Bulgarian Sunday Lunch In The Slow Lane

Bulgarian Sunday Lunch In The Slow LaneSnails are free food, but the appeal certainly isn't a favourite with most people and that’s not just vegetarians either. The thought of the slow, slimy, slippery creatures as a meal just puts many if not most people off. Snails are land lubbers where whelks are seafaring with a more popular following as a snack, but essentially they are the same in both physical looks, texture although having a more distinctive taste. So why the big ‘Yuk!’ to garden snails on the dinner plate?

It was snails on the menu this weekend for Galia and I as we stopped just outside Yambol after a night of rain together snails that large and abundant. Free food, but not restricted to Bulgaria, in the UK garden snails are edible albeit more polluted. We knew the snails we were picking up were healthy and succulent on the fresh green spring growth that had dinner written all over it for these lucky snails and the snails in turn had dinner written all over them for us. Oh the food chain is wonderful thing isn't it?

We must have picked about 30 to 40 snails and took them the farmhouse where we put them in a bucket with an iron grill off the barbecue system and weighted it down with a Skalitsa healing stone we had picked up last year whilst being healed, so any ill snails would be cured, but they couldn't escape. They could poke their heads though the grate but their shell houses couldn't be dragged through with them. To eat snails you need their digestive system to be clear and that means starving them for two days. It was Friday so they would be ready to cook on Sunday; this was our plan for Sunday lunch.

Each morning and evening I washed them out with water and put them back in the bucket. Sunday morning after their last wash they were put into some boiling water then winkled out with a skewer. Then the snail meat was fried in butter and home grown green garlic with a little rakia and turned out in a couple of ramekin bowls. Each bowl of snails was covered with breadcrumbs and grilled until brown.

Bulgarian Sunday Lunch In The Slow LaneOutside, Galia had set the table outside in the sunshine that had come out after the rain we had had for two days. This had some cold Sofia beer called ‘Ariana,’ waiting on the table to greet us along with the snail dishes that were ready to serve. We spend the next 20 minutes enjoying out free feed in beautiful surroundings being washed down with cold beer. Yambol snails and Sofia beer - A great combination!

I recommend snails for Sunday lunch to anyone, it is a superb no cost chemical-free food with little if no fat and no animal rights campaigners in sight! Notice I haven't mentioned the French - Oops I just did!

My own step-by-step snail recipe is being prepared in next post.
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25 comments:

  1. Wonderful! Well, it *sounds* wonderful ;-) I still haven't tried snails. I eat mussels, oysters, etc but haven't ventured into the garden variety yet. What is this dish called in Bulgaria, by the way?

    Your lunch en plein air looks lovely. Is that a tulip on the table?

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  2. It's funny that some people in my part of the world won't touch snail as food but didn't say no to escargot. @_@

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  3. First I must say what a delightful photo of yourself and Galia. Secondly if I was cooking the snails then the rakia would be off the receipe because I'd have to drink it first before I could touch the buggers. Last as far as I know Thailand hasn't got any snails but I'm going to find out if they have because they'll eat anything in the Land of Smiles. I bet the beer went down a little slow after the lunch you had.

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  4. MMM I love snails and you just made me very hungry! I have to agree with Martyn that is a great photo of you and your lady!

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  5. Martin in Bulgaria7 May 2009 at 16:26

    Hi JaPRA,
    Hope you're in fine fettle.
    The dish isn't realy Bulgarian therefore doesn't have a name. Yes, well spotted a tulip it is.

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  6. Martin in Bulgaria7 May 2009 at 16:28

    Hi Lina,
    Thanks for you comment.
    I suppose it makes a difference to waht you call them. Honey is bee spit I dont' suppose it would sell as well described as that.

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  7. Martin in Bulgaria7 May 2009 at 16:35

    Hi Martyn,
    Hope things are ticking away well for you.
    Rakia helps everything here, but not too much. The beer certainly went down really well with this dish I wouldn't say slowly though, it was rather warm outside on that day. I sure there are snails in Thailand, they are worldwide as far as I'm aware and probably eaten on the sly.

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  8. Martin in Bulgaria7 May 2009 at 16:36

    Mmmm I'll have to lose some more weight - Waiter! More salad and snails please!

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  9. Martin, I don't eat them but there are a lot of varities of so called snails here in Thailand, they love wet places and lay their eggs all over my plant leaves and they are forever around my pond. there is a variety that is in the rice patties and in the mud in local ponds , (I call them mud holes)the Thais dig around in the mud to get these and Ciejay loves them , I go to the market on Thursday and a lady fixes them in what she calls gang hoi and sells out every day so I have to get there early , I haven't tried yet, maybe I'll give it a try and I could probably eat them, if I did'nt have to watch them being cooked , glad you had a enjoyable lunch as per all the other comments great picture of you and Galia , Blessings to the both of you Malcolm

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  10. Martin in Bulgaria7 May 2009 at 18:35

    Hi Malcolm and CieJay,
    Nice to see your comments here Malcolm.
    Most if not all snails are edible, so many people just are turned off by them for some reason. Give them a go Malcolm, they're good for your health.

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  11. I wouldn't mind eating snail at all!

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  12. Hey Martin, I've eaten my share of snails, but only from restaurants, never from my backyard. How about smothering those things in some marinara sauce?

    peace,
    mike
    livelife365

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  13. I never thought it possible that snails would actually sound delicious, but you managed to do just that. It's a completely different perspective that looks at snails and sees "dinner written all over it". That was funny.

    My mom says I eat with my eyes"...if it doesn't look good it won't pass my lips. It took me yeeears to eat okra and eggplant - we'll have to see how long it will take for snails... (gulp)

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  14. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 17:53

    Hi Bev,
    Good to see you here. Okra and Eggplant? Great food but never as good from a supermarket. My first snual was from the garden in London when I was a kid, my Dad was a chef.

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  15. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 17:55

    Hi Rose,
    hope you and your family are well. I'm sure you can get them locally.

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  16. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 17:56

    Hi Mike, how about a video of you eating one. Prepared and cooked of course. Does it qualify as a non-vegetarian dish?

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  17. I think its true that most if not all home grown vegetables taste better
    than those at a supermarket. I just planted some eggplant and have some
    seeds for okra but I don't know if they will like the weather here. We'll
    see. I am yet to tell my mom that I enjoy eggplant now.
    I'm curious...did you know that it was snail that you were going to eat? Or
    did you eat it and then find out?

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  18. Samantha Hristova8 May 2009 at 19:52

    We don't have those big snails in my part of America or any part of it for all I know. I remember when I was at St. Constantine and Elena resort last May and found my first Bulgarian snail. I fed it dandelion leaves and cherries and kept it overnight as a pet. They're huge! The only ones I've seen here are at best, with a shell the size of a Lev. I think Metodi and I would probably find them 'too cute' to eat. :D Your description sounds yummy though!

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  19. Samantha Hristova8 May 2009 at 19:56

    Our lucky snails from St. Constantine & Elene resort. HA!

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  20. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 21:23

    Hi Bev,
    I’m sure Okra can be grown in a Mediterranean climate, we get them here in Bulgaria and import form Turkey. Aubergine or Eggplant is one of our favourite foods here and we grow it as well. Sliced dipped in flour and fried in sunflower oil is one of the best foods I have experienced here – So simple! Glad you discovered it. I was fully aware that it was snails form the garden we were going to eat, I had no problem with that as I trusted my parents.
    Enjoying food is aboujtg experimenting with new food, there is so much that people don't try. Bravo to you.

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  21. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 21:26

    Hi Samantha. Funny you should say that Metodi finds the snial too cute to eat, many people I know here justr won't entertain snails, as you know there are manhy other dishes that they would rather have on the dinner table in Bulgaria. The only reason we had them for luch was because we saw them in the verge.

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  22. Martin in Bulgaria8 May 2009 at 21:28

    They are indeed lucky Sam, they haven't been eaten! They look happy enough, dandelion and cherries - Five star service!

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  23. Samantha Hristova8 May 2009 at 23:17

    Well I'm not certain he wouldn't eat them... But we both enjoyed having them as pets for the day. I was never offered snails for dinner in BG. Most likely potatoes, meatballs, sauerkraut, yogurt, cheese, and ungodly amounts of BREAD! In fact, the only odd thing I was ever offered was a sheep skull... :D

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  24. It looks like you both had a lovely Sunday lunch with free food! I've never eaten snails and the thought of it makes me feel a bit sick.

    We do have a family of snails living in our mailbox, though - everytime I take them out, they come back - perhaps a good way of getting rid of them for good would be to eat them?!

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