Le Bulot is Popular in Paris Markets:
Le Bulot ©Travelsignposts
Le Bulot or Whelk is a popular shellfish that is common in the markets of Paris. This mollusc is usually cooked with garlic butter or spices and is served in seafood platters. The fishermen who farm these shellfish have a less fancy way of cooking them, boiled in salt water with bouquet garni, they serve them cold with a dash of pepper.
What are Le Bulot
This conical shaped, rugged-looking sea snail is a specialty of the Normandy region. Greenish to light brown in colour and measuring between 6 cm to 10 cm, whelks thrive in the cold and temperate waters
of the North Atlantic and the English Channel. They can also be found in Canada and the Siberian seas, all the way down to the Portuguese coast. They live up to 100 metres deep and prefer the seabeds rich in shell debris where they scavenge for food. These carnivorous molluscs move very little and can live for over 10 years.
From Bait to Specialty Food
Since the Middle Ages, whelk was used as bait for cod fishing and it was only in the last century that these sea snails were appreciated as food for human consumption. So popular are these sea snails that these days there are controls on harvesting whelk. In Calvados and Manche fishermen need a license for whelk harvesting and there are also controls on how much can be harvested. The whelks are available from February to December, with January being an off-limit month for the whelks to reproduce.
Specialty seafood it may be, but these snail-like creatures are probably not to everyone’s tastes. If you like escargot in garlic and butter sauce, you’ll probably enjoy bulot. I must admit to being more adventurous in the past, but these days anything that resembles the garden snails plays on my imagination.
Marche Rungis
Most of the food in Paris are brought in from the Marche Rungis, the largest wholesale food market in Europe. If you’re a foodie, it’s worthwhile visiting Marche Rungis to get an insight of this fascinating wholesale market and to see what’s in season in Paris.
Address:
Marché Rungis
1 rue de la Tour
BP 316
94152 Rungis cedex
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They are not crustaceans. Crustaceans have legs and crawl. They are mollusk slime clams and mussels.
You are right Ana. Mollusc it is!
Kind regards,
Helen
Delighted to find your site while researching bulots. Had them late one night in a Rive Gauche restaurant. Was first introduced to them in England. Now I see them frozen in my local oriental market in the US Southwest. Do you have a Parisian recipe for them?
Hi Bonne,
Apologies for the late reply – we’re currently on the road in northern Italy. I believe the French usually have bulot with a mayonnaise sauce. I’ve included a French link to bulot recipes which you can use Google translate to get English version.
Enjoy!
Kind regards,
Helen