Escargot

Escargot

Escargot is a dish of cooked land snails, usually served as an appetizer. "Escargot" IPA-all|ɛs.kaʁ.ɡɔ is French for "snail"; it is related to Occitan "escaragol" [Merriam-Webster Collegiate Dictionary, Eleventh Edition] and Catalan "cargol", which, in turn, may derive from a pre-Roman word "*karakauseli" [Diccionari Barcanova de la Llengua. Editorial Barcanova, 2004.] .

Not all species of snail are edible, but many are. Even among the edible species, the palatability of the flesh varies from species to species. In France, two species native to France are normally used for preparing escargots. One of these, the "petit-gris" "Helix aspersa", is common in temperate climates worldwide.

Preparation

Typically, the snails are removed from their shells, gutted, cooked (usually with garlic butter or chicken stock) and then poured back into the shells together with the butter and sauce for serving, often on a plate with several shell-sized depressions. 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.

Like most mollusks, Escargot is high in protein and low in fat content if served without butter. It is estimated that escargot is 15% protein, 2.4% fat and about 80% water. [ [http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/snail-escargot.php Snail (escargot) nutritional value ] ] .

Heliciculture

Because a typical snail diet includes decayed matter, carrion, and a wide variety of leaves, the contents of their stomachs can be toxic to humans. Therefore, before they can be cooked, the snails must first be prepared by purging them of the contents of their digestive system. The process used to accomplish this varies, but generally involves a combination of fasting and purging. The methods most often used can take several days. Farms producing "Helix aspersa" for sale exist in Europe and in the United States. Farm-raised snails are typically fed a diet of ground cereals.

ee also

*Snails in cuisine
*Periwinkle

References

External links

* [http://www.dietaryfiberfood.com/snail-escargot.php Escargot - nutritional value]


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • escargot — [ ɛskargo ] n. m. • 1549; escargol 1393; provenç. escaragol, a. provenç. caragou, avec infl. des dér. de scarabæus (→ escarbot); p. ê. crois. du gr. kachlax et lat. conchylium 1 ♦ Mollusque gastéropode terrestre (hélicidés) herbivore, à coquille… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • escargot — ESCARGOT. s. m. Espece de limaçon à coquille. (l S se prononce.) Un gros escargot. un petit escargot. manger des escargots. il est fait comme un escargot …   Dictionnaire de l'Académie française

  • escargot — edible snail, 1892, from Fr. escargot, from O.Fr. escargole (14c.), from Prov. escaragol, ultimately from V.L. *coculium, from classical L. conchylium edible shellfish (see COCKLE (Cf. cockle)). The form of the word in Provençal and French seems… …   Etymology dictionary

  • escargot — es car*got ([e^]s k[aum]r*g[=o] ), n. [F. snail.] any edible terrestrial snail prepared as food; as a dish, it is usually served in the shell with a sauce of melted butter and garlic. Syn: snail. [WordNet 1.5 +PJC] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • escargot — Escargot, Limax, Cochlea …   Thresor de la langue françoyse

  • escargot — [es΄kär gō′] n. [Fr] a snail, esp. an edible variety …   English World dictionary

  • Escargot —  Ne doit pas être confondu avec Escargot petit gris ni Escargot de Bourgogne. Pour les articles homonymes, voir Escargot (homonymie) …   Wikipédia en Français

  • escargot — (è skar go ; le t ne se lie pas dans le parler ordinaire ; au pluriel, l s se lie : les è skargo z et.... ; escargots rime avec repos, travaux) s. m. 1°   Espèce de limaçon. •   Les yeux du limaçon terrestre, connu sous le nom d escargot, sont… …   Dictionnaire de la Langue Française d'Émile Littré

  • escargot — nm., limaçon : èskargo nm. (Albanais.001, Annecy.003, Cordon, Houches, Saxel, Thônes.004) ; l(e)massa nf. (003,004 | Albertville), lmarha (Montagny Bozel) || l(i)masson nm. (Arvillard | 003) ; kouklyè nm. (Leschaux). A1) escargot des haies… …   Dictionnaire Français-Savoyard

  • ESCARGOT — s. m. Espèce de limaçon. Un gros escargot. Un petit escargot. Manger des escargots …   Dictionnaire de l'Academie Francaise, 7eme edition (1835)

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