Gordon Ramsay called it ‘delicious’: how India’s red ant chutney has moved beyond a tribal staple – and why eating more insects would help save the planet
- Spicy ‘kai’ chutney made from red weaver ants is a centuries-old Indian tribal staple that Gordon Ramsay loved when he tried it. It’s said to be medicinal too
- People in Odisha, India, want to protect the unique condiment with a geographic indication or GI, tag, which it’s hoped would draw more tourists to try it
Their sting can leave victims writhing in pain, but the chutney created from grinding their bodies is so tasty that British chef Gordon Ramsay called it “delicious” and put it on his menu back in 2018.
The tiny red weaver ants harvested from the sal trees of the Similipal biosphere reserve in the Indian state of Odisha are the key ingredient of kai chutney. Named after the indigenous ants, known locally as kai, the relish has been part of the diet of India’s eastern and northeastern tribal communities for centuries.
With the chutney’s growing popularity, tribespeople in Odisha’s Mayurbhanj district are seeking a geographical indication (GI) tag for it. If issued, the tag would designate the chutney as unique to the district, with qualities not found in any rival product.
Harvesting red weaver ants from the forest isn’t easy. Each ant nest swarms with aggressive males guarding the egg-laying females. Intruding foragers are often attacked viciously.
“The trick is to wait patiently until the ants come out on their own to crawl the tree trunk, and can be hunted with relative ease,” says Pobitra Mandal, a 56-year-old native of Mayurbhanj whose family has been harvesting the ants for culinary and therapeutic purposes for generations.
“The best time to harvest kai is at dawn when the ants are less active and haven’t yet mobilised themselves enough to attack in groups.”
