3 May 2021, 08:00 BST
Clams (amêijoas) à Bulhão Pato, served at Chá Chá Chá in the town of Olhão. The sweet, tender bivalves are a staple of Algarvian cuisine, and the dish is a classic across Portugal.
A fiery hue from the setting sun is bouncing off the water as Jorge Raiado takes a long hoe across the surface, looking for prized
flor de sal crystals. He works with time, tide, moon and sun, playing a patient game in gathering his salt, now recognised as one of the best culinary products in Portugal.
“I work against the sun so I can see the shapes,” he says, pushing his long-poled ‘harvester’ across the shallows of the tidal salt pan, “and scoop up the flecks on the top.”