Would you dare to eat red ants Chutney?
I often end up looking for amazing local produce available in different parts of the world.
Nothing explains the essence of a place better than the local food.
Why go far when your own country has so much to offer with its abundance of cultures?
The Unique Food Of Bastar In Chattisgarh
The villagers have come up with a very good idea to deal with the problem of red ants in the village.
What better way than to eat them all up? The red ants are central to their food just like rice or dal.
But they are mostly consumed in the form of a chutney.
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People prepare their red ants’ chutney with different ingredients such as salt, garlic, ginger, chillis and so on. This chutney is called ‘Chaprah’. The word means leaf basket. It is named after the nests made by the ants out of the Sal tree leaves.
The Red Ants Chutney has a very strong pungent flavor
The formic acid in the ants gives a sour taste to the chutney. The red ants’ chutney also has some health benefits.
Ants are rich in Proteins, Zinc, Cobalamine, Copper, Potassium, and Calcium. It helps in making our immunity strong and is good for the bones. A deficiency in cobalamine causes pernicious anemia in human beings.
These eating habits might seem abnormal or even funny to a few people but it is an integral part of the diet of the people of Chattisgarh. I think you should give this red ants’ chutney a try when you visit Chattisgarh next.
What are your views? Have you ever tasted Red Ants Chutney? Let us know in comments below.
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