Texas Man Answers What 200 Dead Ants Taste Like. He Turned Them Into Sauce: ‘Soy Sauce on Steroids.’
Food preferences are diverse, and what some people consider a pantry staple may not even cross the minds of others who live in a different part of the globe. But Ant Sauce (@antsauceco), a company from Austin, Texas, went viral on social media for formulating a bizarre condiment.
“With 200 dead ants in every bottle of Ant Sauce, people want to know, what does Ant Sauce taste like?” Stephen Norberg, proud ‘Antrepreneur’ of Ant Sauce, told TikTok.
“Ant Sauce is a savory umami sauce. Think soy sauce on steroids,” he explained as he checked on one of the pots in the kitchen. Norberg also claimed that their recipe has 67% less sodium. On their official website, the FAQ also states that the product does not contain gluten or soy.
Why make sauce out of ants?
“The ants add notes that are citrusy, smoky, tangy, nutty, and rich. Not only that, Ant Sauce has more ants than any other sauce in the market,” he continued. Then, he advertised the official website for ant sauce.
Currently, there are three ant sauce flavors listed on the website, all of which sell for $18 a piece. There is also a sampler pack for the ant-filled sauces priced at $44. Though the ingredients are unique, the website claimed that the company is “obsessed” with safety and cooks, produces, and pasteurizes its sauces locally in Austin.
When people think of bugs, they might understand how the creatures affect the food chain. However, bugs as a part of cuisine are still considered niche.
Even though Norberg officially plugged the website for the product, social media users were perplexed. Some thought it was satirical, but others seemed to be in disbelief that Ant Sauce is real.
One commenter wrote, “That’s about 200 more ants than I want.” Others have even wondered what the purpose of ant sauce is if it tastes just like soy sauce.
Someone else said, “It’s like intergalactic television from Rick and Morty.” In the show Rick and Morty, the intergalactic television is a device that gives the main characters access to every TV show in the multiverse. Seeing Norberg advertise using ants for sauce had simply ruffled some social media users.
Another questioned, “I’m not hating on this, but genuinely, what is the target audience?” Other commenters joked that the target may actually be anteaters, spamming the video with photos of the creature.
A conspiracy to make humans eat bugs
But then, some social media users have taken the allegations to an extreme. They accused the business of normalizing the consumption of bugs as food as a part of a bigger conspiracy.
One person alleged, “They want us to eat bugs.” Another commenter criticized, “Trying to normalize eating bugs so that in the future we will pay top dollar for some roaches. Look at shellfish, not so long ago only poor and prisoners ate it.” But someone else defended Ant Sauce, saying that eating bugs is “more sustainable” compared to eating meat.
In what seems to be a response to the conspiracies, Ant Sauce quipped that their real end goal in creating Ant Sauce is “breeding ants the size of chickens” and urging the government to introduce ants into the water supply.
Furthermore, Ant Sauce denied that they are ruled by “tinfoil-hat overlords” and have maintained that they are an independent startup.
(featured images: Sai Pixels, Ant Sauce, Dasha)
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