Peppered Snails (Jumbo size)

Peppered Snails in Houston

Spicy snails, commonly known as peppered snails among the locals in West Africa are simply fried snails garnished with pepper sauce; just think of it as adding beef to your stew.  These dishes are mostly served as appetizers or side dishes with the main dish in a 3-course meal. Although there is no agreement on the particular snail species for preparing peppered snails, the Giant Snail of Africa is the most preferred species for preparing this snail dish. 

Alright!!! Don’t salivate yet, we are just getting started…

What Are Peppered Snails? 

Snails are ubiquitous in tropic parts of the world, especially in East and West Africa. In these regions, you can always find these colorful molluscs crawling in every wet area and on large leaves. Since West Africans love their snails, they introduced peppered snails which are snails garnished with peppered sauce and onions. 

Recipe Ingredients

The ingredients needed for preparing peppered snails are the ones used to prepare stew and sauce, thus readily available. So, let’s move to the kitchen and pepper the snails. 

• 2 lbs of Giant African Snails: You can also utilize any other available species of large snails such as the Jumbo Shelled 
• Sliced Onions
• Scotch bonnet peppers and small red bell pepper: The number depends on how well you enjoy spicy foods 
• Alum: You can also get limes or lemons instead 
• Bay leaf: One is enough for 2 Giant snails and thyme may also be used as a substitute 
• Vegetable oil 
• Seasoning and salt 

How To Make Peppered Snail? 

It only takes some minutes to prepare a delicious dish of peppered snails. So, let’s quickly do this with our guide: 

• Unshell and wash your snail: We can prepare the snail with the shell, can we? Unshell and wash your snails until they are non-slimy. 
• Boil your snail: You can boil it the same way you boil meat if you have done this before with a little salt to taste, seasoning, thyme, and onions. 
• Fry the boiled snail: Proceed to fry your snail on low heat with vegetable oil until it is golden brown. 
• Prepare your sauce: Heat some oil and add the blended pepper mixture with onion, salt to taste, and some seasoning to your taste. 
• Add the fried snails to the sauce: Gently pour the fried snail into the sauce and mix until the snail has absorbed enough flavour. 

Your peppered snail is now ready to be served and enjoyed with extra onions and garnishes. 

Tips And Tricks

The most difficult aspect of preparing peppered snails is washing the snails. To make this easy, you can soak them in hot water with lime/lemon for a few minutes.  Then, wash and dry the snails with the alum or the remaining lime/lemon. 

The method of cooking the sauce primarily depends on your choice but it is best to avoid extremely hot sauce to enjoy the savory taste of peppered snails. 

What To Serve With?

Peppered snails work well with almost every meal and can be used as appetizers, side dishes, and sauces for most grains. 

Nutritional Facts About Spicy Snails 

Snails are a pretty good source of essential nutrients for the body and adding spices only makes them better. Right from medieval times, snails have been enjoyed not only for their satisfying taste but also for the loads of health benefits that come with each bite. Here are some proven nutrition contained in spicy snails: 

• Proteins: Snails are a good source of high-quality protein which is present in about 18g and essential for building and repairing tissues in the body. 
• Iron: Snails are about 3 milligrams rich in iron, a vital mineral that is necessary for the formation of hemoglobin in red blood cells.
• Vitamins: Snails are a significant source of vitamins, which are important in maintaining an overall healthy life. 
• Essential Minerals: Snails contain essential minerals such as magnesium (212 mg), potassium (325 mg), sodium (60 mg), calcium (8 mg), and other minerals in considerable amounts. These minerals are essential for muscle and nerve function, as well as for maintaining strong bones and teeth.
• Omega-3 fatty acids: Some species of snails contain about 2g of omega-3 fatty acids, which are beneficial for heart health and reducing inflammation in the body.
• Carbohydrates: Snails are low in energy but peppers and onions are good energy-giving food. 

However, snails contain some amount of cholesterol, and frying them only increases the fatty content, So, beware during consumption and take only a moderate amount. 

To wrap it up, if you are currently staying in Houston and still thinking, “Where can I get peppered snails near me? Then you should check out Dcave peppered snail dishes.