foraging for oysters and mussels

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foraging for oysters and mussels
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dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46238
Location: yes

Posted: Sun Dec 13, 09 7:38 pm Post subject:

hello
mussels ,walk the coast ,ask questions,assess the biological challenge by observation of the other coastal life

basic rule is as far from a sewer/polluted river as possible ,

oyster collection is outside my experiance

if you want a tasty ,safe meal limpets are ace if a bit chewy ,either cook fast or very slowly ,they graze so tend not to aquire a toxic load of anything

cockles and razor clams are pretty safe ,whelks are high risk ,winkles are inbetween re risk from bio/chemical hazard

if i was in need of a snack sugar wrack and limpets would be on my list as first choice until i knew the coast

avoid coasts with an industrial legacy if there is a big heavey metal or radiological load (i wont eat anything from devon to scotland and north sea fish are a rarity),there are local issues as well which one should assess on their facts

lottie

Joined: 11 Aug 2005
Posts: 5059
Location: ceredigion

Posted: Sat Jan 23, 10 7:05 pm Post subject:

Tavascarow wrote:

can anyone tell me how strong the brine should be.
I watched HFW but can't remember.

I'm reading River Cottage Edible Seashore at the minute[library book] and that recommends 35g salt per litre---shallow trays with shellfish no more than one deep for oxygenation,change water once and not longer than 10 hrs in there before cooking.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Tue Jan 26, 10 7:38 am Post subject:
Thanks to lottie, for better or worse I've just purchased a copy this morning from ABE Books. https://www.abebooks.co.uk/servlet/SearchResults?bt.x=82&bt.y=19&sortby=3&sts=t&tn=the+edible+seashore

lottie

Joined: 11 Aug 2005
Posts: 5059
Location: ceredigion

Posted: Tue Jan 26, 10 6:16 pm Post subject:
I'm still debating whether to get one when I have to take it back to the library--but I'm weakening.

Bodger

Joined: 23 May 2006
Posts: 13524

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 10 10:37 am Post subject:

Mussels.
I take the dog for a walk on the beach most days and at the far end, there are thousands of mussels. I've visited this spot for years and in all that time there's never been any bigger than your thumb nail. Its very frustrating. I'm waiting for a really low tide, just incase there are some bigger ones further out but I've never had any success in the past.
What sort of sites do you get your mussels from?.Please don't suggest the shops.

dpack

Joined: 02 Jul 2005
Posts: 46238
Location: yes

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 10 11:47 am Post subject:

mr b ,have you tried in the crevices ,mussels tend to survive longer and get more food in sheltered cracks and rock pools
it is rough on the knuckles but feeling for them and grabbing the big ones can be effective

as you suspect taking advantage of very low tides will give larger specimins

wading with goggles and a hooky thing at very low tide will give acess to many tasty critters

my latest discovery is highr on the beach though ,sealice ,like woodlice but bigger and green and living at the top of the tidal zone ,are delicious flash boiled in limpet juice in the redundant shells

Ronnie

Joined: 11 Jun 2009
Posts: 73
Location: Highlands

Posted: Wed Feb 10, 10 10:53 pm Post subject:
Wow - I never even considered eating a slater Kudos The key to foraging shellfish is clean water. Don't pick off piers or anywhere where sewerage is pumped into the sea. Rocky headlands are good. Mussels and oysters are good food, but they accumulate contaminants. Pick near to a Blue Flag beach to be sure.

zigs

Joined: 02 Sep 2005
Posts: 524
Location: Somerset

Posted: Sat Mar 27, 10 5:31 pm Post subject:
Was just surfing for fishy porn again and i came across this https://www.echo-news.co.uk/news/4510035.Five_illegal_immigrants_caught_collecting_oysters_on_beach/ Thought it might be relevant, with the uv light purification bit. Best flavoured meal i've ever had was mussells, just picked from cornish beach, with white wine & garlic sauce.

toggle

Joined: 30 Dec 2006
Posts: 11622
Location: truro

Posted: Sat Mar 27, 10 5:36 pm Post subject:

dpack wrote:

avoid coasts with an industrial legacy if there is a big heavey metal or radiological load (i wont eat anything from devon to scotland and north sea fish are a rarity),there are local issues as well which one should assess on their facts

that's the coast of cornwall out as well then, there are old arsenic mines upriver from here

Last edited by toggle on Sat Mar 27, 10 7:44 pm; edited 1 time in total

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Sat Mar 27, 10 7:15 pm Post subject:

toggle wrote:

dpack wrote:

that's the coast of cornwall out as well then?

Why Devon dpack and both the north and south coasts? IIRC the pollution from Sellafield seems to travel mostly north so not much should reach the North Devon coast.

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35057
Location: Devon

Posted: Sat Mar 27, 10 7:43 pm Post subject:
I've seen you eat limpets in North Devon Dpack!

Musty

Joined: 01 May 2011
Posts: 9

Posted: Sat May 21, 11 4:45 pm Post subject: Mussel foraging
Hello! Post are a bit old but I've not had much luck purging my mussels picked a bit off the sussex coast. Porridge and salt water is recommended but others don't seem to bother. Mine look like they've still got their poo sac after 24hrs purging. I've had limpets, whelks and flounder and mackeral off my coast all good eating. I'm new and normally on the homebrewing topics. Bye.

Treacodactyl
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 28 Oct 2004
Posts: 25795
Location: Jumping on the bandwagon of opportunism

Posted: Fri Nov 11, 11 5:37 pm Post subject:

Anyone foraged some mussels recently and are you still alive?

Hopefully I'll be out foraging tomorrow and I've been trying to find somewhere that lists any recent problems with shellfish and I can't find any sites. I notice that some beds have been closed in Pembrokeshire recently but there doesn't seem to be one place that lists the latest news.

I've found this page on the CEFAS site that lists loads of locations and their previous history, it's quite useful even if it is a rather weighty 166 pages. (List of reports here)

Musty

Joined: 01 May 2011
Posts: 9

Posted: Sat Nov 12, 11 9:13 am Post subject:
Hmm, foraging for mussels? I recall something about not eating mussels when there's an 'R' in the month. Happy foraging, but you'll get more in the woods this time of year. Bye for now.

jamanda
Downsizer Moderator

Joined: 22 Oct 2006
Posts: 35057
Location: Devon

Posted: Sat Nov 12, 11 10:03 am Post subject:
I've never purged or worried about the letters in the month. Treac - we've had them from Sandymouth, where they are small and plump but rather salty so you don't want loads.

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