How Fried Grasshoppers Became A Staple Snack In Mexico

Visitors to Mexico City can find locals and tourists alike snacking on what may be an unusual protein to them: grasshoppers. The insects, typically referred to by the Spanish as "chapulines" on restaurant menus, are often fried as a snack on their own or used as toppings for tacos, chocolates, cocktails, and more. The low-calorie, high-protein food has been popular with generations of Mexicans but their history as a staple predates the nation of Mexico by thousands of years.

Chapulines are a traditional snack in the Oaxaca region of present-day Mexico (about 300 miles southeast of Mexico City), with archaeological evidence supporting their human consumption as far back as 3,000 years ago. Several indigenous groups, including the Mayans, ate chapulines as cures for assorted medical conditions until the arrival of the Spanish in the early 1500s.

The clash between the Old World and the New World brought a significant amount of cultural destruction to the various indigenous peoples of Mexico, which led to some groups being wiped out entirely. But the regional tradition of chapulines survived, eventually spreading through central Mexico and becoming a trendy food, often served with garlic and chile seasoning.

To my own surprise, I have tried chapulines. I was dining at a restaurant in Mexico City, where the owner offered my table a round of mezcalitas on the house, with a special salt around the rim which he asked us to identify. It was a lot earthier and nuttier than it was salty, but the tiny brown crumbles did have a crunch similar to coarsely-ground salt. None of us guessed chapulines, but dried and crushed grasshoppers paired wonderfully with the mezcal, another Oaxacan original. I licked my rim clean.

Insects are still unfamiliar to the typical American palate, but they are eaten by more than two billion people worldwide every year. For chapulines, demand is strong enough to help fuel an entire grasshopper industry. The insects are traditionally farmed in alfalfa fields, where the alfalfa seeds they like to eat give them their distinctly nutty flavor, though they are also sometimes caught in the wild. Grasshoppers can also be good for both you and the planet: Not only are they high in protein and low in calories, but they also require little land and food, and produce fewer emissions than other protein sources.