Wasp Rice Crackers

[Mulboyne]

[floatr][/floatr]A group looking to spice up the local snack industry has created a "senbei" rice cracker that contains digger wasps. The Omachi Jibachi Aikokai (Omachi digger wasps lovers group) arranged for a local confectioner to produce "Jibachi Senbei". The larvae of the wasps are regarded as a delicacy in Japan but the group decided that it was a waste that adult wasps were not consumed. Each cracker contains five or six wasps. A bag off 20 costs 370 yen. (Text from the Asahi - no link).

[Mulboyne]

A closer look:

[hundefar]

My father in law told me that he used to work collecting the larvae when he was a kid. They used to take a small piece of meat and place it on a stick. They tied a string with a piece of cottonwool at the end to the meat. When the wasp came and took the meat, they would run after it to the nest. Then they'd drop a firecracker down the nest which would leave the wasps unconscious and dig out the larvae.

He says the taste isn't that interesting.

[GuyJean]

.. He says the taste isn't that interesting.

A case of the hunt being more interesting than the conquest.. Or was that an expression about women? Can't recall if it's about women or wasp larvae..

GJ