Edible Insects in Cambodian Cuisine: A Crunchy Look at Tomorrow’s Protein

Forged in famine and genocide, Cambodia’s food culture carries scars of its past — but it may also offer solutions to the world’s future food security challenges. Tejashee Kashyap explores how resilience, tradition, and innovation are shaping the path forward.

I am heading to the Kulen Waterfall hike in Cambodia’s Siem Reap. Making my way from a Buddhist temple nearby, the pathway has gift shops and stalls selling all kinds of local delicacies. Something catches my attention — a seller pedalling up on a cycle attached with a basket. At first sight, it looks like crickets. On closer inspection, it turns out to be exactly that: a basket full of deep-fried crickets. The seller expertly scoops a handful of crickets, wraps it in newspaper and hands it to a customer. There’s suddenly a queue around him.

It is my first day in the country and I am still adjusting to Cambodia’s crawly cuisine culture.

Art by Sridevi Pai

Insects in Cambodian Culture

During my travels in Cambodia, I saw firsthand how insect-eating is an everyday reality. Almost every second store in the market sells insect delicacies — enjoyed either as quick snacks or part of larger meals. At one of Siem Reap’s most famous markets, I found myself on a food walk through Phsar Chas, or Old Market — a haven for food enthusiasts seeking local Cambodian soups, rice dishes, and other specialties.

There they were — large bowls and baskets filled with insect dishes sizzling in vegetable oil. Silkworm salad is an elegant dish, deep-fried with onions and spinach and finished with a splash of soy sauce. I noticed that crickets are the most commonly consumed insects. Typically crispy-fried with onions and chillies, they’re seasoned with a pinch of salt and spices for added flavour. Beetles undergo a similar preparation, and sometimes they’re coated in a light batter before frying. It was a first for me, watching insects being cooked in thick oil.

The market was a hotspot for Western travellers, especially backpackers exploring the South Asian circuit of Vietnam, Thailand, India, and Cambodia. They were visibly intrigued by the region’s gastronomic innovations. Someone on my food tour took a bite of a beetle and said, “It’s quite tasty, almost like popcorn!” I decided to take the plunge too. My first-ever bite of a fried insect, a cricket, cracked its crisp shell to reveal a soft, mushy interior. To my surprise, it was remarkably pleasant, not unlike fried chicken popcorn.

At one of Siem Reap’s most celebrated bars, ROAD6 inside Anantara Angkor Resort, I discovered that the interest extended beyond bugs. Alongside exotic cocktails, there was a plate of deep-fried tarantulas served as bar nibbles. The staff warned me that once I tasted a tarantula, especially the legs, there would be no going back. “Take one bite, and you’ll keep wanting more!” he assured me.

Hesitantly, I took a small bite of the legs. It was crunchy and delicious, tempting me to keep going. Admittedly, I only ate the legs, chewing through two tarantulas.

While insects have long been a popular street-side snack in Cambodia, it’s rare to see them served at cocktail parlours. For small vendors and shops, however, it is a ubiquitous part of their culinary culture. One lady seller from the market expressed her ambition to bring this Cambodian tradition into the mainstream by adding flavours like BBQ, hot and spicy, and cheese to the insects. 

Another day, as I sailed through Tonle Sap, Siem Reap’s famous lake, sipping on local beer, I treated myself to buttery sautéed silkworms. While watching one of the most glorious sunsets over the lake, I found myself wondering — has Cambodia uncovered a new taste in my palate?

Eaten mostly as a side dish, this food tradition began as a survival tactic during famine and forced displacement. The insect-eating culture in Cambodia is shaped by centuries of intense history, sociopolitical upheaval, and foreign influence. What is now a cherished culinary tradition began as a desperate survival measure during Cambodia’s dark chapter under the Khmer Rouge regime. Although lasting only four years, from 1975 to 1979, this communist rule was responsible for one of the worst genocides of the 20th century. Poverty drove many to rely on insects as a food source, as they could afford little else.

Today, these insects are being globally considered a future food, as the world shifts toward sustainable food systems. Could insects really be the future? Could young, emerging economies like this hold the answer to one of the world’s most pressing food challenges?

Is Feasting On Grubs The Future?

It was 2013 when the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations published a report titled ‘Edible Insects: Future Prospects of Insects as Food and Feed’. The report predicted that by 2050, the planet would be home to nine billion people. To address the food and nutrition challenges of today — nearly 1 billion people are chronically hungry worldwide — it is clear that what we eat and how we produce it must be re-evaluated.

A few months ago, popular internet personality and author, Krish Ashok (who goes by @_masalalab on Instagram and X) shared a detailed video on the concept of eating insects. In his video, he explained how the process of cooking eliminates all potential germs and parasites inside insects. Last December, at Goa’s Serendipity Arts Festival, Tansha Vohra of the Boochi Project explored the idea of insect eating by serving up weaver ants, crickets and mealworms at a food lab (below), during her session ‘Imagining Insects—Rethinking Taste, Disgust and Delight’.

Today, insect-eating is generating interest. Insects, the ‘future food’ promising to benefit our health, animals, and the environment, have become a buzzword.

Interestingly, insect protein doesn’t quite have the same appeal as alternative meat proteins. Studies show that insect protein is one of the best alternatives to animal protein. They are packed with essential micronutrients like iron and zinc. They require significantly less space than livestock and emit far fewer greenhouse gases. The global livestock industry already puts immense pressure on the environment. In the coming decades, we’ll need innovative solutions to produce enough protein for billions more people.

“As the global demand for sustainable protein sources rises, insects offer a compelling solution. They are nutrient-dense, rich in protein, healthy fats, and micronutrients. Environmentally friendly, they require less land, water, and feed than conventional livestock. They can be integrated into products such as protein bars, flour, and snacks. By combining indigenous wisdom with modern food technology, insects can play a key role in future food systems and address global food security challenges,” explains Athan Zimik,  banker-turned-chef and the Culture Chief at Gurgaon's OMO Café. Zimik belongs to the Tangkhul Naga tribe and his connection to insect food traces back generations within his tribe. He cites the example of the stink bug lenghik (Tangkhul Naga), found during the onset of winter in Northeast India. It is a delicacy and has long been used as an ethnomedicine to treat joint pain, jaundice, and urinary tract infections among the Naga people. “Such knowledge demonstrates how insect consumption is deeply connected to biodiversity conservation and holistic well-being.”

Zimik notes that interest in insect-based food is growing, and perceptions around it have evolved significantly over the years. “Many people today are open to trying insects, especially in cities where food curiosity is growing.”

Insects aren’t new to Indian cuisine. In India, several ethnic tribes from the northeastern states like Nagaland and Assam practice insect-eating, but is visible largely only during regional festivities. 

In many South East Asian countries, insect-eating is a regular sight.

Yet, it is still met with hesitation elsewhere. “In many societies, insects are seen as survival food or a sign of poverty, and with culinary traditions in the West and parts of India lacking their integration, they remain unfamiliar. Coupled with food neophobia and the perception of insects as pests, this makes acceptance even more challenging,” observes Zimik.

Yet, the future looks promising.

The new, emerging insect-eating diner is often a younger demographic — they are drawn to sustainability, alternative protein sources, and culinary experimentation. At the same time, food innovation is making insect-based diets more palatable by integrating them into processed foods and gourmet dishes.

Thailand has emerged as a global pioneer in gourmet insect cuisine, with dishes like cricket burgers, and buttery bamboo caterpillars that are a culinary statement. While crickets and other insects have long been enjoyed across Southeast Asia, countries like Singapore — where strict import rules govern food safety — have only recently embraced them in high-end dining. At Singapore’s House of Seafood, for instance, a classic fish-head curry comes with a side of crunchy crickets, and tofu dishes are playfully topped with insects. Meanwhile, Fura, a small bar and eatery tucked into a trendy shophouse on Chinatown’s Amoy Street, serves a tart with an amaranth crust, pickled beetroot, and insect garum, a fermented paste crafted from heat-dried locusts, grasshoppers, and blackened barley koji.

Insects, but make them delicious.

Tejashee Kashyap is an independent journalist, who enjoys spending her time uncovering stories of culture, travelling and running around her cat. 

ALSO ON GOYA