Penclawdd cockles and laverbread
On the Gower peninsula near Swansea, the cocklewomen of Penclawdd have raked cockles from the estuary sands for centuries, and Swansea market still sells them beside laverbread, a dark purée of laver seaweed. Together with smoked bacon (pork) they make the traditional South Wales breakfast: laverbread rolled in oatmeal and fried into little cakes, cockles tossed in the bacon fat with pepper and vinegar. Chef's tip: soak live cockles in salted water so they spit out their sand before cooking.




