Mexican Spicy Crickets

the MCC

September 5th, 2010

Whilst on a food shoot yesterday, somebody turned up with a jar of Mexican Spicy Crickets. I was intrigued and delighted to find that they are quite crunchy and flavoured with chilli, garlic and lime. The crickets came from Oaxaca, Mexico, where they are a popular snack.

jiminy cricket

Spicy Cricket Recipe:

lots of crickets
lime juice
crushed garlic
chilli flakes
olive oil
salt

Drop your crickets into some boiling water to kill them quickly. When they turn red, remove them from the saucepan. Dry the crickets with some kitchen towel and marinate over night in a bowl of lemon juice, crushed garlic, chilli flakes and a little salt, to taste.

Remove the crickets from the marinade, but don’t dry them. Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and add the crickets when the oil is hot. They don’t take very long and it’s important to keep stirring so that they don’t burn. You’ll know that the crickets are ready when you can smell the ingredients from the marinade. Remove any excess oil with some kitchen towel. The crickets can be served hot or cold.

My Mexican friend, Carlos, tells me that crickets should be eaten fresh, since the shop bought ones loose a lot of flavour once packaged, but they should be purged (fasted for 1 or 2 days) before cooking. Carlos also told me that grasshoppers are very similar to crickets and make a good substitute.