炒田螺
chǎo tián luó caau2 tin4 lo2
In Guangdong, no Mid-Autumn night is complete without a wok of spicy river snails: families gather under the full moon to suck the meat from each shell, a noisy, hands-on snack that tastes of late summer and home.
The story behind it
The Cantonese custom of eating river snails (田螺) at Mid-Autumn dates back to the Qing dynasty in Guangdong, when the snails reach their plumpest in the autumn harvest season. Folk belief held that eating them on the eighth lunar month would brighten the eyes, and the swirling shells came to symbolize gathering in good fortune. Over time the older method of simply boiling the snails gave way to the wok-charred, aromatic stir-fry beloved in Guangzhou today, fragrant with perilla leaf, ginger, garlic, and chili. It remains a quintessential street-side and home dish whenever the mooncakes come out.
Ingredients
- 500 g live river snails (田螺), soaked and scrubbed
- a small handful of fresh perilla / shiso leaves (紫苏), roughly torn
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 thumb ginger, sliced
- 2-3 dried or fresh red chilies, chopped (to taste)
- 1 tbsp fermented soybean paste or doubanjiang
- 1 tbsp light soy sauce + 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp cooking oil; splash of Shaoxing wine
Steps
- Soak the live snails in clean water for a few hours (a drop of oil helps them spit out grit), scrub the shells, then snip off the pointed tail tip of each shell with kitchen shears so the seasoning gets in and the meat sucks out easily. Rinse well.
- Blanch the snails in boiling water for 1-2 minutes, then drain. Heat the oil in a wok over high heat and fry the ginger, garlic, and chilies until fragrant.
- Stir in the soybean paste, then add the snails and toss hard over high heat for 1-2 minutes to coat and build wok aroma. Splash in the Shaoxing wine around the edge of the wok.
- Add the soy sauce, sugar, and a small splash of water, cover, and simmer 5-8 minutes so the flavor soaks into the meat, tossing once or twice.
- Throw in the torn perilla leaves in the last minute and toss until just wilted and fragrant.
- Tip onto a plate and serve hot. Eat by sucking the open end of each shell to draw out the meat, using a toothpick for any stubborn ones.