3. Whelks
A predator mollusk that gobbles up worms, crustaceans, and even other mollusks, the true whelk is a type of sea snail, a gastropod related to the conch. Hailing from the Atlantic, they have a curious history covering North America and Europe. To quote Gareth May in the Independent, “sold out of wheelbarrows in Victorian London, the whelk was a popular street food in the poorer neighborhoods of Whitechapel and Lambeth; frequently eaten after a night on the gin, the whelk – selling at six for a penny…”
The majority of the UK harvest gets shipped to South Korea, where they are tinned with soy sauce and valued as an aphrodisiac. But being such a sustainable and abundant resource, there is a push to drive up local sales. In the United States, varieties such as the channeled whelk or knobbed whelk are sold as scungilli and prized in Italian-American dishes.
This recipe from Great British Chefs takes them up a notch into a fine dining scene at Toronto's Boralia, a restaurant with a vision to take historical ingredients and infuse with touches that reflect Canada’s immigrant populations.
Grilled whelk with kombu beurre blanc, sautéed burdock and carrot (serves 8)
Ingredients
Waved whelks
- 8 waved whelks
- salt
- 1 dash of Shaoxing wine, optional
Kombu beurre blanc
- 250g of butter, cut into small cubes and chilled
- 30g of shallots, sliced
- 50g of rice wine vinegar
- 125g of white wine
- 10g of kombu
- 5g of shiro dashi
Carrot and burdock sauté
- 100g of carrots, julienned
- 100g of burdock, julienned
- 2g of wakame seaweed, rehydrated
- 10g of light soy sauce
- 10g of butter
Method
- To begin, prepare the whelks. Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and blanch the whelks for 1 minute before quickly draining and chilling in iced water. Using a fork, carefully remove the whelk from its shell, trying to pull it out in one piece if possible.
- Cut away the stomach of the whelks, discard, and rinse the meaty parts thoroughly. Thoroughly clean the the shells as these will be used for serving (they will take some scrubbing – steel wool will help).
- Place the whelks in a small pan so they fit rather snugly and pour in a small amount of water until they are 50% covered – you can also add a dash of Chinese Xiaosing wine for additional flavour if desired. Braise for 20 minutes then allow to cool.
- Meanwhile, make the kombu beurre blanc. Place the shallots, white wine, rice vinegar and kombu in a pan and reduce by 50%. Strain and transfer the reduction into a smaller pan.
- Over a low heat, whisk in butter a couple of pieces at a time until all the butter is emulsified into the reduction. Season with salt and shiro dashi and set aside.
- To serve, slice the chilled whelk thinly and place on skewers. Grill until warmed through.
- While the whelk is grilling, prepare the carrot and burdock. Heat a frying pan over a high heat until it is very hot. Add the butter – it should brown almost immediately. Quickly add the carrot, burdock and wakame and sauté for 20 seconds. Deglaze with soy sauce to finish.
- Place the whelk skewers in the whelk shells and pour the beurre blanc over the top. Place on a bed of the sautéed carrot and burdock and serve
