The Scottish oyster: Nutty, crisp and may contain pearls
Beneath the glittering surface of Loch Ryan lies Scotland’s only surviving native oyster bed.
It has thrived because it has been privately owned by the Wallace family since 1701, which means fishing could be carefully managed to preserve the oyster stocks.
The Loch Ryan Oyster Company, the only dedicated native oyster fishery in Scotland, continues this task today. Tristan Hugh-Jones has worked on the historic oyster bed since 1996. He is part of the Native Oyster Restoration Alliance, which backs the protection and ecological restoration of the rare species.
“Historically, native oysters have always had boom and bust periods so it would be magical to have these native oysters back in abundance in Scottish waters,” said Tristan.
“There used to be lots around Scotland but now Loch Ryan is the only place that has them in large amounts. We’ve been working hard to recover the stocks and harvest around 250,000 oysters, about 20 tonnes, every year.
“We generally harvest one area then re-lay the young oysters to help them breed. A native oyster can take up to 10 years to reach its full size.”
He says the native European oyster is very different to the more commonly farmed Pacific rock oyster. “The native oyster shell is large and round while the rock oyster is shaped like a teardrop with a crinkly edge.
“There’s also a significant difference in terms of taste and texture. The native oyster has a delicious, crisp bite to it whereas rock oysters are softer. Native oysters have a lingering, nuttier taste and should be eaten completely raw, straight out of the shell, either plain or with a little lemon or tabasco.”
He added: “You are more likely to find pearls in native oysters than rock oysters but it’s still quite rare. I sell all my oysters, so it’s our lucky customers who could find a pearl. I did recently eat an oyster that was about 30 years old and weighed about two kilos. It contained the tiniest pearl imaginable, so age and size don’t make a huge difference.”
September is harvesting season and Tristan’s team would normally have been readying tonnes of oysters to be consumed at this weekend’s cancelled Stranraer Oyster Festival, and sold commercially.
“We want to be cautious about how much we harvest but, luckily, the oysters aren’t going to waste as they are still valuable breeding stock which will help boost the numbers for the next year.”