Carina’s Kitchen

Now is the best time to source your own seafood for a tasty homemade platter

Summer means seafood, so rustle up a spectacular platter with the help of your star chef

IN the old world we would be in peak tourist season in Edinburgh, and it has always been a privilege to share all our wonderful Scottish suppliers with our many international visitors. It’s so lovely hearing stories of visitors’ recent trips to Orkney, or that their grandmother came from Skye or their favourite whisky is from Islay. But for this year, this is sadly not the case.

But where there is quality and determination there is always a way. With restaurants closed, all that amazing produce still has to be eaten and many of our suppliers are now serving customers directly.

Leaving beef for the boys – as, more often than not, it’s the men who order meat – our top selling dishes have always been fish, and especially shellfish. Its reputation for being the best in the world is well-deserved and our wonderful seafood never fails to delight.

Oysters are incredibly popular. We only served them at Cannonball Restaurant on Castlehill as the rules around raw food preparation and serving are significant. But other shellfish such as steamed mussels, lobsters and scallops are always popular in our other restaurants and easy to cook at home.

There is an old saying that if there is no “r” in the month, don’t eat shellfish, but what’s important to know is all our food is seasonal. Think rhubarb in March, asparagus in May – shellfish is no different. July is tricky as algae levels are often higher and mussels can be hard to source, but August has never been a problem.

The Christmas season sees prices spike as wild shellfish is in its dormant season. May tends to be a poor month for langoustine as they bury themselves underground. Lobsters moult in the summer so it’s best to leave female lobsters at this time of year.

Our strong relationships with suppliers, including Guy Grieve and The Ethical Shellfish Company and Welch Fishmongers, supports the best choices for our visitors and our environment.

So while your favourite seafood restaurant is closed, buy direct and don’t feel selfish, enjoy. Please support them while we can’t.

Don’t miss Carina’s column next month for another great recipe