Here is how the story goes; there are red ants that live in the trees and those that live on the ground. The red ants in the tree are edible, while those living on the ground are undesirable, and probably full of sand. In fact some red ants are ferociously aggressive and bite. One time at a temple, I stepped into a pile of red ants and they attacked my legs.

In Cambodian markets it’s common to find red ants in a fish paste enclosed in a jar. This is used in sour soups made with fish paste, lemongrass, red chillies, salt, garlic and red ants, an obvious acquired taste.