Got in at the tail end of snail season this week at Bar Alfonso (El Rey de los Caracoles). That’s it now until next late spring… 🐌 🐌 🐌
no hay caracoles
05 Friday Jul 2024
Posted in seasons, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars
Tag Archives: snails
snail season 2023
19 Friday May 2023
Posted in culture, gastronomy, seasons, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars
We’re about mid-way through snail season. Yes, there are bars that serve them year round but those are grown in greenhouses. These are yer proper free-range wild snails! And as you can see there are two types. The tiny caracoles and the larger plumper cabrillas. They are also prepared differently. Cabrillas are cooked in a fairly standard tomato-based cuminy sauce, but with caracoles it’s all about the broth. Every bar has their own broth recipe and they really are quite distinct. Some are garlicky, others feature various herbs, some are quite peppery, and they are often served in a small glass so that once you manage to spoon and slurp out all the caracoles you can finish by drinking the broth. As you can imagine, a bit messy to eat (especially the cabrillas) because, although you are given a toothpick to dig the little buggers out of their shells, you still have to pick them up. BUT the best way to eat them, especially the smaller caracoles, is just to pick one up, and slurp it out broth and all.
snail season 2018
23 Monday Apr 2018
Posted in sevilla, spain, tapas, tapas bars
For those of you who think it’s all fun-fun-fun around here, with endless glasses of sherry and an infinite array of tapas… well, actually it is kind of like that. 😉 Though not every day of course, and not as “constant” as it may appear to be on my social media accounts. Heck, I can make one tapas bar visit last several days on SM via my various accounts. Also, I kind of publish things at random, so if you ever think I am drinking wine at 10 am… chances are I’m not (though on rare occasions it has been known to happen). Which brings me to SNAILS.
It’s now snail season in Sevilla. These are not the more well-known big fat French escargot that come drenched in butter and garlic… in fact, we have two types of snails here. The Caracoles are the smaller version, usually cooked in a spicy broth, and although you can use a toothpick to pry the little devils out of the shell, most people just put the shell to their lips and suck that baby out, sauce and all.
Cabrillas are bigger, and are usually cooked in a thick tomato-based sauce. With these guys you do need the toothpick, and you also have to take care with the sauce, which can splatter all over. I speak from experience.
But whether you love them or hate them (me? I like them!) it’s fun to try the different styles and sauces at different bars. Snails do seem like the most popular insect that have been introduced into Western diets. Thank you France! I mean, dousing anything in butter and garlic…
snail season
06 Saturday May 2017
Posted in food & drink, seasons, sevilla, tapas, tapas bars
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You can find snails year-round in some Sevilla bars, but the best time (apparently) is NOW when they are in season. The secret is in the sauce, as the snails are cooked in a broth that is unique to each bar that serves them. I don’t mind them, but I’m not a huge fan, so I don’t have a photo of a big plate of snails to show you. And so this fabulous snail sculpture by Chiqui Díaz will have to do…
casa azahar 