Recipe for snails in spicy tomato sauce with laurel

Ingredienti per 4 persone:

• 70 purged snails about half a kg.
• 300 g. of peeled tomatoes
• half onion
• a clove of garlic
• half a glass of white wine
• two tablespoons of vinegar
• bay leaves
• two peppers
• extra virgin olive oil
• salt
• pepper

Preparation:

The other day it was raining and the garden was completely wet, the snails were wandering around without an apparent destination. They were big fat snails that I selected over time. I collected a small part, about 40, to make snails in a spicy tomato and bay leaf sauce.
We actually call them snails, but they’re snails, I think they’re Helix Aspersa. It doesn’t matter, I still call them snails.
If you don’t have snails in the garden, don’t worry, you can find them for sale already purged at the greengrocer or supermarket.
At my house, snails were banned by my mother and I learned of their existence when I was 20 years old. My aunt Elena, a good cook, one day of celebration invited me to lunch and brought to the table this specialty that she prepared with the recipe I propose. On my return home my mother didn’t let me in and only after 7 days did she allow me to return, but she didn’t explain the reason for those 7 days.
Let’s see how to prepare them: first we purge the snails at the closed for at least 7 days. Skip this step if you buy them ready-made.

Every day I wash and re-wash them until they release impurities and tend to close.
The day they are cooked, they are washed repeatedly with slightly salted water to remove the burr.

Cook the snails in abundant cold water and three bay leaves, adding a little salt after the start of boiling. Turn off the stove after 4 minutes at the end of cooking. Drain them and keep them ready for the sauce.
Mince the onion, garlic, chilli pepper and cut the peeled tomatoes into pieces. If the onions are fresh, add a few fresh leaves.
Sauté the extra virgin olive oil, the chilli pepper and a bay leaf in a saucepan, then with the onion until it turns golden and finally with the garlic. Pour in the white wine so the garlic doesn’t burn. Add the tomato and cook for three minutes. Then add the cooked snails, the white wine and two tablespoons of vinegar. Season with salt and pepper and cook over low heat with the lid on for 15 minutes, stirring gently from time to time. After cooking, let it rest for at least two hours to let the flavors absorb.

For an unforgettable tasting and to enhance the flavor of the snails in spicy tomato sauce with laurel, I suggest you accompany the dish with slices of toasted bread and a good Sardinian red wine. Among the best options, you can consider the Cannonau di Oliena or a Monica di Sardegna, wines with hints of forest and red fruits that combine perfectly with the savory taste of snails.

Enjoy your meal!