Forraging - Saltmarsh style

For the bank holiday we decided to have an impromptu break and go to the coast for a couple of days. Camping of course. You knew the weather by the seaside really was very pleasant and we were certainly warm and cosy in the tent. I love Norfolk. We stayed in Stiffkey and went along the stretch of coast from Wells to just after Blakeney. I do love the area and whilst it has become a lot snoottier over the years it has meant that a lot of small independent shops have opened up in the area. Far far more than we have here which is lovely. I do agree with Nicola though, when she wrote on her blog about local Farm Shops...

It’s the kind of place where all of the customers seem to drive immaculate 4×4’s, wear pristine hunter wellies and gilets and be incredibly well-groomed and manicured, as if they want to present the image of country living without actually coming into contact with real country life.  http://thegoodlifechallenge.wordpress.com/

Why is it that farm shops are more like posh chutney shops than actual grown produce? Anyway back to Norfolk...

So we were staying in Stiffkey which if you know the area you will know that the campsite is right next to the saltmarshes..

Our love of self sufficiency and our love for nice walks has lead us to forraging for our tea.

Armed with a bucket, pen knife, waterproofs and a sense of humour, we had a lovely walk along the salt marshes. It is a verritable buffet of lovliness it really is. On this trip we settled for Samphire and Mussels, a lovely combo! Some books and even some critics would probably say that it is too early in the year for such forraging. Well by the book yes it is, but remember before all the rain we have had of recent days it was unseasonably warm and everything was growing like crazy!

Below you will see the greyish area on the sand - these are all mussels and lots of them, oh and a windswept looking me!

My advice to budding forragers is to read good books. We reccommend the following:

River Cottage Handbook - Edible Seashore
Seaweed and Eat it: A family foraging and cooking adventure
The Camper Van Cookbook: Life on 4 Wheels, Cooking on 2 Rings

They tell you what to look out for, identifying your finds, safety, the law, and how to cook your finds.

And then of course have fun!

The books will tell you everything you need to do but make sure that the mussels are all still alive (OK that bit chokes me up!) and that they have been soaking in fresh water that has been changed several times. You need to make sure that they are nice and clean so give them a good scrub. Any floaters are dead so they need to go. Pop all your ingredients in a pan and they are ready to eat when they have opened up!

BUT PLEASE READ MORE ABOUT THIS.... I don't want you to get food poisoning!

We cooked our mussels in cream and garlic and served them over sauted samphire. It really was a scrumscious meal and almost FREE!