Chapulines

Or as they're known in English, Crickets.

Kimberly ate them in tacos when she was traveling, where the true flavor could be masked by things like salsa and tortilla. I ate them solo when we were in Oaxaca, where the true flavor of the cricket could come through.

Either way, you get legs stuck in your teeth.

I was a little hesitant about eating the little critters. But really, how could I pass up eating such a different and new thing - when was the next time I would be somewhere that crickets were part of the everyday fabric of life and literally everywhere. I'm all about trying everything at least once. And sometimes twice, just to be sure.

As we were walking in one of the markets, a tiny little Mexican woman came up to me with a basket of chapulines and just dropped some in my hand. After a moment of contemplation, I threw them back. They were really salty and kind of spicy. And soggy. I was expecting them to be crispy and crunchy. She wanted to sell me 5 scoops of chapulines for 20 pesos (about $0.20), but I wasn't about to buy a whole bag full. They weren't terrible, but they weren't very good either. Maybe they're better fresh out of the fryer.

[ps after reading that wikipedia article above, specifically the parts about the nematodes and lead content, I kind of wish I had eaten them in a restaurant instead of on the street. Ce le vie!]

[pps I left the pictures really big, so if you click on them, you will get a super-up-close view of the fried little critters - especially that top photo]