Percebes: harvesting and cooking barnacles

Costa da Morte, Galicia

Goose barnacles (percebes) from the Costa da Morte — the Death Coast of Galicia — are among the most prized and expensive seafood in Spain. They grow in clusters on rocks in the most violently wave-exposed sections of the Atlantic coast, and harvesting them is genuinely dangerous work. Percebeiros harvest at low tide, in wetsuits, timing the waves. The cooking technique is deliberately simple because the ingredient requires no assistance: percebes are dropped into violently boiling, heavily salted seawater (or water seasoned to match seawater salinity — 35g salt per litre) for precisely 1-2 minutes, removed immediately, and served wrapped in a cloth to retain heat. The cloth is essential: it traps steam and keeps them at the exact temperature for eating.

Not yet written for this entry.

Not yet written for this entry.