Malang Tod 🤢

London has been home to some strange food trends over the years, but the current hype around dishes made from insects and critters is surely the strangest. Thai cuisine has a long history of dishes with one or two spines – tingling ingredients that make the food strange. We are all used to preparing food with a mixture of spices, herbs, spices and other non-traditional ingredients. Sources: 3, 14

A key element of Asian cuisine is pickled or fermented meat, so even the least adventurous will probably enjoy cucumber fish and chips, but there is little room to cook beetles poorly and to tone down the flavor of Thai. You simply spray them with soy sauce, deep-fry them and you will be amazed at the sweet taste of locusts and scorpions when you devour them. The crispy, peppery taste, enhanced by soy sauce, makes you forget that you are eating fried insects. This unique Thai cuisine is strange, delicious or, say, unique in its use of fermented soybeans and natto. Sources: 0, 11, 12, 14

Fortunately, the Lao Cafe also serves a variety of other delicious Thai dishes, such as rice noodles and rice cakes. If you want to eat a fantastic Thai fruit salad in Bangkok, one of my favourites is Chamlong Asoke’s vegetarian food court, but you can also make your own if you wish. Don’t worry if you don’t like the idea of fried beetles or other Thai dishes, there are many ways to prepare them yourself. Sources: 0, 1, 4

At Bug Farm you can enjoy roasted crickets, mealworms and locusts, and if you are adventurous, you can also try some very unusual dishes that are only suitable for the brave – such as fermented duck eggs, dancing shrimps and roasted insects. If you’re an adventurous eater, you should be on the lookout for a variety of fried insect dishes at the Lao Cafe in Bangkok, but keep your eyes peeled for some of the more unusual, such as roasted beetles, fish and fishless chicken, or even fish and egg dishes. And for those of you who are adventurous eaters, there are many other options to choose from at Thai Food Court, with a wide selection of delicious fried insects, fish and fishless chicken, fried insect soup, chicken and egg soup and even a few other different fish varieties. Sources: 2, 10, 11

If you’re curious about crunching crickets and devouring locusts, check out this London restaurant that produces a variety of different insect species, including all kinds of insects, with its creepy crawlies. Sources: 8

If eating live critters is not your thing, but you’re still looking for something off the beaten track, check out the intense nam plabe, a popular street food in Bangkok. Kao Moo Dang is an ordinary street food, great for those days when you want something hearty, filling and mild in taste. This simple chicken rice dish is also a good choice on days when your stomach and palate need a break from the robust Thai flavors or you can no longer eat spicy food. It is worth taking this as an appetizer to get your many delicious meals in Thailand going. Sources: 6, 12, 13

Often considered a late-night treat, Malang’s death can be anything from worms, crickets, cicadas, locusts, the list goes on. The most popular species of malang death include the water bug, kao moo dang and even a variety of other insect species. Another variant that you could try are water bugs, which look like cockroaches when you need a mental image. Sources: 5, 9, 14

Other creepy crawlies such as locusts, tarantulas and crickets are being killed by Thai beetle carts in a dish called malang, a sight that you will inevitably encounter as you work your way through all the things you have to do in Phuket. Fried insects from the famous street markets are fine, but Talad beetles are the food for the locals. You will find food stalls scattered throughout the city, offering variations of this delicious rice dish. Some of these dining cars become brick and mortar restaurants that become culinary destinations (e.g. Guero Lardo), but if you want to try everything, you have to skip the busy tourist center and skip all of this. Sources: 2, 9, 12, 13

If you can’t digest the thought of eating fried insects, think of crispy crickets, bamboo worms and locusts as a great source of protein, iron and calcium. Crickets need about 2 kg of food to make about 80% of them edible (1 kg of meat). Temple Seitan’s Hackney and Camden locations do mouth – pouring fried chicken, though it’s more of a fried plant – based on junk food. Sources: 7, 11, 12

Insects are novel, but they are already consumed, only in the West we seem to be squeamish about them. This is not the case in many other parts of the world, so insects are not only novel, but also a great source of protein, iron, calcium and calcium. Sources: 7, 11

Food: Malang Tod