How many steps are there to squeeze frog juice? Peru's national drink can be made like this...

WHAT? Frog juice? What kind of magical operation is this? ?

The last time Tadpole was so shocked was when he drank Duck Shit Fragrance.

Frog juice is a national drink of Peru and is very popular among the country's citizens. The most popular way to make frog juice is to kill the frog, cut its abdomen open, peel off its skin, and finally put it into a juicer to make juice.

After filtering, the final product generally looks pale green. Many vendors also add ingredients such as carrots, honey, and aloe vera to enhance the taste and nutritional value of frog juice.

Image source: China Daily

In Lima, the capital of Peru, there is an even more cruel way of eating frogs. Vendors will directly put live frogs into a juicer and squeeze them into meat paste, and then serve it to customers to drink. This is a very popular drink among the working class in Peru.

Waiting for the judgment of fate, picture from: Phoenix.com

According to people who have tried it, this drink has an earthy and malty flavor, and is not as "stimulating" as people imagine.

If you travel to Peru, you will find that there are many drink shops selling milkshakes in some markets and even on the streets. At this time, you must understand the menu clearly before paying, otherwise you might get a glass of frog juice.

To ask why Peruvians are so fond of frog juice, we have to start with their ideology.

Peruvians are obsessed with frog juice

It is reported that every vendor selling frog juice in Peru can sell about 100 frogs a day. For Peruvians, they believe that frog juice has many magical effects.

Children can drink it to strengthen their bodies, adults can drink it to relieve stress and refresh their minds, and the elderly can drink it to prolong their lives. For the Peruvian people, frog juice can be described as "magic water of happiness" covering all age groups.

Image source: China Daily

In addition, Peruvians believe that men who drink frog juice can replenish their energy and strengthen their virility. This statement was once debunked by the Washington Post. Although there is no scientific basis, Peruvians' love for frog juice has not stopped.

In their hearts, frog juice has the same magical effect as "hot water" in the hearts of Chinese people.

Endangered food sources

Peruvians love to drink frog juice, and the demand for frogs is increasing day by day. Earlier, the frogs used by Peruvians to make juice were a kind of aquatic frog called "Telmatobius culeus", which means "Lake Titicaca frog" and is the largest species in the genus Telmatobius.

Its name is mainly related to its habitat, Lake Titicaca, which is located on the border of Bolivia and Peru, at an altitude of about 3,800 meters. This frog is only distributed in Lake Titicaca and is currently an endangered species.

Lake Titicaca, Image source: Wikipedia

Titicaca frogs live their entire lives at the bottom of the lake. They are completely aquatic frogs that absorb oxygen from the water through their skin. In order to absorb more oxygen, their skin has evolved to be loose and full of wrinkles.

Based on this speculation, the misunderstanding of its aphrodisiac effect may come from its wrinkled appearance. Peruvians believe that the wrinkles on frogs can "complement shape with shape", so the locals gave it the nickname "scrotum frog".

As their skin continues to improve, their lungs are slowly degenerating. It can even be said that these frogs have almost no complete lungs.

"Scrotal frog that complements shape with shape", image source: Wikipedia

The decimation of the Lake Titicaca frog by Peruvians is undoubtedly the main reason for its sudden decline, but water pollution caused by mining, agriculture and human waste has also caused great harm to this aquatic frog.

In addition, agricultural activities have led to the massive reproduction of algae in water bodies, and the sudden drop in oxygen levels is likely to cause a large number of aquatic frogs to die from lack of oxygen and suffocation.

In 2014, the Titicaca frog finally began to be protected by law. That same year, Peruvian authorities seized thousands of Titicaca frogs that were being illegally traded in Peru.

Breeding program of Lake Titicaca frog at Denver Zoo, USA. Image source: Wikipedia

Between 2016 and 2017, the frog was also protected by law in Bolivia and illegal capture was prohibited. At the same time, some zoos have also joined the conservation plan of Lake Titicaca frog.

The infamous frog juice

Delicious food is important, but from a scientific point of view, many frogs are intermediate hosts of parasites, among which the diplodia is one of the most common parasites in frogs.

Just imagine, if frog juice has not been cooked at high temperature for a long time and contains parasites, it may feel good when you drink it, but you probably can't drink it all the time.

When these parasites are transferred from frogs to humans, they will parasitize under the skin and around the kidneys, causing local swelling or abscesses in these tissues. If they parasitize the eyeball, they will cause corneal ulcers, which can cause vision loss at the mildest and blindness at the worst.

From the perspective of ecological protection, we should leave enough habitat for these amphibians to grow; from the perspective of personal safety, we should also avoid harm to our bodies by eating raw food.

This "terrifying" delicacy, Tadpole Jun still dare not try it easily~

END

Review expert: Wang Guoyi, postdoctoral fellow in food safety.

Tadpole Musical Notation original article, please indicate the source when reprinting

Editor/Xiao Xitushuo