Seasonal Delicacies – Grasshoppers(Nsenene)
by g1admin
Grasshoppers are a seasonal delicacy in Uganda . Eating insects as a snack is not a common practice in many countries and so some may find it weird. In Uganda, many people enjoy eating grasshoppers, commonly known as Nsenene in the Luganda language, which was adapted by most people in Uganda.
The grasshoppers come out from the ground when the rain is too much in the months of May, June, October and November. But some people have come up with ways of rearing the grasshoppers and supplying them throughout the year. Grasshoppers come out during the night and gather around the lights. So people put out many lights at night in order to attract many grasshoppers and then they collect them in bags.
Once they are sold, then the process of preparing them as a snack starts in the different homes. The process starts with plucking off wings and legs from each one to avoid choking you. A saucepan is put on fire, no cooking oil is added because these insects get to produce their own oil which is used in frying them. Depending on how you like your Nsenene, you can choose to keep them for longer so as to be crunchy or not for long. some people add in vegetable oil when the grasshoppers aren’t fatty. You can also add onions and green pepper to spice them up and salt and black pepper to taste. The best way to preserve them is to boil them before plucking off the wings and legs and thereafter drying them in the sun. This way you can always fry the small portions you want.
