Red Ant Chutney Adventure
![Red Ant Chutney Adventure](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/145.jpg?resize=747%2C271&ssl=1)
If you are from India then you are no stranger to Chutneys and Pickles but India being a diverse country the types or varieties of chutneys and pickles can also be mind boggling. My in laws are from the state of Jharkhand thus right after my marriage I kept hearing about chutneys being prepared with Red Ants. Myself being a Bengali I have obviously tasted fish pickle, meat pickle and of course the varieties of vegetable and fruit pickles/chutney but red ants are something which is out of my comfort zone.
But being an avid traveller all these years I have learnt one thing that unless you taste the local food when you visit a place till then you have actually not visited the place in reality. So I have always wanted to taste Red Ant Chutney of Jharkhand, something similar is also prepared by the tribal of Bastar and is known as Chaprah. In the state of Jharkhand especially in Chaibasa is known as Demta, the words demta means ant in the local Mundari language.
Places Where Red Ant Chutney is Available
![Red Ant Chutney Zone (Parts of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha & West Bengal)](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/117.jpg?resize=680%2C470&ssl=1)
Chaibasa also happens to be the place where my father in law actually grew up and his mother still resides there along with my aunt’s in law. I have visited Chaibasa several times after my marriage but unfortunately always been there at the wrong time when the little red ants were not being sold in the local village market. This year however I had made it a point that I will definitely taste demta chutney and thus planned my vacation to Chaibasa accordingly.
Buying The Red Ants
This time I had done my homework and already knew that the illusive red ants were already being sold in the market for the last couple of days, these are mainly sold by the villagers who collect them from the forests around Chaibasa. They also happen to speak Mundari which is one of the tribal language from this part of Chotanagpur Plateau and my father in law speaks this language fluently so this time I dragged him in the mid-day heat to search the market for the red ant seller.
Along with me my wife Smita and our daughter Rianna was also with me in this adventure. Initially we could not find any one selling demta and I had almost given up when my wife asked a local vegetable seller in the market and she in turn pointed us to the fish and meat section of the market where these red ants are usually sold.
![Local Market at Chaibasa – Women Selling Paan Leaves](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/216.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
![Local Market at Chaibasa – Women Fruits and Seeds](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/48.jpg?resize=680%2C470&ssl=1)
We go to the designated section and its then Smita spots an old lady selling these red creatures. She was selling demta on leaf for Rs. 10, we decided to buy all the four leaf that was there for sale, its then I realised that she has a metal pitcher where she has more of these. I try to ask her the way to prepare them but she could not understand me, it’s then my father in law steps in and asks her in Mundari about the way its prepared. She informs us that the ants, larva & eggs can be eaten raw directly but the preferred choice of the villagers is with salt and lots of chillies.
![Red Ants, Red Ant Larva & Red Ant Eggs Being Sold](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/55.jpg?resize=680%2C470&ssl=1)
![Woman Selling Red Ants in Chaibasa, Jharkhand](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/65.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
Seeing my curiosity the old lady gives me some raw ants and larva to taste, since I had already made up my mind to taste these I had no inhibition and tried a mouth full. It was extremely sour, may be a hundred times more than a raw tamarind. This sourness is due to the presence of Formic Acid, something which the locals claim to have medicinal properties.
![Red Ants, Red Ant Larva & Red Ant Eggs](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/75.jpg?resize=680%2C471&ssl=1)
Making Chutney Out Of The Red Ants
We decided to head back home with the red ants and make a chutney out of it, luckily my grandmother in law is somewhat and expert in this and on seeing our catch her eyes lit up. She is well above ninety and can hardly hear properly still her excitement could not be controlled, she took the onus on herself and cleaned the red ants by separating unwanted particles from the red ants and larva. She knew the full recipe which she dictated to Smita and accordingly the chutney was prepared.
![My Grand Mother in Law Cleaning the Catch](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/85.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
![My Grand Mother in Law Cleaning the Catch](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/95.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
steps for making Red Ant Chutney
- Clean the ants, eggs and larva by separating them from any unwanted particles
- Wash them and drain out the water
- Add fresh tomato, garlic and chillies to the mix and make a paste with mortar and pestle (Use a Mixer/Grinder alternatively)
- Heat little oil in a pan and add chopped onions, once brown in colour add the mix and give it a light toss, dry the mix in the heat and you are done
![Making Paste of the Red Ants Along With Salt, Garlic, Tomatoes & Chillies](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/105.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
![Making Paste of the Red Ants Along With Salt, Garlic, Tomatoes & Chillies](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/118.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
![Frying the Paste in Oil Along With Chopped Onions](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/125.jpg?resize=680%2C473&ssl=1)
Alternately you can just make a paste of ants, salt and chillies to have something much quicker if you want to avoid the above process. The local as mentioned earlier eat them only with salt which I would suggest you must try to get the real feel.
So next time you are in the tribal villages of Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh or Odisha remember to try this unique red ant chutney. In my next blog I will tell you through visuals an exotic tribal lunch, so keep reading my blog and bon appétit.
![Red Ant Chutney](https://i0.wp.com/indianvagabond.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/135.jpg?resize=680%2C470&ssl=1)
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eta aamae khetei hocche
Heheheh its a must if you are a real traveler…
I do appreciate your courage 🙂 This was story was very interesting and first time hearing about ant chutney
Nice to know about Red ant chutney, where people eat it, even how its prepared.
Thank you for that and the pics. 🙂
Nicely composed with beautiful photos, recipe and story
Thank you Apurba Da… 🙂
Brr and I see it on the world vegan day 😀
There are lots of chillies, garlic & onion… Those are veggie 🙂
Amazing, Thanks for sharing.
Thanks 🙂
sweet , saw ants being sold last weekend, now I know another preparation to indulge in on my next visit
Wow. Truly exotic and indigenous.. I tasted it yesterday but it was fried with onions. Surely gonna try your chutney recipe next. I hope to see more with different techniques. 🙂 Happy blogging.
Kintu pipde dhore ki kore grameer lokera. Mane ekta duto noi besh koek hazar taina
These ants make nest in the trees of the local forest. The villagers track these down and collect the ants from their nest.
Online red ants eggs are available??
No I don’t think so…
Very unique information.
Very well written!! 👏👏👏
Hi,
Demta is eaten by tribals in all over Jharkhand, Chattisgarh and Odisha.
I am from Simdega district of Jharkhand, my district shares border with Odisha and Chattisgarh, I have know all the tribal people from these regions to eat Demta (Big Red ants not the small red ants).
By the way I too eat Demta – it is one of the tribal delicacy.