If you want to eat sago grub, ulat mulong or siet in Melanau raw or fried, experience it at Mukah. It is likened to a 'micro-cow' because of its high protein (17%) content and plenty of fat.
Usually one can buy live siets in plastic packets at the daily market at Mukah. To buy a kilo is expensive at RM25! The pasar is just by the river bank.
The grubs are actually caterpillars of kumbang sagu (striped beetle). The beetle bore boles in harvested sago logs floating in the river or rotting trunks in the farm and lay their eggs which hatched into caterpillars. Enterprising villagers would rear them in sago waste .
The fried ones , with butter, salt and chilli api taste better and crunchy. To eat a live one, grip its head with two fingers, bite off the body, munch and swallow. The head is discarded. Ah, I have quite forgotten the taste! It was years ago. There are cases eating them raw can cause allergic reactions - rashes, vomitting and fever.
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