Can you eat cicadas? | TIME

Get ready to see cicadas everywhere.

More than a trillion of the creatures are expected to emerge in parts of the United States this year, in a rare co-emergence event the likes of which haven’t been seen in more than two centuries.

Known for their deafening mating calls that can be as loud as lawnmowers, cicadas emerge after more than a decade underground, offering a tasty meal to birds — and even the occasional human.

That’s right, cicadas, like many insects, have been hailed as an environmentally friendly, protein-rich alternative to poultry and livestock. They are low in cholesterol, crunchy and carry what has been described as a nutty flavor and shrimp-like quality. The restaurants have presented bugs in experimental menus, while several cookbooks have been published dedicated to recipes involving cicadas.

So if you’re interested in seeing cicadas on your plate this year, here’s what you should know to get started.

First step: get them

Cicadas can typically be found in wooded locations, such as near trees and bushes – although for hygiene reasons, experts to warn against collecting cicadas for food in places that may contain pesticides or trash. You can even start looking in your own backyard.

However, you should try to be selective. Freshly emerged cicadas from the ground might not be the tastiest snack. It’s best to wait for them to moult, shedding their old shells to become clean and soft, said chef Joseph Yoon Popular science in 2022. But after molting, you might want to hurry with the collection—the older cicadas get, the less muscle mass they’re likely to have, making them less tender and juicy. Yoon also warned against eating dead cicadas, which could have already started to decompose.

And don’t worry about getting hurt: Although cicadas’ legs and claws can be prickly to the touch, they don’t bite or sting. You can pick them up carefully by attaching their wings to their body with your thumb and forefingers, and then collect them in a bag or container.

Step Two: Clean Them

Janna Jadin, author of Cicada-Licious: Cooking and Savoring Periodical Cicadas, recommends Freeze cicadas after capturing them as a convenient way to kill and store the insects.

After taking them out of the freezer, Jadin also recommends, you can boil the cicadas to get rid of any microbes before cooking. (Washing your hands regularly would also be advisable. “It’s important to handle your hands as you would a piece of raw chicken or eggs in the shell,” says nutrition consultant Toby Amidor, food network in 2021.)

Alternatively, you can boil the cicadas immediately after catching them.

Step Three: Cook Them

Cicadas have been used in cuisines around the world, consumed in ancient Greece and Rome and long enjoyed as a traditional delicacy in Thailand and the Congo.

There are all kinds of creative ways to incorporate cicadas into a meal. They are self-employed – some say best fried outdoors—or as a complement to dishes like curries and pasta. Some people crush the insects and mix the powder into the bread or use it to decorate the rim of a drinking glass, like salt in a margarita. Social media has become a treasure trove of recipes, and you might even be inspired by your own. zodiac sign.

But before you sink your teeth into the cicadas, experts warn that people with shellfish allergies — or who should normally avoid shellfish, such as pregnant women or young children, or those at risk of gout — should stay away of eating cicadas, which are actually a derivative of seafood.