Cockles & Bacon

[alman]

Hey anyone know if you can fry the cockles you buy in little tubs to eat on the beach etc. with bacon? Or do you have to get raw cockles from somewhere?

[Psychobert]

I should think they'd be buggers to get out of their shells to fry unless already cooked, (and hence the shells opened..). As with any shellfish, don't cook the ones that are already opened, (they are already dead) and don't ry to eat the ones that don't open..

Oysters go well with pancetta, shallots and a little garlic, so I should think cockles woudl work too.. If you buy them in jars, rinse them well else all you'll taste is brine or vinegar.

[Vesuvius 996]

I'll have eight feet in the "how far will you barf" sweepstake.

Basically they are little bags of sh1 t, wrapped in skin.


Awful.

[Psychobert]

They are an acquired taste..

Problem is, most of the time all you can taste is brine or vinegar. They do quite well for a clamato sauce if you're out of clams though..

[BigLepton]

I regularly used to stay at an hotel near Swansea that served a full Welsh Breakfast - Bacon, Welsh sausages, egg, fried bread and cockles and laverbread fried in bacon fat. Jolly nice it was too.

[alman]

Well that's what i'm thinking see, just moved to Swansea to uni. Tried cockles and liked them and i've heard of them being cooked in bacon fat so was wondering how exactly to go about it? cheers for ur help anyways i realise most of you won't have much experience of them.

Edited by alman on Saturday 27th September 00:47

[smiller]

Fresh from Swansea Market, in a plastic bag, dappled with black pepper and vinegar.

They're tidy, look you.

[bint]

It's not just me who likes the briny little things then? :P

I have to confess I also have a soft spot for rollmops/pickled herrings and all sorts of pickled seafood.

[toastboy]

thegavster said:

Used to love them as a kid smothered in vinegar.

Me too, until I got a bad one once. Now I projectile vomit if I eat anything like that now. Cockles, whelks, snails, mussels etc all make me puke. Shame really as I used to like them.

[plg101]

Hmmm. herrings...

Went to Sweden last year; 5 different types for breakfast... couldnt get enough of the things, and I don't like breakfast... Herrings with dill mustard :-) Hmm......