242: I am no entomologist

On the bus yesterday a strange unidentified insect sat on the back of the chair in front of me.  It walked backwards and forwards across the orange handle and every time it reached one end it simply turned around and set off again.  It appeared to only have one feeler and its legs moved in the most mechanical fashion.  It was odd-looking for a fly, if indeed it were a fly.  It occurred to me it might be a cockroach, but who knows; I am no entomologist.  The lady sat in front of me was oblivious to the bug doing the rounds inches behind her head as she blissfully rested her head on her man’s shoulder.  For many minutes I contemplated flicking the insect into her hair, but in the end contended with observing it struggle with the bus’ stop/start momentum.  I miss that little insect; I wonder what it is up to nowadays?

When contemplating this second paragraph, is it weird that my first thought was to do with what insects I have eaten?  To the best of my knowledge I have never eaten any insects, but some of them are pretty small and some are food coloured.  Some are food coloured and some are just food.  Fried grasshoppers look pretty tasty, and are supposed to be very nutritious.  And good with chips?  I’d try a grasshopper or two.  Most people are happy to eat shrimp and prawn and they are crustaceans like woodlice.  Perhaps I should invest in a copy of Vincent M. Holt’s renowned 1885 book Why Not Eat Insects?  That may help satisfy my curiosity, and would certainly be cheaper than a plane ticket to the Far East.

I’ve just discovered a pretty interesting blog, Hunter/Gatherer Cook: Adventures in Wild Food.  He has a pretty interesting recipe for Potted Wood Shrimp (i.e. Woodlice), that I am seriously considering trying out.  Can’t go wrong with Potted Shrimp, and I really can’t imagine this is much different.  I hereby promise that I will try making and eating this recipe at the soonest convenient moment.  And I’m definitely giving the Grilled Oyster with Parmesan and Garlic recipe a go; the picture makes me want it NOW.  I envy people who can go wandering around picking things up and eating them.  I wonder what raw razor clam tastes like.  They are sold in one of the markets in Chinatown; perhaps I could just buy one and eat it.

From insects on the bus to eating woodlice from the garden, in only a couple of paragraphs.  I couldn’t have predicted that, but perhaps my stomach is trying to tell me something.  It must be that my body is missing some form of nutrition only available through minibeast consumption.  I said I'm no entomologist, but might I be an entomophagist?