Not only in France appreciate the exquisite and delicate taste of frog legs. There are already many admirers of this dish not only in Europe, but also in Russia. Frog meat is valued much higher than veal, and in some countries it is believed that this meat is comparable in biological value to sturgeon and pike caviar.
In some countries they even manage to add frog meat to desserts and chocolate. This is done in Peru, and it is believed that the dried meat of these amphibians saves from anemia and helps cure infertility. Even in the restaurants of conservative England, you can find dishes made from frog legs.
However, not all types of frogs are suitable for eating, so edible species are bred on special farms.
Views
The French understand the term "edible frogs" as a special kind, because it is not proper to eat anything. In fact, frogs that are eaten from those that live in the natural environment only differ in the color of the resonator bubbles. Lakesides have gray resonators, while artificially bred ones have white ones.
The most common type of food eaten in Europe -European frog - is a mixture of pond and lake species.
In general, in the family of real frogs, there are three species that are all considered edible, that is:
- lake Ranidaei Redibunda;
- pond Rana lessonae;
- edible (a hybrid of the two previous species) Ranaesulenta.
Edible species also include Leopard frogs and Bullfrogs, but these species do not live in our country.
Which frogs are edible in Russia? All three species are found on the territory of our country.
Other species that can be eaten do not live in our country. Although such studies have never been conducted in any country, there is no classification of frogs according to the principle of edibility and inedibility. Moreover, there are no such differences among the peoples of our country, because for us this is not a traditional product. Of course, if the question is whether to survive or die of hunger, but not to eat a frog, it is natural that where the amphibian swam and what it ate is of fundamental importance, the main thing is to survive.
And those brief descriptions of individual types of frogs that can be found in special literature are only the result of a particular person's own experience. So for breeding you have to go to the pet store.
If you decide to find yourself a biomaterial for your future business, then take a good look at the photos of edible frogs. On the territory of our country, there are still some species classified as poisonous. Although there have not yet been cases when someone died from their use,maybe no one has tried them. However, RF poison frogs include:
- red-bellied and yellow-bellied toad;
- garlic.
Purchasing caviar
Actually, acquiring edible frog caviar is a rather difficult task. This market is highly competitive and full of scammers. If a person is really engaged in breeding, selling paws to stores, then he is unlikely to want to share a quality product for reproduction. Fraudsters mainly take advantage of the ignorance of start-up entrepreneurs. But you can still try and get caviar from a reputable pet store.
After acquiring the biomaterial, the eggs should be placed in an artificial pond. Even if you have natural water resources, it is not recommended to place eggs there, since future edible frogs have a lot of enemies in their natural environment. Preparing a container for caviar growth is quite simple. You can use an ordinary plastic bath, pool or tub. Place the earth on the bottom, be sure to make earthen ramparts along the edges, which will have to be constantly well moistened.
The soil is recommended to be mixed with peat and marsh moss, expanded clay or charcoal in a ratio of 3:1:1:1. Such a composition will not harm the skin of tadpoles and young individuals, and the water will not turn sour.
In an impromptu incubator, you should maintain constant cleanliness and heat at +20 degrees. Dirty water significantly increases the percentage of population losses. Water is recommended to be changed once.every 3-4 days. Just do not use tap water, it is recommended to filter it first and insist. Chlorine can adversely affect the population, and it may even die completely.
The development of tadpoles lasts only 4 months, after which they can be safely released into open water. And already with the onset of the first year of life, frogs can be sent for processing.
If you properly and carefully care for amphibians, the largest individuals can reach 1.5 kilograms. Although, according to statistics, the average weight of frogs does not exceed one kilogram.
Further reproduction
In light of the fact that caviar is not the cheapest pleasure, it is recommended to leave the largest individuals from the first, however, as well as from subsequent broods.
Only one female produces about 15 thousand eggs in one year. Although there is a catch here too. Even edible frogs grown in artificial conditions do not reach sexual maturity until the third year.
What to feed?
Do not think that caring for amphibians is a simple matter that does not require much time. In fact, at any stage of breeding, edible frogs eat quite a variety of foods. They eat almost all small invertebrates, from caterpillars to bloodworms. They eat insects: beetles, mosquitoes and crustaceans.
More adults can eat even small animals (mice, birds, lizards), which they swallow throughout the day. Of course, to reach at least a kilogramin weight, the frog will need a large amount of food.
Tadpoles are usually fed organic leftovers.
It is possible to significantly reduce the cost by growing amphibians in natural reservoirs. In addition, you can resort to small tricks. With the onset of evening darkness, connect artificial lighting devices previously connected to a pond with frogs to attract insects. Thus, the animals will independently cope with the process of obtaining food for themselves.
Possible diseases
Regardless of the type of edible frogs, they are all susceptible to certain diseases. Young birds can get rickets, so it is recommended to add vitamins to the feed.
During the entire breeding period, all frogs will have to be examined for parasites, whether they are sick. If such are found, then they should be discarded.
Preparing the product for implementation
Before the frog legs can be sent for sale, the animal will have to be killed. Usually, the slaughter is carried out with a mallet, the skin is carefully removed and the paws are separated. However, it should be understood that an adult, especially a large one, is able to overcome about three meters in one jump, so sometimes they are quite difficult to catch.
After catching and separating the legs, they are placed in plastic bags and frozen.
By the way, the only part of the frog that is eaten is the legs. They are served with different sauces.
Cooking dinner
Of course, if you are engaged in breeding edible frogs in Russia, you will want to taste this delicacy. It's actually very easy to cook them. To begin with, the paws are soaked in cold water, to which lemon juice is added. Then the paws are fried in batter or in breadcrumbs in a regular frying pan with vegetable oil.
Legal Issues
Today, for such a unique product as frog legs, it is enough just to find a buyer. Even in the elite restaurants of megacities, there are not so many dishes with frogs, and for one reason only - there is no reliable and good supplier.
However, a businessman may face another problem. At the level of legislation, there is no technical regulation for working with meat of this type. And in order to work with hypermarkets or large restaurants, you will need to obtain a certificate from the veterinary service, which itself does not know how to issue such a product.
