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Ways to start eating insects

smithsonianmag.com

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Re: Ways to start eating insects

#101

Post by SwellJoe »

vlehto wrote: post #89
ekianjo wrote: post #44

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu. This, and I'd like to see a convincing argument that it's actually delicious to eat. Eating is not just about surviving, it should be a pleasure as well, and I think you need to overcome a lot of barriers before you can actually put an insect in your mouth, no matter how "good" it's supposed to be for you…

I'd like to taste a convincing argument that tofu is actually delicious to eat. I'd rather eat fried ants.

Do you live in a large city? Know a really good Thai or Chinese or Vietnamese restaurant there? Go there. Order a curry with tofu, or kung pao tofu, or lemongrass tofu. If that isn't at least as tasty and satisfying for you as the same dish with chicken or beef, I'll be very surprised. I prefer the tofu version of all of them over the meat option (I am vegetarian, but have not always been so...I remember the taste and texture of the meat options).

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#102

Post by noondip »

aaxe wrote: post #86
noondip wrote: post #63

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Please check the citations carefully. The very first one I opened said, > Funding sources: Illinois Council on Food and Agricultural Research, National Cattlemen’s Beef Association, The Beef Board, Kraft Foods, National Science Foundation (PI: Layman). Dr Layman has participated in speaker bureaus for the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association and the National Dairy Council. Another reported, > Supported by a Medical…

You're sound like a conspiracy theorist. Attack the data if you have a problem.

Is it really so ridiculous to think for-profit groups care not for interests of my health? The evidence was simply unconvincing to me - mostly cohort and case control studies with small sample sizes, done by researchers I have never heard of (one lead author's credential was a degree in exercise physiology, for example). Compounded by the fact these individuals were paid money to seek out certain results, I simply find the whole of "evidence" to be laughable. If high-protein diets are truly so magical, why is it the World Health Organization recommends just 10% or fewer calories be derived from protein, and the majority from carbohydrates (fruit, vegetables, etc.)? Is there any recognized nutritional authority or respectable medical group which supports these sponsored, high-protein diet findings?

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#103

Post by noondip »

cgh wrote: post #92
PerfectElement wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, vegans are not protein deficient and many people thrive on high carb diets (see blue zones, adventist health studies, etc.) Unfortunately we've all been bombarded with the protein myth (more protein == healthier) and even the smart people of HN can't seem to question this belief objectively.

Vegans may not be deficient but they certainly aren't anywhere close to optimal. That's why very few strength and power athletes are vegans or vegetarians. People who concern themselves with building lean muscle mass, like me, do not seriously entertain the thought of plant-based diets, let alone high-carb ones. All of the data says otherwise: if you want to build lean muscle, eat quality protein that the human body…

Check out Patrik Baboumian. It doesn't appear he has any trouble building muscle on a plant based diet.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#104

Post by noondip »

bad_user wrote: post #73
ch0wn wrote: post #6

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The comment you replied to talked about cheap and sustainable sources of protein. Meat is neither.

Why isn't meat a sustainable source of protein? And yes, I'm pretty much aware of current industrial farming processes and what that does to the environment, but maybe you're missing the forest from the trees, as in maybe it's industrial farming that we should get rid of. Plants and animals are basically engines storing and converting the sun's energy into nutrients and natural ecosystems are very much sustainable. A…

> Why isn't meat a sustainable source of protein?

In short, it is because an animal will always eat more food to be food, than would be needed to just feed people on plants directly.

> maybe it's industrial farming that we should get rid of

"Free-range" farming practices are even more damaging and unsustainable than confined breeding operations, for the simple reason it takes more land and more resources.

> Plants and animals are basically engines storing and converting the sun's energy into nutrients and natural ecosystems are very much sustainable.

Not quite, plants are the nutrient producers - they synthesize solar energy into every amino acid essential to animals, into phytonutrients, etc. Animals, on the other hand, are nutrient consumers. I.e., animal derived foods are only nutritious because the animals ate plants.

> calories in our food is at an all times high

That's mostly from animal products and refined, packaged foods.

> Whereas many fruits are very inefficient, consume a lot of water and are not sustainable at scale

This is simply conjecture. Are you absolutely sure growing fruit is inefficient compared to modern animal agriculture?

> start eating corn.

Gladly. Starchy vegetables - complex carbohydrates - are the foods our ancestors ate for many years; they are regarded as a diet staple of several ancient societies.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#105

Post by jamoes »

In terms of sustainability, I agree with Rob Rhinehart [1] that single-cell protein (e.g. from algae) is the best path forward. It doesn't have the gross factor that insects have, and once the process is perfected, it should be one of the most efficient ways to produce protein.

https://www.reddit.com/r/soylent/comments/3afdfp/i_am_rob_am...

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#106

Post by ableal »

ant6n wrote: post #42
phreeza wrote: post #3

So why should we eat insects? The standard answer is: it is a cheap and sustainable source of protein. But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu.

Because animal protein is delicious.

I believe it's actually the fat. That's why lean meat requires larding, in cookbooks.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#107

Post by HillRat »

ekianjo wrote: post #44
phreeza wrote: post #3

So why should we eat insects? The standard answer is: it is a cheap and sustainable source of protein. But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu.

> But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu. This, and I'd like to see a convincing argument that it's actually delicious to eat. Eating is not just about surviving, it should be a pleasure as well, and I think you need to overcome a lot of barriers before you can actually put an insect in your mouth, no matter how "good" it's supposed to be for you…

Ant larvae, grasshoppers and crickets are surprisingly delicious when prepared well. Larvae are kind of a cross between barley and caviar, while grasshoppers fried with chiles have a deep unami flavor to them. The trick, I think, is finding a region (such as southwestern Mexico) where they have a culinary culture that privileges such dishes.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#108

Post by Retra »

ekianjo wrote: post #44
phreeza wrote: post #3

So why should we eat insects? The standard answer is: it is a cheap and sustainable source of protein. But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu.

> But I have yet to see a convincing argument that it is cheaper and more sustainable than soy protein, aka tofu. This, and I'd like to see a convincing argument that it's actually delicious to eat. Eating is not just about surviving, it should be a pleasure as well, and I think you need to overcome a lot of barriers before you can actually put an insect in your mouth, no matter how "good" it's supposed to be for you…

When's the last time you took a bite right out of a cow? You usually process it first.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#109

Post by Retra »

xefer wrote: post #77
adwn wrote: post #26

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What a cynical, inhuman, and shortsighted comment. The right way to stop population growth is not to starve poor countries to death, but to bring them to a higher level of wealth, education, and stability. Do this, and overpopulation (and a bunch of other problems) will solve itself.

I think you've wildly misinterpreted my point. Perhaps it's my fault for how I phrased things. I think these technologies, while undoubtably beneficial, have for many decades only pushed back the Malthusian limits imposed by nature which allowed exponential population growth while just as many people remained hungry and destitute. We're finally turning the corner where the population growth rate has slowed somewhat (…

If those limits can be pushed back, then nature isn't actually imposing them on us.

Re: Ways to start eating insects

#110

Post by qbrass »

nawitus wrote: post #100
bad_user wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why isn't meat a sustainable source of protein? And yes, I'm pretty much aware of current industrial farming processes and what that does to the environment, but maybe you're missing the forest from the trees, as in maybe it's industrial farming that we should get rid of. Plants and animals are basically engines storing and converting the sun's energy into nutrients and natural ecosystems are very much sustainable. A…

Animals are inefficient and unnecessary in food production. You're pretty much throwing energy out for no benefit.

Animals eat things you won't and turn them into things you will eat.
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