Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.2 9/18/84; site rti-sel.UUCP Path: utzoo!watmath!clyde!bonnie!akgua!mcnc!rti-sel!wfi From: wfi@rti-sel.UUCP (William Ingogly) Newsgroups: net.pets,net.garden,net.cooks Subject: Re: raising snails Message-ID: <506@rti-sel.UUCP> Date: Mon, 28-Oct-85 09:41:06 EST Article-I.D.: rti-sel.506 Posted: Mon Oct 28 09:41:06 1985 Date-Received: Wed, 30-Oct-85 05:40:54 EST References: <5410@amdcad.UUCP> Reply-To: wfi@rti-sel.UUCP (William Ingogly) Organization: Research Triangle Institute, NC Lines: 33 Xref: watmath net.pets:1241 net.garden:813 net.cooks:5237 Summary: In article <5410@amdcad.UUCP> phil@amdcad.UUCP (Phil Ngai) writes: >There seem to be many snails around my house and this year, instead >of trying to poison them I am going to collect them and eat them. >Any advice on how to do this? I suppose I ought to feed them a known >diet for a while to get all the bad stuff out. What is recommended? Here's how my Sicilian relatives used to do it (my grandpa's name before Ellis Island was Biagio Ingoglia; how much more authentic do you want? :-): Put them in a container with moist leaves for a few days. Sprinkle occasionally with a little water to make sure they don't dry out. Feed them cornmeal to clean out their systems. When the day of reckoning comes, cull out the dead snails and put the live ones in a pot of salted water for a couple of hours before you're going to cook them. This will act as a laxative and clean out their systems. Rinse them WELL after this and dump them into a fresh pot of boiling water. They only cook for a few minutes; I can't remember the exact number of minutes, but I'm sure Joy of Cooking or some other readily accesible cookbook will have a recipe. You should be aware that snails can eat toxic plants without ill effect, so a purging period is NECESSARY. I would still feel uneasy eating wild snails due to pesticides, etc. Snails aren't long distance travelers, though, so you're probably safe eating them from your own back yard. We served them with tiny forks, crusty Italian bread, and a delicious sauce made of olive oil, vinegar, fresh mint and garlic. As a kid, I thought the sauce was the best part. I don't have a recipe but it shouldn't be too hard to duplicate. Mamma mia! -- Cheers, Bill Ingogly