This delicious snail recipe (African peppered snails) sautéed with peppers, onions, and garlic, make a fantastic finger food or appetizer that will leave you licking your fingers!
Snail dishes are very popular in Africa and are sometimes referred to as Congo meat. In Nigeria, they are a party favorite, and the peppered snail tray is usually emptied pretty quickly.
Snails are also eaten in countries worldwide like Germany, France, Italy, Portugal, and Great Britain. The French have a very popular snail dish known as Escargot, which is the french word for edible snail.
Ingredients used
- Snails: I buy my snails cleaned from a seafood market or an African or Asian store. You can get edible snails fresh or frozen. I prefer frozen snails because they usually come already cleaned.
- Vegetables: Red bell pepper, habanero pepper, garlic, and onions. The habanero pepper gives this dish a robust and spicy kick!
- Spices: bouillon powder, black pepper, ground crayfish, cayenne pepper, and salt. Ground crayfish is an African condiment that is very popular in Nigerian dishes. You can leave it out if you don't have it on hand or substitute it with fish sauce.
- Olive oil: used to sauté the vegetables.
- Lemon: used to clean the snails.
How to cook snails
Clean the snails
Cleaning snails might look a bit daunting, but it's not that difficult. I usually buy my snails already de-shelled and cleaned. Even then, I still give the snails a good rub with lemon juice to ensure all the sliminess is gone.
- To clean the snails from scratch, boil them in a large pot for about 5 minutes.
- Drain the water and, using a pair of tweezers, pull the snails out of their shell, and place them in a bowl.
- Squeeze in some lemon juice and let it sit for 5-10 minutes.
- Scrub the snails with lemon until the sliminess is gone.
- Rinse with plenty of cold water.
After cleaning the snails, you can either boil or fry them. Boiling the snails make them softer and more tender while frying makes them crunchy.
Your method of cooking them will depend on your preference. I have done it both ways, and I alternate between them depending on my mood.
To boil the snails
- Place the snails in a pot and add some water till the snails are completely submerged.
- Add bouillon, salt, and black pepper and cook for 20 -30 minutes depending on how tender you want it.
To fry the snails
- Add the snails to a pan with enough oil and sprinkle some salt.
- Fry the snails for roughly 10 minutes, stirring every few minutes.
- Fried snails make a very crunchy snack all by themselves.
Make the snail sauce
- Chop the vegetables - habanero pepper, red bell pepper, and onions - and mince the garlic.
- In a pan or skillet, sauté onions and garlic in olive oil till fragrant.
- Add the chopped peppers, bouillon, cayenne pepper, and ground crayfish and sauté for five more minutes.
- Add the snails, cover the pan, and cook on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes. The pan must be covered so that the flavors and juices can sink into the snails.
- About halfway through, taste for salt and spices and adjust if necessary.
- Serve and enjoy!
This recipe serves 4 and contains 6 net carbs per serving. It keeps well in the fridge for up to 5 days.
What do you serve with snails?
This finger food is usually eaten alone as a quick snack or party food. You can serve it with cauliflower rice for a filling and delectable, low carb dinner.
If you want even more of a spicy kick to this snail recipe, add a tablespoon of my Pili Pili Sauce or African Pepper sauce, for an amazing combination!
Tips & Variations
- You can omit the cayenne pepper if you don't want it extra spicy. The habanero pepper will already provide enough heat for this dish.
- Make sure the snails are cooked covered and on medium-low heat so that the flavors from the peppers and aromatics can fully sink in.
Frequently Asked Questions
Snails are naturally keto-friendly and gluten-free and are a great source of protein. 100g of snails contain just 2g of carbohydrates and 16g of protein. They are also a rich source of iron, calcium, and Vitamin A.
Enjoy these other spicy African dishes!
Sega Wat (Ethiopian Beef Stew)
Doro Wat (Ethiopian Chicken Stew)
📖 Recipe
Snail Recipe (African Peppered Snails)
Ingredients
- 1 lb snails de-shelled
- ½ red bell peppers
- 1 habanero pepper
- ½ onions
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon crayfish substitute with 1 tablespoon of fish sauce
- 2 teaspoon bouillon
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt to cook
- 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 lemon to clean the snail
Instructions
To clean the snail
- If using fresh snails, boil them in a pot of water for 5 minutes.
- Drain the water and using a pair of tweezers, pull the snails out of their shell, and place them in a bowl.
- Squeeze in some lemon juice and let them sit for 5-10 minutes.
- Scrub the snails with lemon until the sliminess is gone.
- Rinse with plenty of cold water.
To cook the snails
- Place snail in a pot, add water, 1 teaspoon bouillon, salt, and pepper.
- Boil the snails for 20 -30 minutes till tender.
- Alternatively, fry snails till crispy (about 10 minutes).
To make the snail sauce
- Chop the habanero pepper, bell pepper, and onions, and mince the garlic.
- Saute onions and garlic in olive oil till fragrant.
- Add red bell pepper, habanero pepper, 1 teaspoon bouillon, cayenne pepper, and ground crayfish.
- Saute for 5 mins.
- Add snails, cover pot, and cook on medium-low heat for about 10 minutes.
- About halfway, taste for salt and spices and adjust if necessary.
- Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- You can omit the cayenne pepper if you don't want it extra spicy. The habanero pepper will already provide enough heat for this dish.
- Make sure the snails are cooked covered and on medium-low heat so that the flavors from the peppers and aromatics can fully sink in.
- If you don't have ground crayfish, you can substitute with 1 tablespoon of fish sauce or leave it out.
Nutrition
Helpful Resources
How to Clean and Prepare Fresh Snails for Cooking
Tayo Oredola is the founder of Low Carb Africa, where she shares healthy, low carb dishes with global flavors. She is passionate about teaching people how to cook drool-worthy dishes while losing weight and living their best lives. Tayo’s recipes have been featured on MSN, Women’s Health, Parade, Yahoo News, Pure Wow, Essence, and other online publications.
Hi wasn't sure but can I use this recipe for the african snails Achatina fulica or is there something different I need to do?
Yes you can.
Hi wasn't sure but can I use this recipe for the african snails Achatina fulica or is there something different I need to do. Thanks
Hi, you should be able to use the same recipe.
Hmmmm I have a bunch of canned snails/escargot….I wonder if I can use those with this sauce! I’m sure I could.
I'm not 100% sure but I think it will work.
Wow, these were AMAZING. Hadn't cooked snail before but had been wanting to and this recipe was great. I ate with rice, but kind of wish I had some crostini to serve it on.
Used a combo of pre-shelled periwinkles and apple snails still in shell. Both frozen, got them from local Asian market. I'm just gonna stick with pre-shelled in the future lol.
I'm glad you enjoyed this recipe, Justin! I get my snails frozen too, with the shells already off. It makes it so much easier to cook!
This recipe looks great. How many snails are in a pound?
It really depends on whether you buy them shelled or deshelled, fresh or frozen. I buy mine deshelled and frozen. When you buy snails, they will most likely have the weight on the label or you can weigh them on a scale.
Hi Tayo,
If you are based in the U.K., could you kindly provide a link to purchase the snails that you get please! Thank you
Hi June, I am based in the U.S and can only get my snails frozen from an African store. You might have one near you.