Escargots (earthy & umami)

A friend of mine posted a picture at his FB status and this kindeled my memory,

Searching for a can opener as the previous day was United States Public Health, it's a regular incidence for me during Wednesdays as the menu had a divine intrusion and those were Snails commonly referred in chefs fraternity as "Escargots",

My preparation  which I normally have is quite simple, deglaze shallots with a touch of Pernod (Anise flavoured liquor), and give the escargots a shock of flavour, I just can't resist them right at this time, I normally used munch a couple exactly at this point.

So what exactly are these, slurpy looking black mole heads has a earthy umami taste to it, 

Escargot , French for snail) is a dish of cooked land snails, usually served as an appetizer in France and in French restaurants. The word escargot is also sometimes applied to the living snails of those species which are commonly eaten in this way.

Not all species of land snail are equally edible, and many are too small to make it worthwhile to prepare and cook them. Even among the edible species, the palatability of the flesh varies from species to species. 

Shells of snail archaeological excavations, indicating snails have been eaten since prehistoric times.A number of archaeological sites around the Mediterranean have been excavated yielding physical evidence of culinary use of several species of snails used as escargot. The Romans, in particular, are known to have considered escargot an elite food just like the likes of Caviar.

There are not many ways to actually enjoy these Creation of god, In French culture, the snails are typically purged, killed, removed from their shells, and cooked (usually with garlic butter, chicken stock or wine), and then placed back into the shells with the butter and sauce for serving. Additional ingredients may be added, such as garlic, thyme, parsley and pine nuts. Special snail tongs (for holding the shell) and snail forks (for extracting the meat) are also normally provided, and they are served on indented metal trays with places for six or 12 snails.

In Maltese cuisine, snails of the petit gris variety are simmered in red wine or ale with mint, basil and marjoram. The snails are cooked, and served in their shells.

Like most molluscs, escargot is high in protein and low in fat content (if cooked without butter). Escargot is estimated to contain 15% protein, 2.4% fat and about 80% water.

The ones depicted above are the most common ones but I was fortunate enough to try some exotic ways as well, during my Pitstop at Quebec known for its rich French influence I had the escargots wrapped around in Boston lettuce, poached and served over a purée of seasoned cress broth, it was Devine and sure complimented the earthy umami nature of the snail, I took along the recipe from the waitress and spun my take on it and it churned out quite brilliant, as for my counterpart he was digging into a fois gras hotdog, That's right a fois gras hotdog !!! Keep pondering but not for long as that's gonna be my take for the next blog .