In the kitchen, a fresh sea scallop is to be treated gently, underlines diver Marko Kaldmaa. For nearly a decade, the man is busy deep in Northern Norway’s polar circle waters – harvesting scallops and bringing them over to Estonia.
Estonian diver brings us scallops, from depths of Northern Norway seas
8th April 2013, 16:55
Please note that the article is more than five years old and belongs to our archive. We do not update the content of the archives, so it may be necessary to consult newer sources.
Scallops are best when fresh, alive, states Mr Kaldmaa. Who is in the habit of opening some up, on board his tiny diver vessel, cleaning the insides and eating them straight from the shell – whenever he forgets to grab a sandwich along. Making some cuts, adding a little lime pepper. And that’ll be all – tastes like carpaccio.
For taste, a drop of lemon or lime juice will do, and/or salt-pepper. «However one prefers or whichever is at hand,» explains the diver, as we talk about the sweetish tender white scallop-meat, a little like giant prawn. One can try it without anything added, as well. For it comes with some saltiness, straight out of the sea itself.
On the Lasnamäe Market, back from another brief visit with a haul of seafood to sell, he shows us the lime-pepper-version – his own favourite.
Easy to cook
Indeed, Mr Kaldmaa’s small company Marine Services is practically the only enterprise bringing live scallops to Estonia. The other scallops available around here come cooled, or frozen and from somewhere else – British Isles, Canada etc. In addition to Lasnamäe Market, fresh Norwegian scallops are also available at the Sadama (Port) Market and Tallinna Kaubamaja food store. The main buyers, however, are restaurants.
In Norway, however, Mr Kaldmaa has a diver-company only dealing with whole buyers who, in turn, send them the world over from France to Saudi Arabia. Being special and quite expensive seafood that spoils fast – a live scallop only lasts for nine days – they are harvested in exactly the needed number.
Still, one can really get fed up even with a delicacy like this, smiles the man who has spent nearly ten years now, diving for them in the Northern Norway waters. «Who indeed would take work home with him,» says he, refuting the notion that all divers do is munching away at the precious scallops, three times a day.
Even if the Norwegian scallops are world renowned for their sweetness – lacking in other parts of the world. However, while in Norway, he does eat loads of fish, crab and the like. Scallop is served at home, when friends come over.
Opening the shells does create a stir. With some green salad and white wine, they make for an excellent appetizer. A scallop’s meat may also, however, be fried slightly golden on a pan, in butter or oil olive. Or grilled, acquiring a slight nut-like flavour in the heat. Add some spices and… no rocket science.
Sometimes, our diver bakes a cleaned out scallop in the oven, adding salt-pepper and covering it with mayonnaise and a little bit of cheese. «Served in the shell adds the visual effects,» adds Mr Kaldmaa.
How to open?
A scallop stays fresh up to nine days – freshness being evident in the fact that the shell is shut. When it’s fully open, with no signs of life, dry and without «tension» in the shell, then its life is over. Cooked, it still eatable. Smelling a foul stench – throw it away.
To open shell, start by cutting the sinew holding the two sides together. Hold the curved side up and make a small incision with a knife from the right side which always has a tiny slit.
Holding the flatter side in your palm, press knife in through the opening and cut the shell open by the flat side edge. The flat side must come out clean.
Pull shell open
Clean white meat – the muscle – of intestines that surround it, including black bile, buy pressing knife under intestines and lifting it up. The orange caviar is eatable, as muscle, both raw and quick-fried on pan.
The meat in the shell is ready for the eating. Slice it inside the shell and add spices according to taste.
As in woods, picking mushrooms
According to Mr Kaldmaa, his work resembles that of a gatherer. «It’s like picking mushrooms in a forest. One needs to know where to go. Then, at the bottom of the sea, you handpick them into a little net and sent to the surface with a signal buoy,» says he, showing off scallops, around 10-12 years of age, the size of a big man’s fist. The larger the shell, the older, says he. Adding that, one can count the years by the rings, like on a tree. The smallest, under five years of age, are not gathered.
Weather permitting – no storm! – they head out to sea in the morning. This is what a working day looks like near Sandnessjoen and Mo I Rana, where he labours with three other Estonians, mostly. They dive all year round, to up to 30 meters. With special equipment, of course. In winter, the water is about +2 Co, in summer around 14-15 Co. An hour or an hour and a half a day is usually spent underwater. In a month, a man can gather about 4,000 kg of scallops. For the sake of security, it’s always two men in water and two in boat – should something happen, help will be on its way.
Underwater, hazards and risks abound, of course. The men own diver papers and quality-verified equipment – elementary. The job also takes good health and physical fitness. At times, looking for scallops, one has to swim for long distances with equipment and all. In the worst case – a kilometre. «Sometimes you’re lucky. But mostly the scallops are not all together in a heap, just waiting for you,» smiles Mr Kaldmaa, adding that scallops like sandy bottom.
Divers are often plagued with pressure-related sicknesses, so one has to keep an eye on how he feels. It is also unpleasant to run into the aggressive catfish – better avoid being bitten by these. Nowadays, the time one is allowed to spend underwater, daily, is prescribed and monitored by computer charts.
«By the way, in all of Norway there are only 25-30 men who make a living this way,» hints the diver – the job ain’t no picnic.