Five-Spice Bugs

Five-Spice Bugs

　　Five-Spice Bugs

　　　As the saying goes, “Sichuan is a paradise for food.” The cuisine in Sichuan is as wildly diverse as that of Guangzhou’s snake dishes, Henan’s grasshoppers, France’s snails, Africa’s ants, or Cuba’s bullfrogs. In the Zhugentan area of Wutongqiao District, Leshan City, eating “farting bugs” has long been a famous local tradition.

　　Every evening during late autumn and early winter, vendors can be heard hawking farting bugs along the streets. In the past, you could buy ten for just one fen, but now it costs two fen for a single one. After work, on weekends, holidays, or whenever, spending one yuan to buy a small plate, along with a cup of “Chengquan Rice Wine”—one of the “Three Treasures of Xiba” from Wutongqiao—you can enjoy it alone, share a drink with a friend, or take turns sipping with a group of three or five. No chopsticks needed—just use your fingers to pick up the bugs and sip wine with them, while chatting about the various tales of Sichuan life. It’s a uniquely delightful experience.

　　But what exactly is a farting bug? Well, it’s a bug that farts—releasing a foul odor. Its scientific name is Pentatomidae, also called stink bugs, belonging to the suborder Heteroptera of the order Hemiptera. According to the Cihai (an encyclopedia), there are numerous species of such insects, totaling around thirty thousand kinds, and these edible farting bugs are just one variety among them.

　　Farting bugs have a flat, oval-shaped body resembling a broad bean, grayish-black in color, about 2 millimeters in length. The front part of their body has three pairs of legs for crawling, while the back features double-layered wings for flying. The rear end has an opening for volatile scent glands, which release a foul stench—or an odd smell—when threatened, hence earning them nicknames like “farting bug,” “poot bug,” or “gas bug.”

　　The living habits of farting bugs involve foraging on plant leaves and sap during the day, then flying to the undersides of rocks along riverbanks to rest in the evening. Wutongqiao, located by the Min River, features low hills, plains, water, trees, and mountains. The Zhugentan area along the river has many pebbles, making it a very suitable habitat for the reproduction of farting bugs.

　　Catching farting bugs is hard work—you have to rise very early, and foggy days are a must-go, because that’s when the most bugs hide under the riverbank rocks. Typically, one to two bugs can be found under every square meter of stones, and sometimes even more than ten.

　　On late autumn mornings, when the north wind drives thick fog into your face and temperatures drop to around five or six degrees Celsius, the catchers often have to warm their hands by exhaling hot air into them, crouching down to flip over the icy cold rocks. It’s tough going—but the bugs are just beneath, and timing is critical, because once the sun comes out, the fog clears, and it gets warm, the bugs will start moving and quickly fly away.

　　Most catchers bring along small cloth bags. Though the labor is grueling, as long as the number of bugs in their bags keeps growing, their faces remain lit with smiles. An average person might catch dozens in a morning, while experienced catchers can easily haul in thousands.

　　The cooking process for farting bugs is quite simple. First, you must master the “urine-draining” step: place the bugs in water heated to seventy or eighty degrees Celsius to scald them, forcing them to expel all their urine (and thus their stink) and release their foul gas, thereby eliminating their offensive odor. Then, put them in an iron pan without oil (the bugs contain their own fat), toast them gently over low heat until crispy, and add a little salt before serving.

　　The finished product is dark brownish-black, black with hints of yellow, with heads, wings, and legs still intact. Can you really eat this? Yes, you can—don’t believe it? Try it yourself. First-timers are usually hesitant, so they cautiously pop one into their mouth. *Crunch!* A unique, fragrant crispiness bursts forth. “So delicious!” Once they take that first bite, tasters usually keep going, popping them in one after another, until the very last one is gone.

　　People often say that farting bugs are “strangely fragrant to smell, delightfully crispy to bite, richly flavorful to chew, and appetizing to eat.”

　　Therefore, the final product is no longer jokingly called a “farting bug,” but is respectfully dubbed a “Five-Spice Bug,” borrowing the “five flavors” concept from Sichuan cuisine and the refined term “wuxiang” (five-spice). Vendors along the street also call out: “Five-Spice Bugs!”