nosh nook #198 - wednesday, december 16, 2009

silkworms meghalaya’s snack of the season (link)
12.16.09 - the times of india - by manosh das

one of my early childhood memories is of my mother singing the song "nobody likes me (guess i'll go eat worms)" with me for what reasons i'm not remembering at this moment. we were all "nobody likes me, everybody hates me, i think i'll go eat worms! big fat juicy ones, eensie weensy squeensy ones, see how they wiggle and squirm!" now that i'm adult & actually thinking about the lyrics more than i am about singing a duet with my mother, that shit's depressing. nobody likes you? that sucks...is eating big, fat, juicy worms really necessary? i mean, really? worms? do you really think that's the solution? i mean, who are you? olivia dunham?

i guess i shouldn't hate that bad on worm munching. according to the times of india, folks in meghalaya (an area in eastern india) love snacking on worms & silkworms in particular. [CUE PUKE NOISE]. there's probably going to be a shortage of smooth, shiny valentines day boxers come next year because they're eating the source of those boxers, but they don't care. the folks in that region of india go nuts for silkworms, or as the times describes them--"shiny, yellow and green, wriggly nuggets." they're so popular that in some areas of the region, one kg of silkworms goes for 100-160 rupees. none of those units of measurement calculate to anything i've learned in school, so i can't tell you how much that is, but i'm pretty sure that you could get something tastier & non-worm related for that price.

maybe you're intrigued by the idea of eating silkworms & want to make some of your own at home. maybe your silkworm colony has already produced enough kimonos for you & you're ready to move on. if that's the case, what you're going to want to do is take those silkworms & deep fry or boil them with some salt. once you've cooked them to a point where you think it's acceptable to eat a thick worm capable of producing sexy panties, you, according to a silkworm "connoisseur," dig in & "forget that you’re actually eating caterpillars to enjoy the yummy stuff." good luck with that. i've eaten snails & frogs & unless i survive a plane crash on an island & i need to eat worms to survive, win a million dollars & get a recording contract, that's as far as i'm going.