How to Collect, Purge, and Cook Snails: A Step-by-Step Guide

I was greatly astonished when, upon sharing photos of my snail dishes on social media, most of my contacts were amazed, between disgust and curiosity. The questions did not take long: Do people really eat snails? What do they taste like? How are they prepared? Personally, I had always believed that collecting snails for consumption was as normal as a summer shadow, but given the reception of my recipes, I came to understand how wrong I was.

So, to add more people to the club, here is a step-by-step guide to prepare the most delicious snails you could ever taste: from collection, through purge, to the finished dish. All with photos and techniques of my own, proven over the years. Do you dare?

Insects, the Food of the Future

Of course, this is nothing new. Many of you must know it, with your bellies full of little creatures. Humans have eaten insects since we lived in caves. Each region of the world, in fact, has its favorite insect to bring to the table. In some regions of Mexico, eating chapulines is an everyday thing. In Spain, eating snails is also quite normal. In Thailand, they don't even spare scorpions, which they say are delicious. And so on.

That is why it is so strange that there are still so many people who refuse to give free rein to insect consumption, which can be so tasty and nutritious. And given the way we are breaking the world, with pollution, global warming, and deforestation all over the planet to create farmland and livestock, entomophagy is believed to be one of our best allies to avoid starving in a future that looks anything but hopeful.

So much so that, for example, on January 1, 2018, the European Union authorized the consumption of insects across all its territories. It is known, then, that they will be "the food of tomorrow" and are believed to be an alternative to provide enough protein for 2050, a date when we will be in big trouble not only because of the aforementioned problems but also because of the number of mouths to feed.

How, When, and Where to Collect Snails

But enough of this chatter. Let's get to the step-by-step. The first, and essential, thing is to learn to collect these garden mollusks, which often become a plague that can wreak havoc on our vegetable garden. Snails like humid and temperate climates. Neither intense cold nor dry heat. So, although with certain tricks they can be obtained almost all year round, the best times for collection are autumn and spring.

If you have a garden, the best places to find snails are those dark and humid ones. Down in the medianera (behind the little grasses), behind sheets of metal or bricks you might have lying around, in tall grass along the sides, etc. Much better if it's after a rain, where they seem to sprout from the ground. The rule is: "if dark and humid, snails in great numbers".

If you don't feel like scouring your entire garden for these critters, the best thing is to set up a couple of snail traps in specific spots. I use those white plastic pipes used for plumbing, hidden among the weeds and plants at the back of my yard, a very humid place that rarely gets direct sun. Snails love to get in there to shelter from the elements, and they usually gather there in 'herds'. I have taken up to twelve snails from each pipe that went straight to the pot. Don't collect every single snail you see. Leave enough so they can keep reproducing. You don't want to wipe them out from your garden!

WARNING!

There are snails that are poisonous to humans! One of the most dangerous invasive species, but not the only one, is the African snail. Depending on your area, there may be others that can put your health at risk. It is your responsibility, then, to identify that the snail you are about to eat does not contain poison. If you are not sure which snails exist in your city, learn to identify them with this guide. Don't poison yourself, you'll make me feel very guilty!

How to Purge Snails?

Once collected, snails must undergo a purge process. THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT. Why? Well, because these little creatures like to eat things that can be very harmful to you, even deadly. From poisonous mushrooms and toxic ivy to poisonous plants (like the hemlock Socrates used to kill himself). And since, unlike other animals, you do eat the snail's stomach content, it's best to change whatever they've eaten before for something controlled.

To purge a snail you must keep them in a closed place (where they won't suffocate), with a little water and whatever you want to put in their stomach, for at least fifteen days. During that time, snails will defecate what they've eaten in previous days and ingest whatever you've given them to eat. As you can see in the image, I use a bucket that I then cover with a burlap bag (which lets air through) and tie with a string so not a single one escapes.

The most used snail foods for purging, at least in my area, are: cornmeal, bay leaves, thyme sprigs, etc. All things that are edible for humans and have a pleasant flavor. Whatever you feed them will be what the snails have in their stomachs at the time of consumption, giving them a rather unique flavor. You can experiment as much as you like.

Water must not be missing or the snails will die of thirst. It is better to change the water every two or three days, because many times snails defecate there and then drink from the same source, thus reintroducing those poisons into their stomachs. Also, the water container should not be too deep, because otherwise the snails (which are not the smartest creatures) risk falling in and drowning.

Once you've created the 'snail hotel', the place where they will spend their last days, seal it well with a burlap bag or similar. It must be something that allows them to breathe while preventing their escape. Many people use wicker baskets or such. You are free to experiment. The container should rest for at least 15 days in a cool, dark place. If you keep them in the sun or somewhere very hot, the creatures will die without remedy. And you must be especially careful with this: CHECK THAT ALL SNAILS ARE ALIVE. DON'T PUT ANY DEAD SNAIL IN THE POT.

But be very careful: snails are escape artists. When I started, I didn't seal the container well and all the snails escaped inside my house. To this day I still find their offspring behind the furniture. You don't want that. That's why I now seal everything tightly and put them in the shed where I keep junk.

Wash the Snails Well!

After the purge, it is extremely important to wash the snails very, very well before consumption. Lots of water to remove all the excrement sediment that remains on their skin and inside their shells. Don't be shy about it; prevention is better than cure.

VERY IMPORTANT! BOIL THE SNAILS FOR AT LEAST TWO HOURS

Having purged them doesn't mean the snails are ready to eat. And these mollusks, besides having poisonous things in their stomachs, very likely have all kinds of parasites in their bodies. Consuming these parasites can be as dangerous as eating the rest of a poisonous mushroom that remained inside. Nematode parasites can cause you the worst of deaths, with ailments like MENINGITIS.

To ensure that whatever lives inside the snail dies, you must subject their bodies to intense heat for a good number of hours. Two hours of boiling is enough time to kill any creature inside. THIS IS NOT OPTIONAL. If you don't do it, you risk dying in horrible ways.

And yes, when asked, the snails are boiled ALIVE. Unless you find a way to kill them beforehand without breaking them all (I still haven't found one that doesn't disintegrate them completely). So this moment is not for the faint of heart. You should be warned: under intense heat, snails will begin to twist and release slime, and for them it will surely be a moment of acute suffering. I have tried freezing them before, but I really don't know which is worse, and the expansion of water in their bodies usually breaks their shells, ruining the final product. You decide.

Recipe for "Snail with ossobuco stew"

There are hundreds of ways to cook snails. I've tried them all, including some French recipes (where they call them escargot, because "what elegance France has!"), but the one I like most is with ossobuco stew (I don't know if that cut is called that everywhere). Ossobuco is a delicious and somewhat tough meat, perfect for stewing (cooking slowly in a closed container). The list of ingredients is very simple. With this list, you'll have enough to feed four people with generous appetites. Vary the amount of each ingredient if you cook for more or fewer diners.

1 kilo of ossobuco meat, chopped (2 kilos counting the bones, which is how they sell it)
Two or three finely chopped onions (depending on their size)
Garlic to taste (I like it a lot, so I put quite a bit)
About 40 PREVIOUSLY BOILED snails
Tomato puree, tomato paste, and four chopped tomatoes
One or two cups of water
Two beef stock cubes
Butter
Six boiled potatoes
Fresh provenzal (parsley and finely chopped garlic)
Salt and pepper to taste

Step 1

Sauté the onion and garlic with butter (or oil), also using some of the fat from the ossobuco bone (known in my country as caracú). Once the onion is sautéed, brown the meat. If you want, beforehand, you can coat the meat pieces with flour. This will make the sauce even thicker and tastier.

Step 2

Once the meat is browned, cover the pot and let it cook, over very low heat, stirring from time to time, for at least half an hour. Then, add a good amount of tomato puree, a small can of tomato paste, and four or five tomatoes cut into cubes. Mix everything well. If it's not as liquid as it should be, add one or two cups of water and two beef stock cubes. Finally, add the PREVIOUSLY BOILED snails. Don't salt yet, as the stock cubes will add plenty, so adjust at the end of cooking.

Close the pot and let everything cook, over low heat, for enough time. About an hour, more or less. If you see that the stew is too liquid, continue cooking with the pot uncovered to reduce it.

Step 3

Serve the stew in a deep plate and accompany it with large pieces of boiled potato. The potato will absorb the juice and be an excellent accompaniment. Sprinkle the plate with fresh provenzal (fresh parsley and finely chopped garlic). Bread is not optional!

And Bon Appétit!

I thank my friend LeonMafioso, a NeoTeo reader, for suggesting I share my techniques and recipes with the rest of you who visit. I hope you enjoyed it. If you have experience cooking snails, I would love for you to share your recipes in the comments. Rest assured that if it looks interesting, I'll make it. I have a few snails purging right now and am looking for new ways to prepare them.

If you liked the article, let me know, and if there's a quorum, I might share more techniques for growing strange things (like edible mushrooms) and collecting bugs that will go straight to the pot. For example, I'm now hunting crickets to make "Chapulines a la mexicana", trying all kinds of traps, taking advantage of the season. Thanks for your visit!