Snout & Seek - Discover Culinary Wonders
Snout & Seek - Discover Culinary Wonders
Culinary Cultural Exploration & Discovery
⌘K
Subscribe Sign in
Snout & Seek - Discover Culinary Wonders

Salmon Tartare with Fermented Ants

An unusual topping to salmon tartare - today we bring you fermented ants.
A white plate with a circular salmon tartare base topped with fermented brown ants and a pickled chili pepper

In Yunnan, fermentation often comes from necessity. Among some communities, including the Bai, ants are fermented and used as a sour condiment, traditionally eaten with porridge as a substitute for salt.

We encountered this approach in Chengdu, at a restaurant run by a chef and owner from Yunnan. His menu draws from the fermentation techniques he grew up with, bringing them into a more contemporary setting. One of the standout dishes was a salmon tartare topped with fermented ants. We were shocked how well the ingredients worked together. The acidity cut through the richness of the fish, keeping the dish clean and refreshing, and making it one of the most memorable things we tried.

Subscribe to discover and explore!

No spam, no sharing to third party. Only you and me.

Member discussion

More like this

Dozens of rows of soy sauce fermentation urns line the river bank next to a wide green river, each urn has its bamboo lid overturned on its side, resembling a hat resting against the urns.

Soy Sauce Factory near the Chishui River

A look over Xianshi Soy Sauce's factory next to the Chishui river.
A look inside an industrial warehouse where baijiu is using mud pits to ferment, steam rises during the fermentation process.

Steaming Sorghum for Baijiu Brewing

To many people’s surprise, baijiu is made very differently from rice wine. Instead of liquid fermentation, it follows a solid-state process.
Yellow-ish clear water with small white clouds in a large stainless steel vat; a worker uses bamboo trays to wisk the water in the tofu molding process.

Tofu Molding in Water

Making tofu by hand has been part of Chinese food culture for over two thousand years, traditionally traced back to the Han dynasty.
Two rows of small, 12'' brown ceramic pickling jars - one row is plain, the other has a decorative pattern painted on the side.

Ceramic Pickling Jars Are Everywhere

You can't say you've been to Sichuan if you haven't stumbled upon rows of ceramic pickling jars.
Large amber glass-like rocks on an old-fashioned weighing rod with a 1.0kg weight on the end

Rock Sugar for Pickling in Sichuan

These large chunks of rock sugar used in pickling are often not made from sugarcane.
A soy sauce fermentation urn with rich dark black soy beans surrounding the bamboo cistern that collects the rich sauce, topped with a micro net to prevent insects from climbing inside.

Soy Sauce Fermentation in Progress

The beautiful sight of soy sauce fermentation - rich dark soy sauce collects in the middle giving a deep aroma in the air.