Escargots à la Bourguignonne

The classic of the Burgundian table: snails returned to their shells and sealed under a fragrant green butter of pounded parsley, garlic, and shallot, then baked until bubbling, the parsley-garlic butter, not the snail, the true and glorious point of the dish

Origin: Burgundy, France

From the journey of Parsley.

Escargots à la bourguignonne are the great snail dish of Burgundy, and a perfect example of a preparation in which the seasoning is the soul. The snails themselves are mild and chewy, a vehicle; what makes the dish is the beurre d'escargot, the snail butter, a vivid green compound of softened butter beaten with a great deal of finely chopped parsley, garlic, and shallot. The snails are tucked back into their shells, each sealed with a plug of this green butter, and baked in special dimpled dishes until the butter melts, bubbles, and fills the kitchen with the smell of garlic and parsley; the butter is then mopped up with bread, which is the best part. Eaten with the special tongs and little forks of the brasserie, escargots are a fixture of the French festive table, and a monument to the partnership of parsley and garlic that runs through the whole French kitchen.

Ingredients

Snails

24 prepared snails (tinned), with 24 cleaned shells

Snail butter

150 g butter, softened
1 large bunch flat-leaf parsley, very finely chopped (about 30g)
4 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste
1 shallot, very finely chopped
0.5 tsp salt
0.25 tsp black pepper
1 tsp brandy or dry white wine (optional)

To serve

1 crusty baguette, to serve

Method

Beat the softened butter with the chopped parsley, garlic, shallot, salt, pepper, and brandy if using, until you have a soft, uniform, vivid green butter.
Preheat the oven to 200°C (180°C fan / 400°F). Push a little of the green butter into each cleaned shell, then a snail, then seal the opening with a generous plug of the remaining butter.
Set the filled shells, opening upward, in escargot dishes or on a bed of coarse salt in a baking tray to keep them upright.
Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, until the butter is melted, bubbling, and fragrant and the snails are heated through.
Serve at once, very hot, with plenty of crusty bread to soak up the parsley-garlic butter.

Notes

Tinned snails with separate shells are sold ready for this dish; the work is all in the butter and the filling. The same green snail butter (beurre d'escargot) is superb on grilled mushrooms, mussels, clams, or simply melted over a steak or grilled bread, for those who would rather skip the snails. Make extra and freeze it rolled in a log.

The Gastrographer

Name: Escargots à la Bourguignonne
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 12 min
Total time: 42 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: France
Ingredients: 24 prepared snails (tinned), with 24 cleaned shells; 150 g butter, softened; 1 large bunch flat-leaf parsley, very finely chopped (about 30g); 4 cloves garlic, crushed to a paste; 1 shallot, very finely chopped; 0.5 tsp salt; 0.25 tsp black pepper; 1 tsp brandy or dry white wine (optional); 1 crusty baguette, to serve

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Journey Point Map Key

Ingredient originTrade or transit route

Became a culinary stapleColonial / trade control