On snails.

[Adam Balic]

Just back from a week in Andalusia, in the 'sherry triangle'. We were lucky enough to be in Sanlucar while there was a local Manzanilla and Tapas festival organised by the local restaurants (I think).

As my Spanish is poor (actually non-existant) I tend to order things haphazardly, one tapa was a dish of 20-30 snails in a Manzanilla broth. I think that these were Helix lactea and very delicious they were too. Tasting of the herbs that they must have been fed on.

[butterfly]

Reviving this thread for a quirky reason...

I'm looking for a source for live snails in Madrid. I've seen them in markets in the past, but now that I'm looking for them, there are none to be found. Perhaps they are out of season or it can be attributed to the summer shut-down.

Has anyone seen any lately?

On a related note, the snail and necora dish (caracolines con necoras) at El Bulli this season was a real stand-out for me. Such tender little snails.

[Bux]

Just back from a week in Andalusia, in the 'sherry triangle'. We were lucky enough to be in Sanlucar while there was a local Manzanilla and Tapas festival organised by the local restaurants (I think).

As my Spanish is poor (actually non-existant) I tend to order things haphazardly, one tapa was a dish of 20-30 snails in a Manzanilla broth. I think that these were Helix lactea and very delicious they were too. Tasting of the herbs that they must have been fed on.

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Down around Alicante, the snails impart a taste of rosemary to a paella, if I neglected to mention that the first time around.

No knowing the local language can be a real hindrance to learning about the local food, but knowing a little of the language can be exciting when what you get is not exactly what you thought you ordered.

As Mrs. B's Spanish was learned in Puerto Rico, the Spanish names of certain European vegetables are missing in her vocabulary even though she's cooked them in NY and knows the English term. Asked to describe hinojo our waiter at Berasategui turned on his heels and went straight for the kitchen only to return with a bulb of fennel. It was strange to realize you knew the name in French, Italian and English, but not in your first language.

[Rogelio]

Reviving this thread for a quirky reason...

I'm looking for a source for live snails in Madrid. I've seen them in markets in the past, but now that I'm looking for them, there are none to be found. Perhaps they are out of season or it can be attributed to the summer shut-down.

Has anyone seen any lately?

The proper season for snails is spring, I haven't seen them in Madrid lately but last weekend in Valencia the markets were plenty of them, though not alive but with their self created lid.

[Bux]

The proper season for snails is spring, I haven't seen them in Madrid lately but last weekend in Valencia the markets were plenty of them, though not alive but with their self created lid.

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Does that mean they were dead, or in that hibernation like stage? My assumption is that snails for food have to be alive, or cooked. Dead snails would rot rather quickly.

[butterfly]

Well, the live snails turned up as usual at the pescaderia in the market today--quest completed.

My market (Mercado de la Cebada) is always better on Fridays and Saturday mornings, but during July and August the difference is much more pronounced.

[Rogelio]

The proper season for snails is spring, I haven't seen them in Madrid lately but last weekend in Valencia the markets were plenty of them, though not alive but with their self created lid.

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Does that mean they were dead, or in that hibernation like stage? My assumption is that snails for food have to be alive, or cooked. Dead snails would rot rather quickly.

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That's a hibernation like stage. You have to clean them until they loose that lid and then keep it in water until they show the head. then boil them and they are ready to be cooked.

[butterfly]

Yes, it's actually called estivation. Snails can put themselves into this state of suspended animation when it is too hot and/or too dry.

[Adam Balic]

Where these the snails eaten? These are Theba pisana which do undergo estivation/aestivation ( L. aestas Summer), some types undergo Hibernation (L.hibernus Winter). Are all the edible Spanish snails dormant in the summer only?

[butterfly]

The snails at our market weren't in estivation. They were out and about (and I'll confess my post was for non-culinary purposes--we adopted one as a pet). I think they were fresh from the farm that day, since they only seem to appear on the weekend.

I believe that ours is a helix aspersa--which are served in quite a few of the bars in my neighborhood (La Latina in Madrid).

I wonder what variety the tiny snails at El Bulli were. They were very, very tender and flavorful. I've never seen snails this tiny at the market.

[scordelia]

A couple of questions:

a) A reliable source of cargols a la llauna in Madrid would be appreciated, if anyone knows it.

b) Snails are used in many regions in Spain, but which ones have a strong tradition of using them in their regional cooking? For instance, I've seen Galizian empanadas with snails, but some gallegos tell me about their almost religious aversion of snails.

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I had excellent cargols a la llauna at La Fonda in Madrid.

Then I had wonderful snails in a sauce I can only describe as being like a mole (it had chocolate in it) at Casa Pablete in Aranjuez. It's a little tapas place on Stuart, and we were waited on by the owner who said his best dish was the snails.

[Rogelio]

I had excellent cargols a la llauna at La Fonda in Madrid.

Sadly La Fonda closed a few years ago. It was a reliable spot of catalonian cooking in Madrid.

[scordelia]

I had excellent cargols a la llauna at La Fonda in Madrid.

Sadly La Fonda closed a few years ago. It was a reliable spot of catalonian cooking in Madrid.

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OH NO! They had such good food! It's been 3 1/2 years since I was last in Madrid, but we always made sure to go there whenever we were in Madrid. It was recommended to us on our first trip by the desk clerk at our hotel, and we have been back 4 more times. Last time I was there must have been shortly before they closed. How sad!