We do not get to the ocean nearly enough.  But when we get there we make the most of it rain, hail or shine.   We recently escaped to South Australia for a few days to visit family before the school year starts again.

After a relaxing wander through the beautiful Willunga Farmers Market it was time to get down to the serious business of foraging for cockles or pippis.  We are cockling novices but we had two experts leading the charge so we followed them with great enthusiasm.

 

It wasn’t long before we were digging around in the soft sand at Middleton filling our buckets with these shelled creatures.  The water was mild and families, surfers and walkers were all enjoying the beach.  The cockles were sorted and counted as we discussed some different ways to cook our catch.

 

Afterwards, the Hotel Elliot seemed the perfect place for a cold beer and lunch as we savoured the quickly diminishing holiday moments.

 

We purged our catch firstly in bran and then in salt water.  After seeking some advice from Christina we probably could have skipped the bran and gone straight for the salt water.   This is valuable knowledge for next time.

 

 

The chef of the house cooked the cockles in an Asian style loosely based on this recipe.  A generous handful of fresh Thai basil stirred through at the end lifted this simple dish.

So, now we have been cockling.  Foraging for food as a family proved to be a perfect day out.

 

Do you eat cockles or use them for fish bait?

Do you call them pippis?

Are you savouring the final moments of the school holidays?