Caracoles for everyone!
Caracoles is one of the most famous local snail dishes. During the season they are picked after it rains, but the snails are also raised on special farms, so you can’t try this dish at any time of the year.
The snails are let crawl in flour for several days in order to clean themselves by eating it. After that they are prepared in a special meat stock with fennel, bay leaf and other spices. It results in a hearty, delicious dish. Usually caracoles are served with allioli – a thick sauce that resembles mayonnaise, made out of whipped olive oil and garlic.
It is thought by the locals that, for better digestion, the snails are best paired with dry red wine.
And of course there is a corresponding festival – Saint Mark’s day, 25th of April, when giant pots of caracoles are prepared and everyone from Mallorca wants to have some. They say “One who eats caracoles on Saint Mark’s will be healthy for the entire year.”
In just one day of the celebration, several thousand kilograms of snails are eaten on the island!
