Dried caterpillar · Wild-harvest protein

Phane (Mopane Worms)

Photo: Chandapiwa Malema / Wikimedia Commons · CC0

Dried mopane worms are roughly half to two-thirds protein by weight, and the seasonal harvest supports a trade that runs across southern Africa.

Phane are the dried caterpillars of the mopane emperor moth, harvested from mopane trees, gutted, boiled, and sun-dried. Vendors sell small bags of the crunchy, earthy-tasting worms at markets and roadside stands, where buyers often rehydrate and fry or stew them with onion and tomato.

Why it's made this way: Mopane worms are a seasonal wild harvest rather than a farmed crop, so drying turns a short annual glut into a lightweight, shelf-stable protein that vendors can carry and sell for months after the harvest ends.