Every year, over 6,500 tonnes are fished from Saint-Brieuc Bay at Erquy, Saint-Quay-Portrieux and Loguivy-de-la-Mer. They are dredged from the sandy seabed, at depths ranging from 5 to 40 metres by special fishing boats known as ‘coquilliers’. In the Côtes d’Armor department, the Brotherhood of the Coquille Saint-Jacques has been promoting scallops since 1988.
The scallop season runs from 1 October to 15 May. The season is strictly regulated. Catching scallops smaller than 11 cm is not allowed. It’s no good looking for coral in scallops from Saint-Brieuc bay; there isn’t any!
Every year in April, the towns of Erquy, Paimpol and Saint-Quay-Portrieux take it in turns to celebrate king scallops in a major two-day festival. The programme includes sea trips, street entertainments, processions by the Brotherhood of the Coquille Saint-Jacques and – naturally – tastings.
Before tasting the delightful scallops, discover how to open the shells, scrape them and clean them. Watch the video.
As a carpaccio, baked in an earthenware dish or simply grilled as a snack: king scallops can be eaten raw or cooked. The smokehouse, the Fumoir de Saint-Cast, serves scallops lightly smoked. They’re delicious!
King scallops became the symbol of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, which in French is ‘Saint Jacques de Compostelle’. Pilgrims collected them on the beaches of Galicia and proudly brought them home as proof of their journey.
