Is it safe to eat aphids on kale if you didn’t get them all off?

Question

I recently purchased some organic kale and later discovered that many of the inner leaves were infested with aphids. I washed the kale as thoroughly as I could and then steamed it. However, after steaming, I found about five aphids in the leftover water, which suggests that my cleaning process was not entirely effective. Given that some aphids may still be clinging to the kale, is it safe to eat it?

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

While the idea of eating bugs might be unpleasant to think about, they won't hurt you in the least. In fact they may be good for you.  Some cultures eat bugs intentionally. Also aphids are so small you may not even notice them. You certainly won't taste them.
Enjoy!

Anonymous · Answer

The mint leaves should be okay if you wash them before using. Aphids suck the plant fluids and AFAIK, don't inject anything that would carry disease. I'm sure they eliminate on the plants, but anything they output should wash off. If I had to choose between eating aphids which live on relatively sterile plant juice vs eating something that consumes rotting plant material like a sow bug, I'll go with the aphids. That is not to say that eating aphids is healthful, of course.

Anonymous · Answer

Aphids are insects, which are just protein. There are a lot of animals that survive by eating aphids, they're just as safe as eating crickets, which some people do. I tried it once covered in chocolate it was frikkin disgusting but you should be fine

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Is it safe to eat aphids on kale if you didn’t get them all off?

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