The idea of eating insects will at first freak people out, especially the ones living in cities. And that’s understandable since citizens don’t typically eat them. Sometimes we’re already grossed out by the look of those insects first and the idea of eating them will only lead to rejection.
Well the thing is, the average consumer eats over a pound of insects a year in processed foods like peanut butter, sauces, and noodles. So we unknowingly have been eating them without even realizing it.
Also, insects provide a whole lot of protein that you’ll get from eating meat and it’s very sustainable. So it’s a superfood that might be a common food in the future (it should be!). And people who’ve tried them said it’s not bad at all. There’s a saying that if you want to overcome your fear, you have to face it. It’s more or less the same with eating insects.
Freaked out by the idea of eating insects? You have to try it first and might find yourself converted later. Cricket is great for starters, so here are cricket-based products that you should try.
Bugeater Foods’ Protein Pasta
Like pasta? Great, ‘cause you won’t be able to tell the difference between your regular pasta and the ones made by Bugeater Foods. Compared to commercial pasta, you’re going to get more protein, healthy fats, fiber, vitamins, and minerals from this cricket-based alternative.
A key ingredient to this pasta is, of course, crickets albeit being only an addition. The crickets are firstly ground into a fine powder and then it’s added into the pasta making process. It’s perfect for absolute beginners who have never eaten bugs before.
Bugeater Foods is a startup company working from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus. Their goal is to include as much as nutrition derived from bugs while still making a product that looks and tastes good, and cooks properly. It’s a way to introduce bug-eating to people who think it’s absolutely gross. The company is now testing rice-shaped pasta, ramen, and macaroni noodles.
Read also: 5 Edible Insects And Its Yummy Secret Recipes
The President’s Choice 100% Cricket Powder
If you want to take cricket eating to another level (from the absolute beginner one), you should consume cricket in the form of powder. This product will provide 100% of your recommended daily intake of vitamin B12. It has a mild taste so you can add it into smoothies to boost the nutrient level, or you can add it to other recipes such as sauces, curries, chili, and a lot more.
Fazer Sirkkaleipä
After the powder, we now move on to another cricket product in a form of bread. Fazer Bakery Finland is a company that keeps trying to be innovative and sustainable, giving new taste and sensations to their consumers.
Markus Hellström, Managing Director of Fazer Bakery Finland said, “We wanted to be in the forefront of food revolution. We want to boost growth in the bread category with hand-made artisanal bread, also in the future. In the Fazer in-store bakeries, we can easily bake and test different kinds of novelties. The first-in-the-world Fazer Cricket Bread is a great example of this.”
Additionally, Juhani Sibakov, Director of Innovation at Fazer Bakery Finland said, “We made a crunchy dough to enhance taste and increase mouthfeel. The result is delicious and nutritious. Cricket bread is a good source of protein. Insects also contain good fatty acids, calcium, iron and vitamin B12.”
The Cricket Salt
When you’re somewhat familiar with cricket based products, time to further incorporate it to your food by getting seasonings that include this bug. Yep. Salt. No it’s not cricket doused in salt and then grounded. It’s naturally-pink HImalayan salt spiced with cricket powder made from real North American crickets.
Crickets contain a lot of amino acids and they’re a great source of magnesium so people can cut the risk of heart disease by up to 22%. So yeah, compared to regular salt, the cricket spiced one is a better alternative. You can use this salt for any kind of meats, vegetables, and baked goods.
One Hop Kitchen
Remember that you can use cricket powder for sauce? Well to save you the time, you can also get cricket-based bolognese sauce. Wanna try something new and you’re kinda tired of cricket at this point? Well, One Hop Kitchen also offers the sauce made from mealworms. “Mealworms!? Are they safe?” totally.
Not convinced? The benefit of these insect sauces might change your mind. One jar of One Hope Kitchen sauce saves 1900 liters of water, which is so much different from cow meat-based bolognese sauce. Also, using insects won’t contribute to the large portion of greenhouse gas emissions caused by methane from the cows.
You’ll be helping the environment by buying these insect bolognese sauce. And, you can’t really tell the difference of meat based sauce and the mealworm based one. I think it’s a win-win.
Read also: Mealworms Oil – A New Innovation to Fight Palm Oil’s Deforestation
Chirps Cricket Protein Powder
So you’re an eco-conscious gym goer? Excellent, because there’s a protein powder made from cricket! Forget about the whey-based protein powders on the market. You’re going to get buff, fit, and you’ll help the environment at the same time with this protein powder.
Chirps Cricket Protein Powder is also made from natural ingredients such as pea, brown rice, and chia seeds. The crickets are added to give you all nine essential amino acids as well as 59% of your daily need of B12. What’s more, every serving contains only 4g net of carbs. Yay.
You really don’t need to worry about getting “buggy taste”, because this protein powder is available in both creamy vanilla and rich chocolate flavors. So it’s not only tasty but it also gives better effects on your body as well as the environment. It’s even better if you’re lactose intolerant, which is a thing that affects 65% all humans in the world. No more bloating and gassy feeling? What’s not to like, right?
Where can you put the protein powder? Basically like other whey-based protein powder products. According to Chirps, a scoop of this protein powder gives you the perfect high protein shake or smoothie.
Other than that, you can also add the cricket powder in oatmeal, yogurt, cookies, muffins, and a lot more. You can even eat it straight from the packaging. It’s just like any other protein powder out there, but better.
Read also: Project Real Junk Food: Imagine Saving Earth By Eating Waste
Source(s)
https://news.cision.com/fazer-group/r/fazer-first-in-the-world-to-introduce-insect-bread-to-grocery-stores,c2398334
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-5017315/Oregon-food-company-sells-flour-salt-CRICKETS.html
https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/chirps-cricket-protein-powder
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/charlesbwilson/cricket-salt
https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/protein-pasta
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sixfoods/chirps-cricket-protein-powder-eat-bugs-get-buff
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