Escargot

inAppetizer Recipes, French Recipes, Holiday & Dinner Party Recipes, Recipes
  • YIELDS | 2-4 APPETIZER SERVINGS
  • PREP TIME | 15 MINS
  • COOK TIME | 6-10 MINS

As a small child, I fondly remember eating snails. These weren’t any average mollusks mind you; these escargot were drenched in a garlicky, buttery sauce and dotted with parsley and shallot. This recipe is authentically French and designed for you to experience this dish the same way the French have been making escargot for centuries. Toasted, buttery baguettes and a good white wine are a must.

Ingredients

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon Kosher salt
  • 1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened, plus more to butter baguettes
  • 2 teaspoons shallot, minced
  • 2 tablespoon fresh flat-leaf parsley, minced, plus more for garnish
  • Freshly ground pepper
  • 1 tablespoon dry sherry or white wine
  • 12 snails, see notes
  • French baguette, sliced into thin rounds

Special Equipment

  • Porcelain escargot dishes or 12 sterilized escargot shells

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 450°F.
  2. Mince the garlic, shallot, and parsley. Place the garlic and shallot in a medium bowl, add 1/2 the salt, and mash into a paste.
  3. Add the butter, parsley, and remaining salt to the garlic shallot mixture and whisk together until well combined.
  4. Add the wine or sherry and mix well. Set aside.
  5. Meanwhile, slice the baguettes into thin rounds, butter both sides, and place onto a baking sheet. Toast in oven on top rack until golden brown, about 5 minutes, but watch to be sure they do not burn. Remove and cover with a clean towel to keep warm.
  6. Divide the butter, garlic, and parsley mixture. Place a small scoop of the butter mixture on the bottom of each of the rounds in the dish or into the snail shells.
  7. Place a snail into each round of the dish or snail shell, then top each with the remaining butter, garlic, parsley mixture.
  8. Bake snails until butter is melted and bubbly, about 4-6 minutes. Sprinkle with freshly ground pepper.
  9. Place the buttery, browned banquette slices on top of the snails (if using dishes). Garnish with minced parsley and serve piping hot.

Notes

I found the perfect porcelain escargot dishes.