Escargot recipes

Escargot an animal commonly used in many dishes in France

Escargot is the French word for snails, an animal commonly used in many extravagant and nourishing dishes in France(see also French culture), it is very popular around Europe and in the United States, and although there are many ways to serve escargots, the escargot recipes in France are the most popular since they even provide the adequate utensils to eat the escargot. They usually have the snail taken from the shell, gutted and cooked using different sauces and spices depending on the region. They tend to do it with garlic butter in chicken stock with thyme, parsley, and pine nuts. 

French history

The escargots have been part of the French history and cuisine for centuries, it’s even been found in archeological excavations hinting to be part of its cuisine since prehistoric times, but its expansion to all of France has only been since the 50’s, when the escargot de bourgogne became well known over all the regions of France and the Europe map.

This appetizer uses different types of snails and even though not all of them are edible, the taste of its meat is different every time. 

The process to clean the snails

The process used to clean the snails is very long and exhausting which is why the product is usually acquired dry or frozen without the shell, which is sold separately. The snail must be cleaned so it releases all its mucus and be kept without food for over a week, when they are placed on water with salt or vinegar to be washed before they’re placed in boiling water and extracted from the shells to be gutted and washed one last time along their shells.

Escargot à la bourgnignonne

• Ingredients: 

1. 2 cans of snails
2. 1 cup of sliced shallots
3. 2 garlic cloves, chopped
4. 250 gr. of butter
5. 2 sp. Of chopped parsley.

• Mix the sliced shallot, with garlic and butter, adding parsley, salt and pepper as needed.
• Boil the snails for 5 minutes (being careful not to let the liquid from the can inside the boiling water) and later filter the snails through cold water to have them at an adequate temperature.
• Place half a spoon of butter on each shell, and later place the snail covered with the sauce on top. 
• Cover the filled shells with plastic and place them in the fridge to let the flavors sink in the snail for 24 hours.
• To serve, place the snails on a dish and heat them until the butter is melted to serve immediately.