Let this selling price inspire you ... farming it can be very very very ... profitable....Over 2K in US$ for less than a kilo of escargot meat....
Escargot, [ɛs.kaʁ.ɡo], is the French word for snail. It is related to Occitan escaragol and Catalan cargol, which, in turn, may derive from a pre-Roman word *karakauselIi, similarly, Spanish and Portuguese use the term caracol.
A dish of cooked land snails, usually served as an appetizer in France and in French restaurants. The word is also sometimes applied to the living snails of those species which are commonly eaten in this way.
In France, the species Helix pomatia is most often eaten. The "petit-gris" Helix aspersa is also eaten, as is Helix lucorum. Several additional species are popular in Europe.
Escargot bordeaux
Description Plate of escargot with tongs and fork, taken in Bordeaux FRANCE
Date 07/08/2008 Author Kadooshka - Wikimedia Commons.
These snail shells have been found in archaeological sites in the Mediterranean, the edible species Otala lactea has been recovered from Volubilis in present day Morocco. This archaeological recovery is from an era of Roman Empire occupation of this provincial capital, which site was known to embody a very highly developed ancient civilization since its days as a Phoenician and Carthaginian colony.
All these archeological findings yield physical evidence of culinary use of several species of snails utilized as escargot, an indication that snails have been eaten since prehistoric times.
Escargot out of its shell
Typically the snails are purged from questionable contents of their digestive systems that generally involves a combination of fasting and purging or simply feeding them on a wholesome replacement.
Typically the snails are purged from questionable contents of their digestive systems that generally involves a combination of fasting and purging or simply feeding them on a wholesome replacement.
Try green leafy vegy,...say lettuce, cabbage, spinach, a diet of
ground cereals ,...sprinkle wine on the vegy...that should give a special taste for the meat when ready to cook.
The methods most often used can
take several days and cooked usually with garlic butter, chicken stock
or wine and then placed back into the shells together with the butter
and sauce for serving. Additional ingredients may be added such as
garlic, thyme, parsley and pine nuts. In Maltese cuisine snails of the petit gris variety are simmered in red wine or ale with mint, basil and marjoram. The snails are cooked, and served, in their shells.
Farms producing Helix aspersa for sale exist in Europe and in the United States.
In the late '80s, escargot represented a $300 million a year business
in the United States.
Learn how to cook
Escargot Bourguignon
Escargot Bourguignon
Uploaded by OrsaraRecipes on Sep 6, 2011
Follow me on Twitter for daily recipe updates @OrsaraRecipes
In this episode I will show you how to prepare and cook Escargot Bourguignon.
Things you will need: Snails, Snail Shells,
Stick of butter, Black Pepper, Salt, Chilli Pepper
Pliny described the snail garden of Fulvius Hirpinus 2,000 years ago as having separate sections for different species of snails. Hirpinus allegedly fed his snails on meal and wine. But note, stale beer placed in a shallow dish is a way of killing them. Snails are attracted to the yeast in beer and will crawl into the dish and drown.
The Romans selected the best snails for breeding. "Wall fish" were often eaten in Britain, but were never as popular as on the continent. There, people often ate snails during Lent, and in a few places, they consumed large quantities of snails at Mardi Gras or Carnival, as a foretaste of Lent.
According to some sources, the French exported brown garden snails to California in the 1850s, raising them as the delicacy escargot. Other sources claim that Italian immigrants were the first to bring the snail to the United States.
Economic impact
U.S. imports of snails were worth more than $4.5 million in 1995 and came from 24 countries. This includes preserved or prepared snails and snails that are live, fresh, chilled, or frozen. Major exporters to the U.S. are France, Indonesia, Greece and China. The U.S. exported live, fresh, chilled, or frozen snails worth $55,000 to 13 countries; most were shipped to Japan, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom. Individual statistics are not available for U.S. exports of prepared or processed snails from the U.S. Department of Commerce.
Farming it can be very very very ... profitable....
Imperial Escargot Caviar - Snail Caviar
(750g - 26.32oz) - 83/oz
WHOLESALE PRICING is at $2184.56
http://www.beverlyhillscaviar.com/luxurycaviar-luxury-caviar.html
Heliciculture, or snail farming is the process of farming or raising land snails specifically for human consumption, and more recently, to obtain snail slime for cosmetics use.
Perhaps the best known and most often cultivated land snail species in the Western world is Helix pomatia, the Roman snail, Burgundy snail or apple snail. Another species eaten is Helix aspersa. Both of these land snails are European in their native range.
Other species of land snail that are consumed by humans are found in Europe, Northern Africa, North America and in various other parts of the world.
Roasted snail shells have been found in archaeological excavations, an indication that snails have been eaten since prehistoric times.
List of edible land snail species
Helix aspersa is also known as the French "petit gris,"
"small grey snail," the "escargot chagrine," or "la
zigrinata."
Helix pomatia measures about 45 mm across the shell. It also is called the "Roman snail," "apple snail," "lunar," "la vignaiola," the German "Weinbergschnecke," the French "escargot de Bourgogne" or "Burgundy snail," or "gros blanc."
Description English: Otala lactea.
Locality: Bermuda, BDA: 32°19' 59" N x 64°42' 29" W 22
Harrington Sound Road,
Hamilton Parish, Bermuda,
27 July 2009, Sam Fraser-Smith ex. Nerium oleander.
Date 27 July 2009, 23:20:54 Source originally posted to Flickr as
Date 27 July 2009, 23:20:54 Source originally posted to Flickr as
| Description | Cepaea nemoralis auf einem Teller. Duisburg |
| Date | 13. Juni 2010 |
| Source | Own work |
| Author | Oceancetaceen Alice Chodura |
Iberus gualtieranus alonensis,
the Spanish "vaqueta" or "serrana".
| Description |
English: Iberus gualtieranus alonensis, Alfara de Carles (near Tortosa), Tarragona, Catalonia
Español: Iberus gualtieranus alonensis, Alfara de Carles (cerca de Tortosa), Tarragona, Cataluña
Català: Vaqueta (Iberus gualtieranus alonensis) fotografiada a Alfara de Carles (Baix Ebre, Catalunya)
|
| Date | 23 August 2008 |
| Source | Own work |
| Author | Xvazquez |
Cepaea hortensis, the "white-lipped snail", measures about 20 mm across the shell which often has distinct dark stripes. It is native to central and northern Europe.
Nettersheim, Germany.
Date 3 June 2004 Author: sarefo
Otala punctata, called "vaqueta" and prepared in a typical dish in
South Spain, "cabrillas", cooked in spicy tomato sauce.
apical view
English: Otala punctata; Terrassa, Catalonia, Spain
Date 7 May 2009 Author: Xvazquez
Eobania vermiculata, the "vinyala," "mongeta," or "xona", measures about 25 mm. It is found in Mediterranean countries and was introduced into Louisiana and Texas. The species is commercialized and exported from Greece to France, which led Lazaridou-Dimitriadou & Kattoulas (1981)[9] to propose restrictions for size and seasons of collection.
English: Eobania vermiculata,
locality: Mallorca Date 8 October 2007 Author: Thomas Schoch
Helix lucorum, sometimes called "escargo turc," measures about 45 mm across the shell. It is found in central Italy and from Yugoslavia through the Crimea to Turkey and around the Black Sea. Helix lucorum is a species of large, edible, air-breathing land snail or escargot, a terrestrial pulmonate gastropod mollusk in the family Helicidae, the typical snails.
shell of Helix lucorum
Date 5 May 2006 Source Own work Author
Michal Maňas (snek01)
Helix aperta's meat is highly prized. It is native to France, Italy, and other Mediterranean countries and has become established in California and Louisiana. Sometimes known as the "burrowing snail," it is found above ground only during rainy weather. In hot, dry weather, it burrows three to six inches into the ground and becomes dormant until rain softens the soil.
English: Photo of Helix aperta.
Locality: Greece:
island of Salamina. Date: 19 January 2010.Source: http://www.animalbase.uni-goettingen.de/zooweb/servlet/AnimalBase/home/picture?id=6214
http://www.animalbase.uni-goettingen.de/animalbaseimage/Helix-aperta_08.jpg
Author Panayotis Ovalis
Theba pisana, also called the "banded snail"or the "cargol avellanenc", measures about 20 mm and lives on dry, exposed sites, usually near the sea. Native to Sicily, it has been spread to several European countries, including England.
| Description | Theba pisana |
| Date | 3.5.2009 |
| Source | Own work (personal work) |
| Author | tato grasso |
| Permission (Reusing this file) |
Attribution ShareAlike 3.0 |
Sphincterochila candidissima or Leucochroa candidisima, the "cargol mongeta," or "cargol jueu" measures about 20 mm.
| Description | |||
| Date | 2009-July-31 | ||
| Source | Own work | ||
| Author | Xvazquez |
Achatina fulica and other Achatina species, giant African snails. They can grow up to 326 mm (1 ft ¾ in) in length. Their native range is south of the Sahara in East Africa. This snail was purposely introduced into India in 1847. There was an unsuccessful attempt to establish it in Japan in 1925. It has been purposely and accidentally transported to other Pacific locations and was inadvertently released in California after World War II, in Hawaii, and later in North Miami Florida in the 1970s.
Español: Caracol gigante africano (Achatina fulica)
Photo of a Giant African Snail (Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich) taken near Pattaya (Chonburi Province), Thailand.
Photo taken by User:Ahoerstemeier on July 7, 2003.
Photo of a Giant African Snail (Achatina (Lissachatina) fulica Bowdich) taken near Pattaya (Chonburi Province), Thailand.
Photo taken by User:Ahoerstemeier on July 7, 2003.
Farming snails
Successful snail culture requires the correct equipment and supplies, including: snail pens or enclosures; devices for measuring humidity (hygrometer), temperature (thermometer), soil moisture, and light (in foot candles); a weight scale and an instrument to measure snail size; a kit for testing soil contents; and a magnifying glass to see the eggs. You also may need equipment to control the climate (temperature and humidity), to regulate water (e.g., a sprinkler system to keep the snails moist and a drainage system), to provide light and shade, and to kill or keep out pests and predators. Some horticultural systems such as artificial lighting systems and water sprinklers may be adapted for snail culture. You will have better results if you use snails of the same kind and generation. Some recommend putting the hatchlings in another pen.
Four systems of snail farms can be distinguished:
- Outdoor Pens.
- In buildings with a controlled climate.
- In closed systems such as plastic tunnel houses or "greenhouses."
- In addition, snails may breed and hatch inside in a controlled environment and then (after 6 to 8 weeks) may be placed in outside pens to mature.
If there is the black gold referring to oil... then we have the brown gold referring to Escargot... Go for it !!!
Sources: Wikipedia, Wikimedia
Commons,Youtube
http://fromd.blogspot.com
email: voicefromdorient@yahoo.com
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