Lovely grub, say Hong Kong’s insect eaters: delicious, nutritious and good for the planet
Watch: eating bugs is common everywhere except the developed world, where some people still feel a little queasy at the mere idea. But its advocates say it’s a green solution to the world’s protein needs
“It tastes like calamari,” says four-year-old Oliver Engelhorn, popping a bee pupa into his mouth, and chewing happily before reaching for another of the golden cocoons stacked high on a plate in front of him.
It’s 7pm on a Thursday and the People of Yunnan Restaurant in San Po Kong is buzzing with guests, many of them regulars. The eatery blends seamlessly into a quiet street in the industrialised district of New Kowloon, but what makes it stand out from the crowd is what’s on the menu – an array of creepy-crawlies including silkworm, bee and cicada pupae, wasp larvae, bamboo worms and grasshoppers.
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Insects are a traditional food source in Yunnan, a province in southwestern China with the largest number of ethnic minority groups in the country, making its cuisine a rich cultural mix of flavours – mostly spicy, with mushrooms included in many dishes.
Restaurant owner Amy Wong Ling says it was her husband’s idea to serve insects when the couple moved to Hong Kong from Yunnan.
“My husband had the idea of introducing Yunnan insects to Hong Kong – they were not available on city menus back then. It’s a bit of a gimmick,” says Wong, placing a plate of crunchy grasshoppers on the table.
The bee pupae tastes sweet – like a fried doughnut – while grasshoppers, with their spindly legs, are crunchy in texture, the body tasting like an overfried chip.
