Sunday, June 17, 2007

Termites (AKA white ants) another Tasty Treat

Another tasty treat that we just enjoyed this week is termites (locally called white ants). While this was nothing new for Eric, it was very new for me. As we are in the midst of the rainy season, termites are usually hovering around lights after the rain drives them out of their homes. People are very happy when this happens because it is a free source of good protein.

Now I must admit that I might have been more leery of trying a termite if I would not have been in a group situation. Our friend, Sarah, offered to cook some for us and our friends at a dinner party that we hosted this past weekend. We cooked them with their wings in a frying pan without any oil. The cooking killed them, and then we plucked off their wings and dug in. Eric used to enjoy these in DR Congo without frying them, but we weren’t quite up for that. Now to my shock, all of us that tried them for the first time agreed that they are very good. Granted it was a little weird knowing that we were eating an insect, but if you kept this in the back of your mind, then it tasted like you were having a very tasty bowl of popcorn or maybe they tasted a little like pork rinds. So if you were in Arua now, we could not only offer you some good avocados and passion fruit but also some yummy termites.



7 Comments:

At 6:59 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

According to Jolly Gonahasa in Taste of Uganda, 5 minutes into cooking one may add (for 250 white ants)a finely chopped onion, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp curry powder and optional chili pepper.

But, why do you remove the wings? And when is grasshopper season?

Enjoy blooming where you're planted.
Love, AB

 
At 7:08 PM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Ugandan family!

It's nice to see that you are up and blogging again. Tanya looks right at home with the neighborhood.

I think I am up for avacado and passion fruit, but I'm uncertain about the termites. Do they live off eating the wood in your home like here? Are they considered pests or just good cuisine?

I'm getting excited about my visit. I think I am at the end of the shopping, almost. Now is the time to enjoy!

Love ya!
Mom

 
At 3:58 PM, Blogger Jewels said...

I was imagining a taste kind of like a sunflower seed. Are they juicy at all or just a hard shell?

 
At 2:24 AM, Blogger Team Smith said...

We are following the Ugandans lead on removing the wings. My guess is that the wings would stick to your throat and the inside of your mouth. It would be much worse than popcorn kernels. Little legs already tend to get stuck.

I am not sure when grasshopper season is here. I don't see people eating these like I did in Rwanda. I know that some of them are poisonous so we haven't been as anxious to try them.

Because the termites are roasted, they are crunchy rather than juicy. My guess is that if you ate them pre-roasting that their bellies would give a bit of a squirt.

There are termites here that eat wood but these are different. We have had some tiny termites trying to build up the walls of our house as we have had more rains. They build little tubes of dirt up the wall. I am not sure if the termites that we ate are considered pests or just cuisine. People are certainly excited when they are filling the air.

 
At 3:45 PM, Blogger Jewels said...

They actually sound kind of good to me, but only if I was there. And had nothing else to eat.

 
At 10:54 AM, Blogger Unknown said...

Hey Smith family. THis is Tara Bruerd. Barak and I are back in the states and were wondering where you were Eric. My address is still the same. wanbel@yahoo.com Let us know how you are. We would love to catch up!

 
At 9:52 PM, Blogger bethanyzylstra said...

You have been TAGGED.

See- http://tiathisisafrica.blogspot.com/2007/08/8-random-things-about-me.html

:) Bethany

 

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