Pastis Snail Mini Skewers with Garlic Butter

Soak the skewers first—seriously, thirty minutes minimum or they’ll char before anything cooks. Three cloves of garlic, one shallot, finely chopped. Butter goes in the pan. That’s where this starts.

Why You’ll Love This Grilled Seafood Skewers Recipe

Takes 45 minutes total. Sounds fancy. Isn’t. Grilled escargot skewers with herbs and mayonnaise hits different as an appetizer—people think you spent all day on this when you didn’t. Pernod does most of the work. Easy dinner starter, honestly. Just soak wooden skewers and you’re set. The grill handles the rest. Tastes like you know what you’re doing in the kitchen. You kinda do now. Works cold too if you have leftovers, which you won’t.

What You Need for Snail Skewers with Garlic and Anise

Two cans of snails. Drain them. Don’t keep the liquid. One small shallot, finely chopped. Not minced into nothing—just fine. Three garlic cloves. Minced proper. Butter. Twenty-five ml. That’s about two tablespoons if you’re eyeballing it. Pernod—fifty ml. The anise flavor does something specific here. Don’t skip it or substitute. It won’t work the same. White wine. Dry. One hundred ml. Whatever you’d drink. Mayonnaise. Twenty ml. Just enough. Fresh chives. Twenty ml chopped. Dried works if you’re desperate. Tastes different though. Wooden skewers soaked for thirty minutes. This matters. Dry wood burns.

How to Make Grilled Escargot Skewers with Herbs and Mayonnaise

Heat the butter over medium. Not hot—medium. Let it melt slow. Add the shallot and garlic. Three minutes. Just let them go soft. The kitchen smells like something’s happening now. Drop in the snails. Salt. Pepper. Stir once. Pour the Pernod in. Watch it—it might flame. That’s fine. Pour the white wine after. Bring it up to a boil, then let it sit there and reduce. Eight minutes. Maybe nine. You’re waiting for it to go nearly dry. The liquid shrinks down to almost nothing. Transfer everything to a bowl. Let it cool for a few minutes.

How to Get Snail Skewers with Perfect Char Marks

Stir in the mayonnaise once it’s cooled. Add the chives. Taste it. Fix the salt if it needs it. Preheat the grill high. Let it get hot—actually hot. Brush the grate with oil. One light coat. Thread four to five snails per skewer. They go on easy. Don’t overthink the spacing. Grill them three minutes per side. You’re watching for char marks, not cooking them through—they’re already cooked. This is about heat and color. The outside gets that crust. The snails stay tender inside. Pull them off warm.

Butter Poached Snails with White Wine Reduction Tips

Don’t soak the skewers and then forget about them. You’ll burn the house down trying to remember. The reduction is the key thing. Boil it hard, let it go nearly dry. Skipping this step makes the whole thing bland. The flavors need to concentrate. If the Pernod smell bothers you, open a window. It cooks off but the anise stays. Serve them warm. Not hot, not room temperature. Warm. That’s when they taste right. The grill grates should be clean. Snails stick to a dirty grate. You’ll lose half of them.

Pastis Snail Mini Skewers with Garlic Butter

By Emma

Prep:

20 min

Cook:

25 min

Total:

45 min

Servings:

12 servings

Ingredients

• 1 small shallot finely chopped
• 3 cloves garlic finely minced
• 2 cans 80 g each snails, rinsed and drained
• 25 ml butter
• 50 ml Pernod
• 100 ml dry white wine
• 20 ml mayonnaise
• 20 ml chopped fresh chives
• wooden skewers soaked 30 min

Method

1. 1 1 Heat butter in pan, gently soften shallot and garlic about 3 minutes. Add snails, salt and pepper.
2. 2 2 Pour Pernod and white wine, boil, reduce nearly dry about 8 minutes. Transfer to bowl, cool slightly.
3. 3 3 Stir in mayonnaise and chives, adjust seasoning.
4. 4 4 Preheat grill to high, brush grate lightly with oil.
5. 5 5 Thread 4-5 snails per skewer (use soaked wooden skewers).
6. 6 6 Grill each side 3 minutes to get char marks and warmth. Serve warm for starters or cocktail.

Nutritional information

Calories

85

Protein

7g

Carbs

2g

Fat

5g

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Frequently Asked Questions About Grilled Snails with Pernod Butter Sauce

Can I use fresh snails instead of canned? Could work. You’d need to clean them first, which is a whole thing. Canned is fine. Tastes good.

What if I don’t have Pernod? Don’t use something else. Pernod is the point. Go buy it or don’t make this.

How long do these keep? Three days in the fridge. Four if you’re pushing it. Reheat gently. They get rubbery if you’re rough with them.

Can I make the snail mixture ahead? Yeah. Mix it in the morning, refrigerate it, thread them an hour before you grill. Actually tastes better that way.

Why mayonnaise? Seems weird. Keeps them from drying out. Sounds wrong. Works. Trust it.

Do I really need to soak the skewers? Yes. Thirty minutes. They’ll burn otherwise and everything falls apart on the grill. Soaking matters.