People are now eating cicadas found in their backyard - and you can too
WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - Whether you're embracing the cicadas this season or counting down the days until they're gone, a new debate has sparked about the burrowing creatures - would you eat them?
That's right. Some adventurous eaters in the DMV have been cooking up the cicadas they see hanging off trees or crawling around gardens in their backyards.
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Chef Elise Harris, a.k.a. The Diva Chef, joined FOX 5 on Tuesday to talk about the best ways to prepare the critters and explained some of the health benefits that go along with eating both cicadas and crickets.
"They are literally a superfood," Harris says. "They are full of antioxidants…Not only that, but they're a complete source of protein meaning that they contain all nine essential amino acids…Just to put that in perspective for you, a serving of beef contains 31g of protein whereas a serving of crickets contains a whopping 43g of protein."
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So, what does FOX 5's Marissa Mitchell think of her restaurant-quality cicadas?
"Crunchy at first," she says, "then gooey. Very gooey! I'm getting shrimp. I'm getting maybe a little chicken. It's actually good! The seasoning is what makes it."
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Prepare your own home-cooked cicadas using the recipe below and let us know what you think!
1. Parboil for 1 minute
2. Heat olive oil and add garlic
3. Sautee cicadas
4. Add salt, pepper, red pepper flakes