Mexico has great gastronomic variety with dishes that always make one main ingredient stand out. This ingredient can be animal protein, vegetables, legumes, or one of the most exotic elements ever: edible insects. These not only have great benefits, but are delicious and have been part of our culture for thousands of years.

To confirm this, Baja Window to the South co-host, Scott Koenig, went to Cien Años restaurant where Chef José Sparza invited him to taste a series of dishes, and on this occasion, the main ingredient was chapulines (grasshoppers). The chef stated that like any other exotic food, the key is to let the insect be the main ingredient so that the flavor is not lost.

Koenig added that 2 billion people eat insects as part of their daily diet and Sparza said that in Mexico chapulines are usually eaten as a snack. One can find people selling these insects in the street or markets in big buckets, where they can be purchased pure or prepared with hot sauce and a little bit of lime. For today’s dish, the insects were cooked as a main ingredient with onions, jalapeño pepper, and mezcal.

Once cooked, Olga Sánchez de la Vega, Scott, and Chef Sparza all prepared themselves some delicious chapulin tacos with a little bit of green sauce. Lastly, José said that when he created his restaurant, he wanted to bring to Tijuana something that didn't exist here and that something was the edible insects. His is the first restaurant to bring this traditional Mexican ingredient to the city.

Click here if you want to watch the complete episode of Baja Window to the South where this topic was discussed!

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