Periwinkle

Periwinkles are commonly boiled in seawater and sold in paper bags near beaches in Ireland and Scotland, with a pin to pull out the meat. The meat is high in protein and omega-3s and is eaten around coastal Britain, Ireland, Belgium, the Azores, and parts of Africa and Asia.

The common periwinkle is native to the northeastern Atlantic, from northern Spain and France through Britain, Ireland, and Scandinavia to Russia. It was introduced to North America in the mid-1800s and is now abundant from New Jersey north to Newfoundland. It lives mainly on rocky shores in the upper and middle intertidal zone, down to about 55 meters.