It is the ultimate slow food. Every spring, for three days and nights, Catalans celebrate in bacchanalian fashion the humble snail.
More than 200,000 fans of the gastropod descend upon Lleida as part of a culinary tradition that dates back to the era when this town was an important Roman citadel. The scent of charcoal and alioli — the most popular condiment, but by no means the only option — wafts along the cobbled streets as smoke from hundreds of barbecues hangs in the air.
In Britain, eating snails is associated with French haute cuisine. Escargots are a delicacy that lives in the public imagination as a bistro dish to be consumed on round plates with quaint circular indents and almost exclusively with garlic and butter.
The snails are cooked and mixed with several condiments, including sauces, herbs and other meats
MARTA GONZÁLEZ DE LA PEÑA ROYO FOR THE TIMES
But here, in western Catalonia, snail culture is equally ancient and perhaps more diverse, with many recipes competing for attention.
Jesús Gimena Aragón, chef-proprietor of Lleida’s l’Espurna restaurant, serves avant-garde snail dishes: one is a small tortilla made of snail meat, while another, bocatín de caracol, is a form of snail sandwich with a streak of red sauce on top. He also serves more traditional fare — the most basic of all recipes is snails cooked on a stone by setting alight to straw material underneath, a technique known as a la brutesca.
“Snails are a rich and healthy food, they are pure protein and by combining them with our other local products you have an infinite range of possibilities by adding sauces, herbs and other meats such as ham or chicken,” he said.
In this town, discussion of how best to eat snails has a lively history. In the 16th century Pope Pius V, who adored eating snails, ruled that they were seafood, not meat so that they could be consumed during Lent. He is said to have proclaimed: “Estote pisces aeternum” (“You will be fish forever”). The practice was upheld for centuries afterwards and in Lleida the chef to the Spanish royal household wrote a whole section on snails in his 1614 cookery book, detailing how to best to prepare and serve them.
The celebration bridges political divisions and brings all Catalonians together for a common love
MARTA GONZÁLEZ DE LA PEÑA ROYO FOR THE TIMES
On Saturday more than 121 colles, the historic companies which form the backbone of the festival, paraded beneath the fortress-cathedral of Seu Vella to cross the River Segre via Lleida’s Old Bridge. There they receive a cockade, a kind of decorative rosette, to add to their standard in recognition of the years in service to the snail.
Now in its fifth decade, the Aplec del Caragol de Lleida is a cultural phenomenon which celebrates Catalan culture, embracing food, wine, music and dance away from divisive politics.
“It is perhaps the only free space in which all opinions are welcome and co-existence is its hallmark,” says Rafa Gimena, a Lleida resident. While Catalans may disagree on independence, they agree on snails. “Catalonia became so polarised over the independence question in recent years, but here it doesn’t matter what you believe, we are all here to celebrate what brings us together.”
MARTA GONZÁLEZ DE LA PEÑA ROYO FOR THE TIMES
That the common garden snail — the bover in Catalan, or the Helix aspersa in Latin — has achieved so much is evident in its growing importance as a national Catalan and Spanish festival. There is a waiting list to join and one of the newest companies is from across the border with France.
Ferran Perdrix, president of the festival’s organiser Fecoll, doesn’t hide the festival’s ambition to grow globally, with future events planned for France, Italy, Germany and even London. He said: “The roots of the festival run deep here. Snails were peasant food, gathered for free from the fields and for centuries families would picnic on them in the countryside.
“Now we eat them in more sophisticated dishes as well as in the traditional way, but the most important element of snails is that they bring us together and create happiness.”
MARTA GONZÁLEZ DE LA PEÑA ROYO FOR THE TIMES
At least 15 tonnes of snails will have been consumed by the close of this gathering. The most popular dish is a la llauna, whereby snails are cooked in a flat metal griddle atop a barbecue, well salted with an additional touch of black pepper and a splash of local arbequina olive oil to finish them off.
Once cooked for approximately ten minutes, the sizzling caragoles are fished out of their shells with a wooden pick and dipped in alioli or tomato vinaigrette-based sauces.
Maria Pinilla, a Londoner originally from Toledo who was visiting the festival for the first time, admitted she was wary of eating her first snail. But after nearly 72 hours of exposure, she declares herself a recruit to the Catalan snail army.
“I wasn’t convinced that I’d like them, but now I am a fan. I’m sure that anyone who comes here will go home as a convert,” she said.