Donate SIGN UP

What is a "violet" ?

Avatar Image
Gilli | 16:22 Tue 12th Apr 2005 | Food & Drink
4 Answers

I saw thes several years ago in south-west France. These "delicacies" were on display in seafront fish restaurants. From memory, they looked like rough surfaced greenish/gray shells about the size of a small hand.

Obviously they are some sort of sea creature but what exactly ? They weren't clams, far larger than mussels, weren't sea urchins - and looked most unappetising.

My french dictionary doesn't help. I'm guessing that the term "violet" may be a colloqualism, in the same way that langoustines are sometimes called "Dublin Bay prawns".

Can anyone help ?

Gravatar

Answers

1 to 4 of 4rss feed

Best Answer

No best answer has yet been selected by Gilli. Once a best answer has been selected, it will be shown here.

For more on marking an answer as the "Best Answer", please visit our FAQ.

Scallops is my guess.

-- answer removed --
Question Author

Thanks for the replies.

No - I knew it wasn't a scallop as they have very pretty shells - the stereotypical "mermaid" shell !!

But - yes, what I saw may well have been abalone - I must say the inside of the shell looks a great deal prettier than the outside. so thanks very much for that In a Pickle - it's been driving me mad for ages. And ironically, when in Jersey last year, I also remember seeing "ormer" on a menu, but didn't guess the connection - or know what it was !

-- answer removed --

1 to 4 of 4rss feed

Do you know the answer?

What is a "violet" ?

Answer Question >>