Jumiles (Spanish: [xuˈmiles] ⓘ; Nahuatl languages: Xomilli) are small stink bugs native to the Taxco region of the state of Guerrero in Mexico. Their diet includes the leaves of the encina (Quercus ilex) tree.1 Chumiles are a smaller, similar stink bug of the same region (southern Morelos and northern Guerrero). Any edible Hemiptera from the families Coreidae or Pentatomidae may be considered jumiles as well.2
Use as food
Jumiles are collected for their culinary value and may be roasted, fried, ground, or eaten raw. A salsa is prepared by combining fresh tomatoes, chiles, and onions with jumiles that have been mashed in a molcajete. The salsa is served with corn tortillas.1 The beginning of the jumil season on November 1 is the occasion of a large fiesta in Taxco. Fiesta-goers gather in the mountain park of Huisteco to collect jumiles and to crown a Jumil Queen. Jumiles are plentiful from November until February and become scarce after the first rains.2
Jumiles have a cinnamon-like odor. They are considered an acquired taste due to their high iodine content, which imparts a bitter, medicinal flavor.3 Jumiles are also a good source of tryptophan and the vitamins riboflavin and niacin.45
See also
See also
- Entomophagy – Practice of eating insects by organisms
- Entomophagy in humans – Practice of eating insects in human cultures
- Insects as food – Use of insects as food for humans
- List of edible insects by country
- Chahuis – Mexican name for edible beetles
- Chapulines – Mexican dish of grasshoppers
- Escamol – Edible larvae and pupae of ants
- Maguey worm – Edible caterpillars that infest maguey
- Mezcal worm – Insect larva added for flavor to mezcal
References
References
- Hosking, Richard, ed. (2006). Wild Food: Proceedings of the Oxford Symposium on Food and Cookery, 2004. Totnes: Prospect Books. p. 180. ISBN 978-1-903018-43-9.
- De Foliart, Gene. "3. The Use of Insects as Food in Mexico". The Human Use of Insects as a Food Resource. Archived from the original on September 15, 2012.
- Menzel, Peter (November–December 1999). "Why I Eat Bugs". Utne Reader.
- DeFoliart, Gene (1992). "Insects as Human Food". Crop Protection. 11 (5): 395–399. doi:10.1016/0261-2194(92)90020-6. Archived from the original on 2015-04-23.
- Massieu, H. G.; Trigo, M; Cravioto, R.O.; Calvo de la T., J. (1950). "Sobre la applicación del Metodo de Thomas a la dosificación de tirosina en algunos alimentos Mexicanos". Ciencia e Investigación (in Spanish). 6. Argentina: 424–428.
Further reading
Further reading
Bukkens, Sandra G.F. (1997). "The nutritional value of edible insects". Ecology of Food and Nutrition. 36 (2–4): 287–319. doi:10.1080/03670244.1997.9991521.