Donate to the Cause
Thank you so much for your interest in donating to our advocacy! Your donation will be used for food heritage research, field work expenses, website hosting and maintenance, and the like so that I can continue sharing our different local food cultures and ingredients.
Donate to the Cause
Thank you so much for your interest in donating to our advocacy! Your donation will be used for food heritage research, field work expenses, website hosting and maintenance, and the like so that I can continue sharing our different local food cultures and ingredients.
Sta. Ignacia, Tarlac
Itlog ng abuos
Itlog ng abuos are eggs of weaver ants or “hantik” in Tagalog. Itlog ng abuos is seasonal, available around March and April. The eggs are gathered from nests made of leaves which can be seen hanging in trees. Locals describe the eggs of abuos as “malinamnam”. Matured abuos or already hatched ones have hint of sourness. In terms of texture, it is soft and pops in your mouth.
Food items from insects are one of the least exploited food sources. However, in regions where Ilocanos are present, insects became an important part of culture and food security.
Weaver ants or hantik are known for their unique nest building behavior. They stitch the leaves together using larval silk.
According to the gatherers, nest with dried/old leaves has higher chance of having abuos eggs.
The abuos build their nest in different trees and plants such as acacia, mango, mahogany, and tarab-tab.
Nests can be found in extreme heights.
Gatherers shake the nest vigorously to extract the egg which causes the ants to run erratically.
Collecting the eggs is a painful task. Gatherers are exposed to the painful bites of the ants.
Freshly harvested eggs in aludan.
To make things easier, the gatherers use fire to eliminate the ants.
Next step is pagtatahip. This removes the dead ants and also the eggs that are not big enough to be consumed.
Discarded abuos.
Matured abuos. They have a little bit sour flavor.
Sautéing with onion, garlic, and tomatoes is one of the easiest ways to prepare abuos.
This dish can be eaten as a viand or as a pulutan.