Eat-a-bug Cookbook: 33 ways to cook grasshoppers, ants, water bugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin [Paperback]

David George Gordon (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1998

The Essentials of Bug Cookery…From Soup to Gnats
 
“Waiter, there’s a fly in my soup!” Or wait…maybe it’s a katydid, a silkworm, or a tasty young bee. Anything’s possible at the Eat-A-Bug Cafe, otherwise known as the kitchen of naturalist David George Gordon, entomological epicure extraordinaire.
 
Gordon has gone to the ends of the earth, to his backyard, and under the refrigerator to find culinary inspiration, and now, after years of experimentation with entomophagy (that’s bug-eating, for those of you in the cheap seats), he presents the results with relish…or at least a light cream sauce.
 
Now you too can tantalize and terrify your family and friends with Gordon’s one-of-a-kind recipes, including Really Hoppin’ John (grasshoppers add that little extra kick), Pest-O (common garden weevils get their comeuppance in a delicate basil sauce) and Fried Green Tomato Hornworm (the Whistle Stop Cafe was never like this!)

Anecdotes, insights and culinary tips (such as the right wine to serve with scorpions) make this truly a book like no other. Follow the detailed instructions, and your guests will ask for seconds, just like folks at David’s notorious cooking demos. Open your culinary horizons. Buy this book. Eat a bug.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

David George Gordon, author of The Compleat Cockroach, says eating protein-rich bugs is good for you ("Crickets are loaded with calcium, and termites are rich in iron), and good for the earth ("Raising cows, pigs, and sheep is a tremendous waste of the planet's resources, but bug ranching is pretty benign"). After all, what's inherently more disgusting about eating a grasshopper than, say, an oyster? Gordon enthusiastically provides recipes for terrestrial arthropods gleaned from the entomophagic appetites of people around the world, telling you which insects are most delicious and which to avoid, how to cook them, and which wine to drink with your many-legged meal. The recipes themselves are clear, easy to follow, and quite educational, with sidebar tidbits about the bugs you're about to eat. Gordon divides the recipes into sections by type of insect, be it grasshoppers, social insects, or "pantry pests." And, of course, he provides a list of places where you can order your edible insects and tips for catching your own. The Eat a Bug Cookbook is a sure kitchen conversation piece--even if you never try Three Bee Salad or Chocolate Cricket Torte, you'll laugh out loud, squirm uncomfortably, and lick your chops while taking this deliciously creepy culinary tour. --Therese Littleton

Review

Praise for David George Gordon’s previous book, The Compleat Cockroach:

“Gordon’s enthusiasm–if not his affection–for his subject is contagious.” --Discover magazine

“His lighthearted text is informative and enjoyable.” --Scientific American

“A smorgasbord of information.” --Science News

“Yuck!” --Scott Simon, NPR Weekend Edition

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Ten Speed Press (June 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0898159776
• ISBN-13: 978-0898159776
• Product Dimensions: 7.3 x 0.3 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #280,233 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and tasty!, February 17, 2000

By 

Scott Leopold "Scott Leopold" (Dayton, Ohio USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eat-a-bug Cookbook: 33 ways to cook grasshoppers, ants, water bugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin (Paperback)

While I originally bought this as a gag gift for my wife (no pun intended), once we tried some of the recipes we found that we really enjoyed it. Even our son has taken a liking to the recipes (so far, crickets are his favorite). If you can get past your initial apprehension, you'll really enjoy the recipes. Oddly enough, I've also found that I'm no longer asked to bring in dishes for our carry-ins at work.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Try it--the food's surprisingly good, November 24, 1998

By 

Brian Dewey ([e-mail]) (Seattle, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eat-a-bug Cookbook: 33 ways to cook grasshoppers, ants, water bugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin (Paperback)

I had the pleasure of assisting Mr. Gordon at the Pacific Science Center here in Seattle, where he prepared Orzo with Crickets for an audience of stunned adults and captivated kids (not to mention animal-rights protesters--forget the Makah whale hunts, let's keep people from eating insects!). I was skeptical at first--and it *was* disconcerting to see "bugs" in the sample that I ate--but the bottom line is any dish with orzo, peppers, garlic, and butter will taste good! The crickets add a mild flavor and interesting texture. Try it. You might squirm at first, but you'll like it.

Maybe this will be the next Seattle craze to sweep the nation. Move over, Starbucks!

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Fondness for Beetles, March 28, 1999

By 

Simulacrum - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eat-a-bug Cookbook: 33 ways to cook grasshoppers, ants, water bugs, spiders, centipedes, and their kin (Paperback)

When British scientist J.B.S. Haldane was asked what could be inferred about the Almighty from a lifelong study of nature, he replied (given that there are 400,000 species of beetles, compared with only 8,000 species of mammals) that God must have Òan inordinate fondness for beetles.Ó If beetles and other insects are so abundant, why doesnÕt everyone eat bugs instead of plants, fish, birds, and chemically-fattened mammals? As explained in this prankish yet valuable guide to entomophagy (Latin for Òbug-eatingÓ), we already eat insects, inadvertently, in the sense that the FDAÕs food safety regulations allow up to 60 aphids in 3 1/2 ounces of frozen broccoli, 74 mites in 100 grams of canned mushrooms, and so on. They canÕt be completely kept out of our food, and, so long as we donÕt know weÕre eating them, theyÕre not only tasty, theyÕre rich in nutrients (a grasshopper, for example, is more than 20 per cent protein, and crickets are an excellent source of calcium). This parody of a typical cookbook concludes with a 3-page list of suppliers of edible anthropods (whether live or ready to serve), manufacturers of exotic toothpicks, and organizations that sponsor bug-eating extravaganzas. The author, who has a weakness for bad puns (among his recipes are ÒParty Pupae,Ó ÒThree Bee Salad,Ó ÒPest-O,Ó and ÒFried Green Tomato Horn WormÓ), has written such earlier popular books as The Compleat Cockroach and Field Guide to the Slug (which the New York Times described as ÒgrippingÓ). (Review from Ballast Quarterly Review, Vol 14 No 2 Winter 1998-99)