Escargot recipes. Part 2

French recipes

French cuisine is characterized by being easy, tasty and enjoyable; French recipes are worldwide known for its diversity and style because each region has its own cuisine. French people love good food in all its forms; meals range from basic dishes to elaborate ones that include a dozen courses and different drinks due to the great production of different types of quality ingredients.

French cuisine, one of the World’s intangible cultural Heritage

French Gastronomy was listed by UNESCO as one of the World’s intangible cultural Heritage; because of its contribution to Western cuisine and the great number of Culinary Courses in which you can learn how to prepare most of the national dishes.

The evolution of French cuisine

French cuisine has evolved over centuries; its beginnings can be traced to the middle ages when banquets were common for the aristocracy; the Ancient regime until the 16th century in which French cuisine was influenced by some food terms and ingredients from the New World.

The 17th century was characterized by the development of Haut cuisine (High cuisine) with the important refinements that were added by chefs. The revolution in the 18th century represented the expansion of French cuisine and from the 19th century, French cuisine started its modernization, the simplification of its menu and the structure of the meal with lighter presentations.

One of the most important dishes in France

One of the most important dishes in French cuisine is the Escargot and the variety of Escargot recipes known nowadays. Escargots (Snails in English) are very popular and you can find them available in almost any food store in France in two varieties: Bourgogne and Petit gris. If you want to prepare Escargots, you will find snails sold canned, before using you must drain the snails and rinse them under flowing water.

The variety of Escargot recipes

The most famous recipe with snails is Snails baked in garlic-parsley butter, a simple recipe that includes Escargot, butter, garlic, and herbs; but you’ll find a large variety of recipes with Snails, such as:

• Escargots sans ail (Snails with herb-cream sauce)
• Escargots au beurre d’anchois (snails in anchovy butter)
• Escargots canaille (snails in tomato sauce)
• Escargots au Riesling (snails with wine sauce)
• Tapenade d’escargots aux amandes (snails and almond spread); and more.

That is why French people consume approximately 40 000 tons of snails each year, due to this demand authorities protect some snails which cannot be legally taken, they also have promoted the creation of snail farms; but there are some snails that have an unpleasant taste and some are poisonous.

If you want to try some of the best recipes that include snails, we recommend using a tourist guide in Paris for information on restaurants or places to eat Escargots; from the cheapest place or the more expensive one, depending on your budget.