Hot damn, guys and gals!
The cicadas are coming and if you're in the Midwest or the Southeast, they will be more plentiful than ever. Or at least since the Louisiana Purchase.
This spring, for the first time since 1803, two cicada groups known as Brood XIX, or the Great Southern Brood, and Brood XIII, or the Northern Illinois Brood, are set to appear at the same time, in what is known as a dual emergence.
The last time the Northern Illinois Brood's 17-year cycle aligned with the Great Southern Brood's 13-year period, Thomas Jefferson was president. After this spring, it'll be another 221 years before the broods, which are geographically adjacent, appear together again.
The World Hasn’t Seen Cicadas Like This Since 1803 - The New York Times
What to do with all those l'il guys? Chow down, baby!
Maryland Cicadas
Yield: 8 servings
1/2 cup Old Bay seasoning
2 tablespoons salt
4 quarts water
1 (12 fluid ounce) can beer (optional)
8 red potatoes, quartered
2 large sweet onions, cut in wedges
2 pounds lean smoked sausage, cut in 2-inch lengths
8 ears fresh corn, broken in half
4 pounds large cicadas
Directions:
1. In an 8-quart pot, bring Old Bay, salt, water and beer to a boil. Add potatoes and onions; cook over high heat for 8 minutes.
2. Add smoked sausage to potatoes and onions; continue to cook on high for 5 minutes. Add corn to pot; continue to boil for 7 minutes. Add cicadas, cook for 5 minutes.
3. Drain cooking liquid. Pour contents of pot into several large bowls, shallow pails, or mound on a paper-covered picnic table. Sprinkle with additional Old Bay if desired.
Just one of many, many recipes for this highly nutritious lil critter!
Not that I have, but, properly prepared, I'd give 'em a try. My wife, on the other hand....
I think we need some intrepid forum volunteers from the states blessed with this bounty to man up, chow down, and document the experience with photos! (Pix of screaming wives and children, when they learn what that tasty dinner you prepared actually was, are encouraged. Whoever gets most "likes" to be awarded the latest Hummer or other vehicle by your financial tycoon or celebrity of choice!*)
----
* Or, maybe not, but it is the possibility, however remote, that counts in this proposed culinary challenge.
The cicadas are coming and if you're in the Midwest or the Southeast, they will be more plentiful than ever. Or at least since the Louisiana Purchase.
This spring, for the first time since 1803, two cicada groups known as Brood XIX, or the Great Southern Brood, and Brood XIII, or the Northern Illinois Brood, are set to appear at the same time, in what is known as a dual emergence.
The last time the Northern Illinois Brood's 17-year cycle aligned with the Great Southern Brood's 13-year period, Thomas Jefferson was president. After this spring, it'll be another 221 years before the broods, which are geographically adjacent, appear together again.
The World Hasn’t Seen Cicadas Like This Since 1803 - The New York Times
What to do with all those l'il guys? Chow down, baby!
Maryland Cicadas
Yield: 8 servings
1/2 cup Old Bay seasoning
2 tablespoons salt
4 quarts water
1 (12 fluid ounce) can beer (optional)
8 red potatoes, quartered
2 large sweet onions, cut in wedges
2 pounds lean smoked sausage, cut in 2-inch lengths
8 ears fresh corn, broken in half
4 pounds large cicadas
Directions:
1. In an 8-quart pot, bring Old Bay, salt, water and beer to a boil. Add potatoes and onions; cook over high heat for 8 minutes.
2. Add smoked sausage to potatoes and onions; continue to cook on high for 5 minutes. Add corn to pot; continue to boil for 7 minutes. Add cicadas, cook for 5 minutes.
3. Drain cooking liquid. Pour contents of pot into several large bowls, shallow pails, or mound on a paper-covered picnic table. Sprinkle with additional Old Bay if desired.
Just one of many, many recipes for this highly nutritious lil critter!
Not that I have, but, properly prepared, I'd give 'em a try. My wife, on the other hand....
I think we need some intrepid forum volunteers from the states blessed with this bounty to man up, chow down, and document the experience with photos! (Pix of screaming wives and children, when they learn what that tasty dinner you prepared actually was, are encouraged. Whoever gets most "likes" to be awarded the latest Hummer or other vehicle by your financial tycoon or celebrity of choice!*)
----
* Or, maybe not, but it is the possibility, however remote, that counts in this proposed culinary challenge.
(starts popping popcorn)
