Spain · 75 min · Meat · Starter · For confident cooks
Caracoles
For 4 servings · US units
Snails simmered in a spicy sofrito with cured ham, white wine and chili
Caracoles are one of those tapas you settle in for: you tease each snail out of its shell, then go back for the spicy sauce. A sofrito of onion, garlic and tomato picks up depth and warmth from cured ham, white wine and dried chili. They're at their best in spring, when fresh snails are around.
Ingredients
- 2 lbsnailsfresh, thoroughly rinsed
- 1onionchopped, for the sofrito
- 3 clovesgarlicchopped
- 2tomatoespeeled and diced
- 3chiliguindilla or cayenne, amount to taste for heat
- 3 tbspolive oilfor frying
- 3½ ozserrano hamdiced
- ¾ cupwhite winefor deglazing
- 1thymeone sprig, fresh
- saltto taste
- 3½ ozspicy, in pieces (optional)Spanish or Portuguese pork sausage, heavily seasoned with paprika and garlic, which releases red fat as it cooks.Substitute: Cured chorizo cut into chunks works at a pinch, though it turns chewier and renders less fat; Mexican chorizo is a different product, loose, seasoned with vinegar and chilli, and changes the dish noticeably.Read more
- 1 tsppaprikaadded to the sofrito (optional)
- 1bay leaf (optional)
- 3mintleaves, simmered briefly at the end (optional)
Method
- Wash the snailsWash the snails several times in fresh cold water until the water stays clear.
- Coax the snails outPut the snails in a pot, cover them with cold or lukewarm water and warm them slowly over low heat until they come out of their shells.
- Parboil and drainNow turn up the heat and boil the snails for about 15–20 minutes. Drain them and throw away the cooking water.
- Cook the sofritoHeat the olive oil in a large pot and gently cook the onion and garlic over medium heat until soft. Add the tomatoes and let everything cook down into a thick sofrito. If you like, stir in the sweet paprika at the end.
- Fry the ham and chiliAdd the cured ham and dried chili peppers to the sofrito, along with the spicy chorizo if you're using it, and fry briefly until the ham gives off its aroma.
- Deglaze with white winePour in the white wine and let it bubble for a moment so the alcohol cooks off.
- Simmer the snailsAdd the snails to the pot with the thyme sprig and the bay leaf if you're using it, cover with water and simmer, lid on, over low heat for 20–30 minutes. If you're using mint, add the leaves in the last few minutes.
- Season and serveSeason with salt, remove the thyme sprig and bay leaf, and serve the caracoles hot.
Tips and variations
For a thicker sauce, stir in a majada of fried almonds, bread and garlic; in this version green pepper and dried red pepper also go into the sofrito, which gets blended, along with a stock cube and mint at the end, all cooked in a pressure cooker. For something punchier, add spicy chorizo, pine nuts and a splash of brandy. Or thicken the sofrito with a little flour, season it with paprika, bay leaf and white pepper, and just heat the snails through in the sauce instead of simmering them for a long time. Serve as a tapa in small bowls with plenty of sauce and toothpicks for picking the snails out.
Allergens
Contains: Sulphur dioxide and sulphites, Molluscs
Not every ingredient in this recipe has been checked, so nothing is promised as free from.
These notes follow from this recipe's ingredient list. Ready-made products and brands may contain further allergens — please check the packaging yourself.
Something not right?
This recipe was put together from independent sources and checked before publishing. Even so, a mistake can slip through — an amount that does not add up, a step that does not work as written. If you spot something, write to us: we will look into it and put it right.
