How French Escargot Snails Are Harvested and Processed

The European Garden Snail, the Turkish Snail, and the Burgundy Snail—also referred to as the land lobster for for its superior flavor and texture—are the most popular species of edible snails in the world. These three land dwelling shell slugs are at the center of most top-dollar escargot dishes. When mixed with herbs, butter and garlic their tender morsels become a one of the most luxurious and delicious foods you can find.

How are snails harvested for escargot?

Unlike snail farms that grow their mollusks in artificial ecosystems, each escargot harvested from the region of Eastern France is literally hand-picked. Wild snails are gathered by hand typically during the rain season. It is in the fall and early winter months, when the snails are bulking up to survive colder temperatures, that they are collected by escargot harvesters. Snails are more active after heavy rains and may occasionally be harvested during the early months of a warm winter. These French snails are all collected in the wild, put in baskets and then taken to the processing headquarters.

Where do escargots snails come from?

There are three primary edible snail species: The European Garden Snail (Helix aspersa), The Turkish snail (Helix locurum) and the Roman or Burgundy snail (Helix pomatia). Helix aspersa, locurum and pomatia originate from different regions, but all three major edible snail species thrive in the wilderness surrounding the Alps in Eastern France. The escargots are commonly seen sliding along the French countryside after heavy rains in search of food. 

How are escargots snails processed?

After being delivered to the production facility the snails are inspected, washed and separated by species. Each harvest of each mollusk type is assigned to a lot number. Each lot is removed from their shells and the meat is flash boiled in jacketed steam kettles to remove contaminants. The snails are then calibrated using state of the art machines to and human observation, measuring weight and uniformity so that right size snails are used for producing large and extra large escargot products. The calibrated meats are all cooked separately in an vats of "court bouillon" aromatic broth (water, salt, turmeric and coriander) to finalize the flavor. The large and extra large snails are packaged with the broth in tins and pasteurized, and the smaller meats are put back in the shell with a home-made garlic herb butter paste. Although escargot producers sell the shells empty or with the home-prepared meat and garlic butter spread, most of their production value comes from the containers of larger meats with broth. Each tin contains only one species of snail, holding either 12 meats for retail sizes or 72 meats for bulk and restaurant use.

Watch the video below to see all the steps involved in the Romanzini escargot process:

How should escargot be served?

Snails are usually served lightly cooked with garlic, butter, and herbs. Red wine, shallots, or tomato confit can also be used to enhance flavor profiles when preparing and serving escargot snails. Serving the snail in its shell is the most natural presentation piece for escargot delicacies. Caviar Star's burgundy escargot snail shells make a beautiful and durable dish for fine food service.

Escargot is often served as an appetizer with crusty bread. As a main course, we recommend trying a special recipe, something like Escargots a la Bourguignonne is sure to impress.