Saltwater Snails

Saltwater Snails

　　Dongping County boasts abundant water resources and vast water areas, home to a large variety of aquatic mollusks, notably the Chinese pond snail from Dongping Lake (commonly known as "snail"). Snail meat has naturally become one of the renowned delicacies on the dining tables of Dongping.

　　Snails are referred to as "pulei" in the Classic of Mountains and Seas, "xiǎo niú wō" in the San Cang, and "shān wō" in the Supplementary Records of Famous Physicians, and are commonly known as "mountain snails" or "snails." They are distributed all over the world, mostly inhabiting dark, damp, and humus-rich warm regions, with only a few living in arid desert areas and icy regions. Most have omnivorous, nocturnal, moisture-loving, and self-sustaining habits.

　　Snails have high edible value, and snail dishes are hailed as "one of the world’s four great delicacies," having long appeared as main courses on dining tables in many European and American countries. Not only is their meat delicious, but they are also highly nutritious, rich in protein and essential amino acids needed by the human body. With low fat and cholesterol, they are listed as health foods and can serve as an optimal animal protein source for hypertension patients. The Chinese pond snail bred in Dongping Lake is a newly developed snail variety in China.

　　Records of snails in China date back over 2,000 years, but they were mostly used for medicinal purposes. During the difficult living conditions of the 1960s, locals in our county once ate wild snails to stave off hunger. Later, snails gradually began to attract attention. Since the reform and opening up, snail farming has emerged as a new industry. Snail meat has not only made its way onto dining tables but also become an important export commodity. Our county’s lake-produced snails are sold in large quantities to major cities such as Beijing and Tianjin every year.

　　When cooking snails, it is best to select fresh and active ones. There are two methods for initial processing: one is the head-retraction process. This involves soaking the snails in 4–10% saltwater for about 10 minutes. Stimulated by the salt, the snails will retract their heads and feet into their shells on their own. The other is the blanching process, which involves boiling a large pot of water, placing the head-retracted snails into the boiling water, heating them for 5–10 minutes, then removing and rinsing them in clean water to cool. Next, the snail meat is extracted with a needle-like tool for cooking.

　　The method for making saltwater snails is as follows:

　　Clean 500 grams of snail meat, briefly boil it in a pot of hot water, then remove and set aside. Prepare a white brine by boiling 2,000 grams of milk broth, 150 grams of scallion segments, 50 grams of cinnamon, 15 grams of fine salt, and 50 grams of cooking wine. Adjust the flavor, add the snail meat, and simmer for about one hour. Remove, let cool, slice, and arrange on a plate for serving.

　　Characteristics of this dish: white-brown in color, with a sweet, salty, and fragrant taste.

　　Traditional Chinese medicine believes that snails are cold in nature, salty in flavor, and slightly toxic. They can treat infantile tetanus with locked jaw, promote urination, soothe sore throat, stop nasal polyps and fistulas, and counteract centipede and scorpion venom.