Bugs and Grubs. As FOOD!!!!

Bugs and Grubs. As FOOD!!!!  
 
From the standpoint of a survival food, bugs make a lot of sense as a food of opportunity. Insects are tasty. Really! Also, many species of insects are lower in fat, and higher in protein than beef, pork, or chicken. With over 1400 species of edible insects out there… You are sure to find something you like! 

From a survival point of view, is there any reason to eat bugs?
Let's take a BRIEF look...


BEEF provides 200 - 300 calories per 100 Grams depending on the fat level. Each gram is about 18% fat, about 18% protein, and about 58% water.


LIVE TERMITES provide about 350 calories per 100 Grams. With 23% protein, 28% fat and 44% water per gram they constitute good eats. Not much of a taste … but good for you!


MOTH LARVAE provide about 265 calories per 100 Grams. They are about 63 % protein and 15 % fat with only about 4% water per gram. These are good if you want to get into body building on a budget.

Do you want to decrease the fat in your diet? Eat Moths.

- Moths, regular old "fly into the light" moths, are pretty good and have the advantage of being easy to catch with a bright light. ... They taste a bit like almonds. 

- Grasshoppers, dried or fried, are kind of like chalky potato chips or cheese puffs on steroids. (BEWARE: Live grasshoppers kick like crazy and can give you worms, the kind you probably wouldn't eat.)

- Maggots, are high in calories and protein. Although they may look like wild rice, they actually taste a little bitter. Just take a handful, crush them in your hand, and stick them in your mouth!

- Cockroaches, no taste really … put them in a closed container and smother them. (They need more oxygen than you do!) High in protein … Heat them slightly and eat!

- Night Crawlers (Earth worms), are 70% protein. Put them in a box or other container (without soil) for half a day. They will excrete their bodily waste making them more palatable. If you have the means, soaking them in water overnight will purge them of soil. Crushed … they taste sort of like peanut butter! 

- Mealworms, also taste like peanut butter. If you leave meal out, you will have meal worms the next day! Crush them, and eat them!

- Grub worms, another high protein snack, have a slight peppery taste.
- Beetles, beetles with a more curved shaped back taste MUCH better than beetles with a flat shaped back! (THINK: Stink bugs have a flat shaped back!) Beetles amount to about 40% of the known insects. The larvae of many beetles are very high in fat and protein and make great snacks.

- Ants, for the most part one of the best bug feasts. The formic acid pretty much disappears when they are boiled. Black ants eaten raw have a semi sweet flavor. Sorta like crunchy raw sugar with legs. 

- Bees and wasps are OK eaten after a good boiling. The poison is basically a protein which disassembles at boiling temperatures. The stinger softens. Pounding them before boiling is effective. Bee and Wasp Larvae are delicious! Honey bees, are edible at all stages of growth, larval, pupa and adult.

There are of course many cautions ... Just a note: When in doubt about a bug … Do the insect safety test. And follow these time tested rules.

Always try to cook insects.

Never eat bugs you find dead.

Don't eat bugs that bite back!

If it smells really bad, don't eat it!