The centuries-old practice that's turning Scotland into a foodie paradise

National Geographic

08-07-2025

In 2023, chef Alain Ducasse sought out Scottish harvester and fisherman Benjamin Lalande for his sustainable seafood products from the Hebrides in Scotland. Two of his chefs visited Lalande on the Isle of Rum—one of the islands that make up the Small Isles in the Inner Hebrides—where they sampled one of Ducasse's requested ingredients: wild pepper dulse.
'This seaweed tastes like truffles,' says Lalande. It ended up on Ducasse's Les Ombres , the quintessential venue overlooking Paris' Eiffel Tower. Now, Lalande's supplying over a dozen Michelin-starred Scottish restaurants led by local chefs.
'The breathtaking landscapes of Scotland are renowned, less so the food,' says Catherine Reilly, managing director of Brendan Vacations . Yet, she adds that this is changing as chefs are 'using the incredible larder on their doorsteps to bring the taste of the place to a new level by living off the land and foraging in their local area.'
This growing interest in coastal foraging is helping to redefine the countries' culinary stereotype; today's first-time visitors will be pleasantly surprised to discover the plethora of local seafood presented from Loch Sligachan scallops and North Sea crab to seaweed and sea urchins from the Small Isles archipelago. What is coastal foraging A shrubbery fork, or a clam fork, is used to dig for clams. Photograph by Daniel J. Grenier, Getty Images
Foraging is a centuries' old gathering method of seasonal and wild-growing resources that's witnessed a resurgence thanks to social trends like self-sufficiency and experiential dining. Coastal foraging focuses on collecting edible sustenance, but from oceanfront environments, like estuaries, sand dunes, tide pools, and marshlands.
Mark Donald, executive chef at the two-Michelin-starred Glenturret Lalique Restaurant , recalls his first brush with coastal foraging as a young boy sifting through the muddy tidal flats of Barra to collect cockles with his family; they'd simply steam the marine bivalve mollusc with a splash of wine, beer, cider, or vinegar, some garlic and parsley.
His first professional use of coastal-sourced ingredients was on the line at the two-Michelin-starred Restaurant Andrew Fairlie in Auchterarder; sea purslane, a coastal perennial herb, and sea aster, a salt marsh succulent, added flavor and texture to a turbot dish.
'As a junior chef, foraged ingredients were much less prevalent than they are now,' he says, crediting the new Nordic movement as a spur for Scottish chefs to explore the ingredients they've had on their doorstep for hundreds of years. Now, Lalande is one of his suppliers.
(Fishing and foraging in Norway's southern fjords) Popularly foraged ingredients
Coastal-foraged ingredients encompass anything from salt tolerant vegetation like sea buckthorn to underwater invertebrates like sea urchins, yet some items are more prevalent than others. Seaweed, for example, has become popular thanks to an interest in Japanese cuisine, says Donald. Each species offers a singular taste that can range from familiar flavors like the umami truffle of pepper dulse, green bean notes of oarweed, and toasted hazelnut of red dulse, all while offering a fresh salinity that comes from being freshly plucked from the sea.
Historically, the Scots haven't eaten seaweed because it wasn't processed well, explains Lalande, who currently harvests one-to-three kilograms of fresh seaweed per week.
(Want to try foraging food? Here's how to do it safely)
Sea buckthorn, an invasive coastal shrub, is also prolific. In Edinburgh, Jo Radford, owner of the Michelin-starred Timberyard , praises sea buckthorn for its color, health benefits, and acidity. He treats the leaves like a tea and uses the juice of its berries in sorbet, beurre blanc-like sauces, or to replace lime in a classic gin gimlet. Lee Soutar, chef at Dornoch Station , is also attracted to the sea buckthorn berry's 'citrusy but extremely tart flavor." Pelvetia Canaliculata, also known as channelled wrack seaweed, has a mild umami flavor. Photograph by John F. Scott, Getty Images Crambe maritima, also known as sea kale, has a slightly nutty taste. Photograph by Wilopix, Shutterstock Hippophae rhamnoides, also known as sea buckthorn, is a type of berry. Photograph by Pat Sprada, Shutterstock Palmaria palmata, also known as dulse or red dulse, is a type of red algae. Photography by MD_Photography, Shutterstock
'Most things wild-growing that are edible are generally packed with health benefits,' says James Aikman, chef-owner of Skua in Edinburgh.
Aside from flavor and health benefits, scurvy grass, sea sandwort, and sea kale are used for texture and complexity. 'They don't always appear front and center on dishes but quite often do a lot of the work behind the scenes: Adding depth to sauces and stocks,' says Radford.
When it comes to proteins, Scottish scallops, langoustines, and lobsters frequently appear on menus, too. At The Macallan Estate's new TimeSpirit fine dining experience, head chef Armand Lacan highlights the quality of lobster from the North Sea. 'Having experienced culinary traditions globally, I can attest to the exceptional quality of Scottish seafood,' says Lacan, who prepares local lobster as a bisque to an entree inspired by Spanish and Asian culinary traditions. Why now?
Scotland's geographical location and oceanic conditions are nothing new but 'people are becoming more interested and cautious about where their food comes from,' says Soutar, who explains that being able to tell people that certain ingredients have been harvested locally offers intrigue.
Not only are diners seeking out destination-specific menus, but Lalande suggests that more chefs are realizing the quality of Scotland's rivers and sea. 'The waters are probably the best in Europe,' he says. The wave of chefs interested in coastal foraging tend to share a common background, Donald adds. 'Scottish chefs are cutting their teeth in London, France, the U.S., and rather than staying there, they are coming home, just like I did.'
There's a curiosity, according to Aikman, that's leading this movement towards working with the seasons and exploring coastal areas to seek out flavors that wouldn't exist in restaurants otherwise. Plus, if you forage it yourself, legally, then it's free and fulfilling, he says. 'There's something rewarding about searching for a wild ingredient, picking it, preserving it for later in the year or using it within our menu that week.' Where to eat A dish from the two-Michelin-starred Glenturret Lalique Restaurant that features cherry stone clam, gooseberry, and pepper dulse. Photography by Marc Millar, The Glenturret Restaurant
In addition to relying on local foragers, including Coeur Sauvage , for the likes of seaweed and sea kale, Aikman and his team spend time foraging. 'It's rare, as a chef, to feel that connected to what you're putting out for other people to eat,' he says.
His menu changes regularly, but one of Aikman's original coastal-inspired dishes was a raw scallop with fermented and pickled seaweed, sea kale, an emulsion of lightly cured and smoked scallop roe, a chilled broth made with dehydrated seaweed, and the skirt of the scallop that would usually be discarded.
Across town at The Witchery , Douglas Roberts—a champion of the foraging movement for over the past decade—serves sea spaghetti with halibut topped with smoked cod roe. 'I would rather garnish a piece of fish or meat with a foraged ingredient that was picked less than 24 hours before, less than 40 miles away, than use some tasteless piece of vegetable that has probably sat in a warehouse for a week or so and grown in a greenhouse in Spain or Holland,' he says.
At Timberyard, Radford's use of coastal bounty is ever-rotating, but includes sea truffle, Alexanders (a wild plant), beach rose, maritime pine, scurvy grass, sea beet, and sea sandwort. On the beverage menu, he recently used sugar kelp for a twist on a dirty martini. 'The seaweed is macerated on a mix of gin and vermouth for several weeks, lending an umami note with rich salinity,' he says.
In Speyside, the ocean may be out of sight, but the Moray Firth coast is only 20 miles away. This is where Lacan sources 'a wealth of fresh, high-quality seafood.' Aside from proteins, Lacan incorporates samphire, rock fennel, sea rosemary, sea lettuce, and Scottish kelp on the TimeSpirit menu.
(How Canada's smallest province became a culinary wonderland) Food for thought
Many foraged ingredients are considered as superfoods for their variety of health benefits and, when harvested responsibly, are low impact to reduce the dependence on intensive agriculture or fishing practices. 'I also believe foraging for ingredients helps not only cooks, but everyone connect or re-connect with the outdoors and nature; something the majority of us are all lacking right now,' adds Donald. Jillian Dara is a Boston-based travel writer and editor with a focus on travel, culture, food and beverage; she enjoys reporting on the intersection of them all for publications including Travel + Leisure, Condé Nast Traveler, Food & Wine, Decanter, Vogue, and Robb Report. Follow her on Instagram @jilliandara