The peach blossom insect, also known as the peach blossom shrimp, is a small aquatic insect. They can be seen everywhere in the streams in Miao territory in western Hunan.

When someone arrived in western Hunan, the first village he went to was Dehang Miao Village. On the way to Leigong Cave, a small stream flows down from the top of the mountain. The water is so clear that rocks can be seen, there are groups of fish and shrimps, and crabs are crawling around.

On the roadside, the Miao grandmother sells some food, mostly Miao specialties. Fried mountain crabs, golden dried fish larvae, shelled meat centipedes, charcoal-charred small loaches...

Of course, the cutest one is the peach blossom insect. It is said that if you eat the peach blossom bug, you will have good luck, and the temptation is great.

Thinking of the wonderful story of picking flowers, and dreaming about meeting a cute girl from the Miao family, the boys naturally would not miss it, and rushed to buy the flower picking insects, one by one, and swallow them whole. Of course, there are also tough girls who inevitably want to find a brother from the Miao family, and there are also some who want to get a bunch of peach blossoms.

How to cook and eat peach blossom insects? Someone once mentioned it briefly in "Heavy-Delicious Food of the Miao Nationality: Collected Relics from the Countryside".

Every year around March, when the peach blossoms are at their most beautiful, the water in the stream rises slightly, and the peach blossom insects grow at their most plump and tender.

The Miao people in western Hunan go out in groups to catch this insect during the peach blossom season, which is when fallen flowers bloom. Hence the name.

The peach blossom insect grows under stones or in aquatic plants in streams and rivers. It looks like a piece of charcoal with double pincers, crawling and burrowing like a water centipede. Because it is often accompanied by rice shrimp, a local specialty, the Miao people also call it "shrimp".

I have to admire the imagination of the mountain people. When they are with the shrimps, they don’t care about their race. Under the pull of the peach blossoms, the peach blossom insect and the shrimps become a "husband and wife". The name of Mr. Shrimp is quite interesting. If used in this way, Xiami can also be called "Peach Blossom Wife" or "Peach Blossom Girl". However, the mountain people are still smart, hiding things in a shallow way and not falling into the cliché.

When someone was in western Hunan, he often saw the spring breeze blowing, peach blossoms falling, and groups of Miao girls with fish baskets on their waists and fine nets in their hands. With his trouser legs on, he fished for peach blossom bugs in the water with a smile. Since ancient times, fishing for peach blossom insects during the peach blossom season has become a unique custom among the Miao people in western Hunan. What is commendable is that this custom has not changed or been affected, and it has been passed down to this day. To this day, it can still be seen everywhere and everyone is happy.

After catching the peach blossom insects, clean them properly, dry them in the sun or oven, wrap them in layers, put them in bamboo baskets, and hide them in the attic of the kitchen. When it's time to eat, take it out and fry it, or stir-fry it with lean meat or pepper. It will be crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, and taste delicious.

If you enter a Miao village, the Miao family will treat guests with peach blossom insects as a treasure and a pot of warm rice wine, which means they treat the guests as VIPs. Naturally, guests also regard eating peach blossom insects as the most honored and happiest thing.