As per tradition during the Christmas holidays and more precisely on the eve of Christmas, in many Italian cities snails cannot be missing from traditional dishes.
Snails are part of the regional gastronomy. In fact, in many regions they represent one of the typical dishes, prepared according to a special recipe.
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In Piedmont they prepare pan-fried onions;
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in Lombardy: in Veneto with oil and garlic or with oil and onion;
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in Pavia, on Christmas Eve, they form a lean dish that cannot be missed on that occasion;
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snails with cod, in Cremona, are cooked stewed with raisins and pine nuts;
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in Rome, on the anniversary of San Giovanni, vineyard snails are cooked with oil, garlic, anchovies, tomatoes and fresh chilli pepper, flavored with mint leaves;
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in Naples, on Holy Thursday, here is the "maruzze soup" seasoned with tomato.
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The snails that are cooked in Puglia, Sicily and in general in southern Italy belong to a much smaller variety than those from northern Italy, so much so that, when cooked, they look like mussels.
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In Basilicata they are in fact called " land mussels ".
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In Sardinia small snails, called " giogga minuda ", are cooked in white wine.
A true specialty that is slowly regaining its space on our tables.
Preparation of snails stuffed with corn sauce and pizza
Before the usual boiling (first cooking), in order to eliminate the slime, the snails are placed in water, salt and vinegar for 30 minutes and then rinsed repeatedly. Once smeared, they are boiled for about 30 minutes.
Subsequently, the snails are placed in a pan into which extra virgin olive oil , pepper, nutmeg, chopped garlic and parsley are poured. Add the wine, then fry the snails, adding breadcrumbs, parmesan, pepper, pecorino, garlic and chopped parsley. This represents the filling with which each snail is put back into its shell and pressed.
The sauce is made by putting together celery, red pepper, tomato, bay leaf and rosemary, leaving it to cook for a good half hour. When the smell is full, add the snails and leave to cook for another 10 minutes.
Corn pizza
To make it you need good corn flour, which must be worked in boiling water with salt. When the mixture becomes pasty, firm enough to be handled and even a little sticky, the pizza is fried in a pan with oil until the crust forms. Or it goes in the oven until the crust is reached.
And voilà ... the dish is served!
Ingredients for 4 people
- 2 kg of snails ;
- two cloves of garlic;
- two tablespoons of EVO oil;
- bread crumbs;
- parmesan;
- medium-aged pecorino;
- salt, pepper and parsley to taste
For the sauce:
- half a red pepper:
- celery
- two tablespoons of oil;
- 500 ml of tomato;
- laurel;
- rosemary.
For the corn pizza (optional):
- 500 g of corn flour;
- salt
