How to Cook Insects for Dinner
Free video about eating insects. This free video was created for you by http://epsos.de and can be used for free under the creative commons license with the attribution of epSos.de as the original author of this eating insects video.
Thank you for supporting the creative commons movement !!
It's called entomofagia to eat insects and arachnids, or arthropods in general, as food for humans and animals, an eating habit very extended in some Earth cultures: Africa, Asia and Australia ; however, in some others it is rare or is considered a taboo. Entomophagy is under study ethnoentomology.
Various taxonomic groups consume protein from insects, eg birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish, mammals and numerous invertebrate groups. Usually they are called insectivores instead of entomophagous. Many insects are entomophagous; generally are classified as predators, parasites and parasitoids (a subtype of parasites). Some are cannibals, ie eat members of their own species. Spiders and other arachnids feed almost exclusively on insects. The worms nematodes that live within insects as parasites are also considered entomophagous. Some bacteria and fungi that also grow in or on the insects are also in this category, although perhaps it is more appropriate to consider them as entomopathogenic. In summary, insects are a very important part in the food chain.
Although insects are small total number is so large that constitute a considerable part of the animal biomass in all terrestrial environments. In the pastures of Queensland, for example, normally the total weight of the larvae of beetles beneath the surface of the earth is greater than that of cattle grazing on the surface. Therefore insects are an important link in the food chain and play a key role in almost all ecosystems land.
Entomophagy seeks primarily proteins (eg grasshopper has a 20% protein against a beef steak having a 27%. Protein concentrations can grow once the insect has been preserved dry may reach 60%. Some caterpillars can have between 30% and 80% protein. 3 Furthermore insects can contribute to the human diet vitamins, minerals and fats. The contribution of each of these nutrients depends on the species and preparation insects, and within a species depends largely habitat.
Insects generally have a high efficiency in the conversion of food, their high reproduction maximizes nutrients from their surroundings to become proteins, vitamins, fat, etc. Studies have shown that some insects produce proteins to a very superior to other animals that provide meat to humans, can reach up to about 20 times the production rate can have a cow. For this reason that studies some food agencies are thinking that insects could be the main source of protein in human food of the future. It also remains one of the dominant forms of life on our planet is not difficult to think of them before a population growth as it is lived today.
Culinary cultures on earth consume mainly: grasshoppers, crickets, grubs, spiders (arachnids are not insects but they are included in the entomofagia), etc. Insects and arachnids to eat, basically depend on the seasons, its ease of collection, etc. Generally, often used as food those insects that usually live in large communities, the work thus simplifying collection, such as termites. Of a total of different insect species (which can reach several million), it can be said that there are about 1,462 species of edible insects registered.
The Asian cuisines have been traditionally, what are currently the most insects consume the world. In some regional cuisines of Mexico is common to consume insects. The states in which more insects are consumed are Oaxaca, Guerrero, Puebla, Hidalgo, Tlaxcala and Querétaro. The varieties of edible insects are varied and include ahuautle, the Escamoles, cuetlas, jumiles, chinicuiles, maguey worms and well known grasshoppers (a kind of grasshopper ) that are usually eaten as snacks enchilados or marinated in lemon juice. The consumption of insects originated in eating habits Mesoamerican pre-Columbian, and until recently entomofagia was an exclusive practice of rural popular classes of these states. Today dishes prepared with insects in specialized restaurants and restaurants offer gourmet Mexican.
Due to the impossibility of eliminating radically all insect pests in the human food chain, insects are present in some form in some foods, especially cereal grains. Most people are not aware that the food laws of many countries do not prohibit the existence of insects or insect parts in food, neither of which are not considered a decrease in the quality of it. Some of the varieties of rice usually include numerous insects between their grains ( Sitophilus oryzae ) and the authorities consider it an important source of vitamins.
Thank you for supporting the creative commons movement !!