There are few things better than harvesting one’s own food. It’s a critical and rewarding part of our existence, to be connected to nature and what nourishes us, and recently, we had the chance to harvest some of extremely fresh oysters in Nova Scotia.
Without getting to specific - we wouldn’t want to anger our hosts by revealing their home oyster beds - the location was on Cape Breton, the insanely beautiful northern island of Nova Scotia. There, the Bras d'Or Lake, a cool brackish body of water, cuts some 60 miles up the middle of the expansive Cape, lending itself perfectly to long cruises and, of course, a thriving oyster population.
The beds we harvested were completely wild. The oysters there grow in knee deep water and seem to prefer the eel grass. Harvesting them is as easy as wading out and grabbing them.
We were careful not to over-harvest any given area, spreading our take over various spots, to make sure they’ll be just as many next year, and for years to come.
When we filled our bucket with enough oysters for a small afternoon feast, we headed in and shucked them right there on the banks of the water.
It doesn’t get fresher, and more rewarding.
