There was a time when eel was a staple food all over Europe: nutritious and cheap, if not free, depending on your proximity to a freshwater source. London’s eel, pie and mash shops were legendary – and still are, even if the appetite for jellied eels is on the decline. According to Graham Poole of M. Manze, which has been selling stewed and jellied eel in London since 1902, eel is still popular – “Though nothing like 40 years ago, when we had pans of eels left, right and centre, and a full-time cook preparing them.”
Why are eels so scarce?
Eels spawn in the Sargasso Sea in the mid-Atlantic, after which the larvae are carried by the Gulf Stream to Europe, where they become elvers and start swimming up rivers. At around four years, they are covered in scales and are known as yellow eels. Then, at between 6 and 12 years for a male and 10-30 years for a female, they turn silver. When they reach sexual maturity they return to the sea to spawn, after which they die. A combination of overfishing, environmental changes, the sale of elvers to the Far East, and farming, which prevents large eels escaping to the sea and replenishing the wild stock, has resulted in populations plummeting steadily since the Seventies.
Is there cause for optimism?
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The European Commission has tabled proposals aimed at allowing 40 per cent of adult eels to migrate to sea to spawn. While the goal is welcomed, proposals to close fishing for certain periods have been less well-received, particularly as eel fishing depends on the weather. Fisheries such as Lough Neagh Fishermen’s Co-operative in Northern Ireland argue that they are already fishing responsibly. The Co-operative has replenished stocks of elvers, built escape routes at weirs, and enforced fishing quotas. Similarly, Michael Brown of Somerset smokery Brown and Forrest believes local rivers are holding up well, and that conservation is being done without the need for EU intervention. He says, “I work with the various agencies and conservation groups, exchanging ideas and information in order to safeguard the future of eels. I’m a big believer in re-stocking, and when I examined the figures, they were surprisingly encouraging.”
Where to buy
Brown and Forrest sells sample tasters from £6.25 for 113g (01458 250875; www.smokedeel.co.uk). The Fish Society sells whole freshwater eel, £32.40 for 900g, steaks from Lough Neagh, from £10.40 for 180g, and jellied eels, £15.70 for 750g (0800 2793474; www.thefishsociety.co.uk). F.R. Bradley of Feltham supplies supermarkets with jellied eels, which can also be ordered online, £2.50 for 200g, along with fresh eel, £8 for 500g, and liquor, £1.50 for 400g (all frozen) (020-8890 3169; www.jelliedeels.com).
Readers’ queries
Where can I buy more interesting varieties of potato than those I find in the supermarket?
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At Tiptoe Farm in Northumberland, Lucy and Anthony Carroll of Carroll’s Heritage Potatoes grow a range of old varieties, from Shetland Black to British Queen, which can be bought by mail order (01890 883060; www.heritage-potatoes.co.uk).
If you have a food query, e-mail food.detective@thetimes.co.uk