Cockchafer soup facts for kids

A "mock" cockchafer soup, made with crabs instead of beetles.

Cockchafer soup is a unique European dish. It is made from an insect called the cockchafer beetle. This soup was once a special food in countries like Germany and France. People enjoyed it until the middle of the 1900s. Many say it tasted a lot like crab soup.

Cockchafer beetles used to be very common in Europe. Their numbers would grow hugely every four years. This made it easy to collect many beetles for soup. However, people started using too many chemicals to kill pests. This caused the beetle populations to drop sharply by the 1970s. In some places, they even disappeared completely. Because these beetles are now quite rare, cockchafer soup is almost never made anymore.

What Is a Cockchafer?

A cockchafer is a type of beetle. It is also known as a "May bug" because it often appears in May. These insects are quite large. They have a hard, reddish-brown body and can fly. In the past, they were seen as pests because they would eat crops and tree leaves.

Why Did People Eat Insects?

Eating insects, also known as entomophagy, has been common in many cultures. People ate cockchafers because they were easy to find. They were also a good source of protein. When there were many beetles, they became a simple and available food source.

How Was Cockchafer Soup Made?

Making cockchafer soup was a detailed process. An old French recipe from the 1800s gives us an idea.

Collecting and Preparing the Beetles

• First, about 500 grams of cockchafer beetles were needed.
• Their legs and wings were carefully removed.
• The beetles were then fried in butter. This step likely added flavor.

Cooking the Soup

• After frying, the beetles were cooked in a broth. This broth was usually made from chicken or veal.
• Some people would strain the soup. They would drink it as a clear broth, called a boullion.
• Others preferred a thicker soup. They would crush the cooked beetles. Then, they mixed them with egg yolk and a thickening agent called roux.

Serving the Dish

• The soup was often served with special additions. These included thin slices of veal liver or dove breast.
• Crispy bread pieces, known as croutons, were also added.
• A single serving of this soup could contain around 30 beetles.

Why Did Cockchafer Soup Disappear?

The main reason cockchafer soup is no longer common is the decline of the beetles.

• Farmers began using strong pesticides to protect their crops.
• These chemicals greatly reduced the number of cockchafers.
• As the beetles became rare, it was no longer easy to gather enough for soup.
• Also, food tastes and availability changed over time.

Today, cockchafer beetles are protected in some areas. This helps their populations recover. While the soup is mostly a thing of the past, it shows how people once used local resources for food.