In Lisbon, summer means caracol: plastic tables outside tascas, cold beer, and steaming bowls of small snails in a garlicky, herby broth, eaten one by one with a toothpick. Signs reading “Há caracol” go up in café windows when the season starts.

Caracóis are small garden snails, simmered low and slow in a broth loaded with garlic, bay leaves, oregano and a good hit of piri-piri, until the shells are fragrant and the broth underneath is almost better than the snails themselves. This is not French escargot with butter and parsley baked into the shell. This is bar food, eaten standing up with your sleeves rolled up, a pile of empty shells growing in front of you while you argue about football and wait for the next round of beer.

Snails can feel like a big ask in an American kitchen, but they are easier to find than you think: look for frozen or canned purged snails at Italian or French specialty markets, or order petit gris snails online already cleaned. For a full petisco spread, our Molho Piri-Piri Caseiro (recipe on the site) makes a great table sauce, and a plate of Amêjoas à Bulhão Pato (recipe on the site) rounds things out.

Caracóis à Portuguesa Recipe

What you need

Ingredients

2 pounds live or frozen/canned purged garden snails (about 60 to 70 snails; see Notes)
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
6 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon fresh oregano leaves (or 1 teaspoon dried)
1 to 2 small dried piri-piri chiles, crumbled (or 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes)
1 tablespoon fine salt
4 cups water
Fresh lemon wedges, for serving
Crusty bread, for serving

Cook along

Instructions

If using live snails, purge them for food safety by keeping them in a ventilated container with no food for at least 5 to 7 days, then rinse very well under cold running water until the water runs clear. Frozen or canned pre-purged snails can skip straight to the next step.
In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the onion and garlic. Cook, stirring, until softened and fragrant, about 4 minutes.
Add the bay leaves, oregano, crumbled piri-piri and salt, and stir for another minute.
Add the snails and water, bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the broth is deeply fragrant.
Taste the broth and adjust the salt or heat as needed.
Ladle into bowls with plenty of broth, and serve warm with toothpicks for pulling the snails from their shells, lemon wedges, crusty bread, and a cold beer or vinho verde.