10 Insect-Based Asian Delicacies That Will Definitely Scare Away Your Non-Asian Neighbors

Beondegi simply means “pupa” and is a popular savory Korean street food made from boiled or steamed silk worm pupae. A wide variety of canned beondegi can actually be found in many Asian supermarkets in the U.S., ranging from spicy silk worm soup to more classic flavors. The best part? Silk worm pupae are packed with iron, protein and calcium.

Inago no tsukudani is a crunchy Japanese delicacy made from locusts. These grasshoppers are boiled in a sweet mixture of soy sauce and sugar and often served with rice or by itself as a snack. Grasshoppers are not only cost-effective but an easy way to consume protein.

Fried tarantulas are a popular delicacy in Cambodia and chances are, you’ve already caught a few glimpses of these snacks on Instagram. These photogenic treats are usually fried in oil, seasoned with salt, MSG, sugar and garlic and often described as being similar in taste to soft shell crabs.

These giant bug snacks are found commonly across Southeast Asian countries and are as big as 2-3 inches on average. The water bugs are prepared by either being lightly boiled or deep fried and then salted and are said to taste like a mixture of watery scrambled eggs, licorice and mushy crabs.

This soup contains a mixture of baby ants, embryos and eggs and is said to release a sour flavor when the eggs pop in your mouth. This dish can be found in several different Asian countries, including Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Hachinoko is a slightly sweet Japanese snack made from bee and wasp larvae. They’re cooked in soy sauce and sugar until they develop a crisp texture and are said to have a smokey aftertaste.

Fried cockroaches are a high-protein meal found in parts of China and can be served either toasted, boiled, fried or sautéed. They are crunchy with a strong aftertaste and are even said to contain powerful antibiotic properties!

Deep fried bamboo worms are a popular snack in Thailand and are often compared to the texture of potato chips or popcorn with a spiced flavor. These little worms are very thin and around 2-3 centimeters long, low in fat but high in protein.

Fried centipedes are often served on a skewer and are commonly seen among street food vendors in China. Because it’s fried to a crisp, it can end up tasting like a bunch of shells or dry spaghetti noodles.

Fried cicadas feature a lot of muscle and are high in protein but low in fat — much like other similar insect dishes — and are consumed across several different Asian countries including China and Japan. When they’re boiled, they are said to taste a bit like shrimp but they can also be eaten raw, which is said to have a more nutty flavor.