Can doudan really be eaten? What is the market price per jin?

Most people probably do not know what doudan is. In fact, it is the larva of the soybean hawkmoth, about 5 cm long, tender green, graceful in shape, and similar to a silkworm. Some people say this thing can be eaten. So, can doudan really be eaten? What is the price per jin?

1. Can doudan really be eaten?

1. Doudan is the larva of the soybean hawkmoth. It lives by eating soybean leaves and black locust leaves, and is especially common in most areas of Shandong and northern Jiangsu. The soybean hawkmoth is an insect whose main host plants include soybean, mung bean, cowpea, black locust and so on, and it can damage bean leaves so that they cannot form pods.

2. Doudan is an insect that grows in a natural, non-toxic and pollution-free state. It is similar to a silkworm. As an adult it is about 5 cm long, tender green, with a darker head and a tail horn at the rear. From the first abdominal segment onward there are seven pairs of white lines on both sides. After maturing it burrows into the ground to lie dormant, waiting to emerge as an adult the following year.

3. Doudan can be eaten. Its meat pulp is non-toxic and harmless. Made into dishes, it has an exceptionally delicious flavor that is unforgettable, and it is one of the most representative local specialty products of the Lianyungang area, praised as a rare delicacy that is “seldom found in China, found only in northern Jiangsu, and unique to Guanyun.”

4. Doudan is an excellent high-protein food. Compared with eggs, milk and soybeans, it contains higher protein, and is also rich in calcium, phosphorus, iron, vitamin B, vitamin B2 and various other trace elements and nutritional factors needed by the human body. It has special effects such as lowering cholesterol, preventing high blood pressure and atherosclerosis, and treating stomach ailments.

5. How to prepare doudan: first, soak doudan in water until it drowns, then use a rolling pin to press the drowned doudan from head to tail to squeeze out the innards, put it in water to wash and remove the excrement; then put the squeezed-out meat into a pot of boiling water and cook it briefly so the meat congeals into complete long strips, then stir-fry it in a pan and set it aside; finally, stir-fry Chinese cabbage or luffa until lightly cooked, add red chili, garlic and other seasonings, and simmer.

2. What is the price of doudan per jin?

1. Doudan only grows in summer. After maturing it burrows into the ground to lie dormant, waiting to emerge as an adult the following year. To eat doudan, you certainly have to eat it before it emerges as an adult, otherwise it is no longer eating doudan. Because the species is scarce, its price is relatively expensive, at least several tens of yuan per jin and at most several hundred yuan per jin, and prices vary greatly between different seasons.

2. According to data provided by Sanjiang Biotechnology Co., Ltd., in 2017 the price of doudan for the whole of January was 200 yuan/jin, for the whole of February it was 300 yuan/jin, in early May it was 700 yuan/jin, in late May it was 400 yuan/jin, in early June it was 300 yuan/jin, in late June it was 150 yuan/jin, in early July it was 120 yuan/jin, in mid-July it was 80 yuan/jin, in late July it was 40 yuan/jin, for the whole of August it was 40 yuan/jin, in early September it was 60 yuan/jin, in mid-September it was 70 yuan/jin, in late September it was 90 yuan/jin, in early October it was 90 yuan/jin, in late October it was 120 yuan/jin, in November it was 140 yuan/jin, and in December it was 160 yuan/jin.

Doudan really can be eaten. Not only can it be eaten, it is also a high-protein, low-fat food. Made into dishes, it is very delicious, and after eating it has special effects such as lowering cholesterol, preventing high blood pressure and atherosclerosis, and treating stomach ailments. The price of doudan is very expensive, at least several tens of yuan per jin and at most several hundred yuan per jin. Prices differ by season, and the specific price is subject to the local market price.