Have you ever tried to eat an insect in your life? Eating fried insects is normal in Thailand. Insects are low in calories, high in protein and extremely nutritious. If you would like to try them, you can easily find fried insects sold by the vendors on the street, especially at touristy places. Your adventure trip would not be complete without trying Thailand insect food!
Bamboo Worms (Rot Duan)
Bamboo Worms are called Rot Duan or express train in Thai, due to their shape. They eat bamboo pulp in a bamboo tube. These worms can be found in the North of Thailand during the rainy season. It is the most basic snack for the start of eating insects and you can easily find them at almost every street food vendor selling insects in the country. The taste and texture of these worms is like of a small crunchy corn puff snack with a bit of saltiness.
Silk Worms (Nhon Mhai)
Silkworms known as Nhon Mhai are our favourite Thailand insect food.
These fried insects is a popular snack for locals. Silkworms come from a range of families, but they are all from the butterflies. They have a soft shell that is crispy after frying it. The taste is a bit like tofu but creamy and has a taste of herbs because they are usually fried with kaffir leaves. Silkworms are perfect to eat with soy sauce and pepper.
Scorpions (Maeng Pawng)
Scorpions have poisonous stings but you can eat them whole as long as the scorpions are cooked. In the northeast area of Thailand, scorpions are considered a tasty snack. Their taste is described as being similar to raw shrimp.
We’ve listed the most popular fried insects in Thailand. However, you can try the others such as Molecriket (Maeng Kra Chon), and Cockchafer (Maeng Eee Noon) as well. They are commonly sold together.
