

What a lot of you may not realize (sorry for this irixith) is that bugs are used in many commercial food products already.

This is the cochineal beetle:


It eats cactus and if you grind up the females, they turn into a bright red mess. The ground up bug sludge is then sold as a red food coloring called either "cochineal" or "carmine". Check your ingredients on your food. You see it a lot with red colored foods. Yes, you have probably eaten that bug without even realizing it. In fact, it's also commonly used in red lipstick. Red lips just don't seem as sexy when you know it's just a woman with bug guts smeered on her mouth, do they?

Here's another. This is the Lac Bug.

This one is not just in your food, but your furniture as well. The female lac bug secretes a ruddy brown resin. They get ground up along with their secretions, bark, and an alcohol mixture to create what is callled "shellac". This is a common wood finish that creates a reddish brown glow that makes a home feel inviting and warm. People like the color so much that some companies have started to put it in your food too. Certain types of chocolate chips have shellac in them so that they have a nice glistening shine that only bug shit can provide.

[AznKhmerBoi]

Wow very insightful JT, i would 've never known that food coloring and lipstick had bugs in its formula

[J T]

Wow very insightful JT, i would 've never known that food coloring and lipstick had bugs in its formula

Yes, I'm a pretty strict vegetarian, so I have to know what my ingredients mean. I also don't eat gelatin because it is made from ground up animal bones.

[BoringSupreez]

I once knew a vegetarian who wouldn't eat meat, except for bacon, because it tasted too good to quit. I guess you're a better vegetarian than her.

[CFFJR]

I knew about the food coloring (puts a whole new spin on cherry pop tarts) but not the furniture finish.

I love the bug shit spin you put on it though.

Stuff like that though, its best just not to think about it rather than get grossed out. Just think of all of the insect parts we eat in a simple chocolate bar. People don't know it, but its there.

[Hatta]

Stuff like that though, its best just not to think about it rather than get grossed out.

Or you can think about it, and not get grossed out. When you know a bit about how digestion works, and some basic microbiology, it's really pretty hard to care. Insect bits in my food? Extra protein!

[J T]

I once knew a vegetarian who wouldn't eat meat, except for bacon, because it tasted too good to quit. I guess you're a better vegetarian than her.

One thing that often surprises meat eaters is that Bacon Bits usually don't have any real bacon in them. They are usually made of soy and chemically flavored to taste like Bacon. I love veggie bacon (especially from Morningstar Farms) even more than I love real bacon, so I haven't had a hard time giving that up.

Oddly enough, the things that have been hardest to give up are foods that I thought were crappy back when I ate meat. Every once and awhile I get a really strong craving for McDonald's, KFC, Burger King, or even Arby's. I hated Arby's when I was a meat eater, so that one confuses me the most. I think it's because you get really accustomed to being able to eat those things instantly when you want them because they are all fast foods. They are also heavily advertised to occupy your mental space. I have been a vegetarian for over 10 years but I still find it hard to break free from that conditioning. If I'm hungry and I see a golden arches, all I can think about is "Mmmm. Big Mac." I just have to think about how when I had the same craving as a meat eater, I would enjoy the first few bites, but then when I was done it was an overall disappointing meal.

[Hobie-wan]

Insect bits in my food? Extra protein!

That's the tired, I mean well worn joke I make if I accidentally swallow a bug. Just a little extra protein.

Continuing with the "gross if you think about it too much, but generally normal if you grew up with it", I love me some bee vomit and compressed curdled milk!

[Hatta]

One thing that often surprises meat eaters is that Bacon Bits usually don't have any real bacon in them.

I find it hard to believe that anyone who has actually eaten both bacon and bacon bits could confuse the two. Not even close. But then I guess most people don't pay attention to what they eat.

[gtmtnbiker]

I find it hard to believe that anyone who has actually eaten both bacon and bacon bits could confuse the two. Not even close.

Totally agree. Bacon bits are nasty. I'm all for vegetable substitutes but bacon bits.