how do you cook garden snails?

Question

i own a resturant and forage my own food but have never used garden snails dose anyone know how to treat them b4 cooking.

Answer 1

Store them in plastic laundry bins with lids on. The bins should be the type with plenty of small holes in them for air to flow. The lids need to be tied down otherwise the snails will push the lids off and escape.

Do not use string to tie the lids down because the snails will eat the string, use wire or a heavy weight.

Store for several days before cooking, this will ensure the snails empty the contents of their stomachs first.

Snails need to be killed by plunging into boiling water, they can then be easily removed from their shells.

Snails can be cooked in plain water or wine or cider with root vegetables and or herbs. They need to be simmered until tender.

The shells need to be boiled separately to kill any germs if you plan to serve them in their shells.

Snails are normally stuffed back into the shells with some kind of flavoured butter, there are various recipes. This makes life easy because they can be frozen in this state and placed in the oven to heat through prior to serving.

In the UK wild snails that you cook yourself are smaller but superior in quality to the french snails that are served in most restaurants and come in tins.

Answer 2

A couple articles about eating garden snails, links below.

Supposedly, the garden snail in California are escaped or released variety common used for eating in France. I've heard this since I was young. I don't know how much of it is true and urban myth.

I've heard different things... Feed them corn meal and then stop feeding them a day or two before you intend to use them. This allows the snail to clear it's innards.

The link below, feeds "salad" greens and then fast the snails for 2 days.

Interesting pictures.

Answer 3

Hiya.

Ive herd alot of people trying them and saying that they are really nice, i never have though.

But i remember whating on Gordan Ramsy's show sometime last year. I think he collected them from the garden and you have to leave them in a refridgerator with some carrots for 24 hours. They will eat the carrots which will clear out all the nasty stuff in their systems and the cold temperatures of the fridge will make them dormat (go to sleep). You are then able to add them to boiling water, im not sure how long for though. The after that you can either serve in shell or outa shell with cocktail sticks to pick them out. Apprarently they taste like fish, on the Gordan Ramsey program his kids loved them!

Tell me how they go and turn out, and what they taste like, i might just give it a go! xox

Answer 4

I love snails in garlic butter, with wodges of bread to dip in the juice. However, I do believe that they are fresh water snails - not your common and garden variety!!

Even bought my own escargotiere and pincers to use when I lived in London and bought them ready dressed for cooking in Selfridges - ah those were the days!!

Answer 5

this is the best way do do it:
put them in a bucket for at least 5 days give them to eat only corn meal flour so they clean them self.
Then if you like to use them for pasta dishes you do this:
regular crushed tomato's sauce
garlic
parsley
oil
do the classic sauce but before add the tomatoes add the snail(of course you boil them first for about 3 minutes) cook the sauce for about 30 mi nutes.Serve on your pasta.

or(always put them first for 5 days to clean)
oil garlic parsley butter, just like this in a pan.salt pepper of course to taste. Give your customer toothpick to take out the snail from their shell.They are really good!!

Answer 6

You need to soak them in clean fresh water for a few hours two or three times - in their shells. Cook them like clams - white wine and herbs.

Answer 7

U eat them straight from the shell. Just like a crow would.

Answer 8

an uncle of mine did this years ago.... he kept them lif ein a bucket for a few days so ensure they has all pooed......... then he cooked them in the usuall way..... i dunno what they tasted like ... wouldnt get me anywhere near a gooked snail no matter where the snail came from

Answer 9

u can try this link just click on it:
http://www.marthastewart.com/portal/site/mslo/menuitem.e28a2ad6d3341f8836eb9e2bd373a0a0?vgnextoid=42cacf380e1dd010VgnVCM1000005b09a00aRCRD&rsc=header&autonomy_kw=+How+do+you+cook+garden+snails%3F+&x=23&y=12

Answer 10

Is this safe? And does the health department know your'e doing this? Otherwise, they could shut you down!