When it comes to small seafood, the most common are all kinds of “shells”. This shell is a common name for mollusk bivalves, and there is also a common name called “clams”. Since the beginning of the formation of human civilization, our ancestors have had the tradition of eating shellfish. The earliest archaeological evidence found so far is the shell mound at the Terra Amata site in the hair country, which is about 300,000 years old, and may not come from Homo sapiens. , but other humans.
In our country, our ancients also liked to eat all kinds of clams. According to records, Song Renzong liked to eat green clams, but the capital of the Northern Song Dynasty, Tokyo Bianliang, was not near the sea, so the green clams were transported to Bianliang by fast horses in winter. The ancestors not only knew how to eat clams, but also summed up what kind of clams are delicious. In the Zhizheng Siming Xuezhi,there is a record of green clams “those with purple halos on their shells are plump”. Today, let’s talk about the various types of clams commonly found on the market and how to eat them.
What clams are good for cooking?
There are nearly 30,000 kinds of creatures that can be called clams in the world, and most of them are not suitable for human consumption. Before we discuss how to eat, we must first summarize the characteristics of clams suitable for cooking!
1. Non-toxic and harmless, some shellfish are poisonous, eating them will cause adverse reactions and even life-threatening. Compared with eating, life is more important. You can’t go to God after eating.
2. It is easy to collect, such as clams and clams that live on the beach in the intertidal zone, and oysters and mussels that are fixed on the reefs, all of which are easy to collect.
3. There is a lot of meat, such as scallops and scallops. There is a lot of meat. Many shellfish are small and have almost no meat, so they have no edible value.
4. It is easy to eat, simple to cook, and it takes a lot of effort to eat it, or it requires a particularly complicated cooking method to eat. This kind of food is rarely eaten by anyone.
5. If the output is large or it can be artificially farmed, it needs to have enough output to meet the market demand, otherwise it will not be able to buy it if you want to eat it.
Cheapest variety of small clams
Philippine curtain clam: It can be said that it is currently the largest clam in China. It is generally called “flower clam” or “sixty”. It is generally sold in seafood markets or restaurants. The price is cheap, and it can be said to be cooking. Clams are the most diverse. As long as they are freshly fried with some spring onion and ginger, it is a good dish. If you like spicy food, add some chili peppers. It is delicious.
Clam (Meretrix meretrix): It is also a common type of clam in seafood markets around the world. The output is very large, the price is very affordable, and the taste is delicious. Once in Dalian, I ate stewed tofu with clams. The tofu was stewed for a long time. Out of the honeycomb, it absorbed the umami of the clam soup, and the taste was very delicious.
Green clams (Cyclina sinensis): The production of green clams is also very large, and they are very common in markets all over the world. Dig out the meat, put it on a baking tray and spread it with butter, sprinkle with potatoes and other side dishes and cheese, and then brush with some sauce after roasting. The taste is also good.
Yellow clams (Corbicula aurea Heude): I think it is the best kind of all kinds of small clams, no one. Yellow clams are also called clams. Fresh clams are a good dish when grilling. Put them on a charcoal fire for grilling. After roasting, the shells will open automatically. The more thick it is, there will be a little juice left when it is roasted, you can sprinkle a little salt or not, you can eat the clam meat with the juice, and the umami tastes like a tide. , rushing down the tongue all the way down… try it and never forget it.
The above types of small clams can be cooked in a variety of ways, such as frying, frying, steaming, boiling, grilling, boiling soup, porridge, stuffing, and drying. As long as they are fresh, they are all delicious.
Iridona iridescens, Potamocorbula laevis: commonly known as sea melon seeds, they are more common in the coastal areas of Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai. Make appetizers.
Sea melon seeds do not refer to a specific type of shellfish. In many places, small shellfish are called sea melon seeds, such as this dish.
Cockle (Cardiidae): the trade name is bird shell, beauty leg, etc. The common one in the northern market is Keenocarkium Buelowi, and in the southern market, there are long cockle, Nanyang cockle, etc. The several kinds of small clams mentioned earlier are different, very developed, and have strong athletic ability. After they are cooked, the meat is more chewy, and the juice in the middle is very fresh. Boiled and fried with onion and ginger are very delicious.
Saxidomus purpuratus: The trade name is swan egg. It is very large. Generally, the common shells on the market are about 7 or 8 cm, and a single weight exceeds 50 grams. It is said that the largest individual is close to a kilogram. There is a traditional famous dish in Shandong cuisine that uses this product. The meat of this dish is crispy, tender, fresh and delicate.
Other delicious shellfish
All kinds of clams: The common clams on the market include constricted clams and bamboo clams. The constricted clams (Sinonovaculaconstricta) are small and short, generally around 7 or 8 cm, with thin shells and lots of meat, and the meat is soft and tender. It is delicious when fried with onion and ginger. , can also be made into dried clam and clam oil.
Bamboo clams are also called the king of clams because of their size. The common types are Solen grandis and Solen strictus. The shells are long, thin and crisp. The garlic vermicelli is steamed, stir-fried, and charcoal-grilled. etc. are common cooking methods for bamboo clams. The meat of bamboo clams is a bit harder and more brittle than constricted clams.
All kinds of scallops and scallops: The common types in the market are the large shrimp scallops (Mizuhopecten yessoensis), this guy can grow to be bigger than the face, the price is not expensive, it tastes very cool, usually steamed with garlic vermicelli, Charcoal grilling is also good; the smaller scallops are mainly thick-shelled scallops (Mimachlamys crassicostata) in the south, scallops (Azumapecten farreri) are more common in northern markets, and the American imported bay scallops (Argopecten irradians) are smaller in size Steamed directly, while larger ones can also be eaten as minced garlic vermicelli or grilled. Atrina chinensis is commonly known as scallops. The most common one on the market is Atrina chinensis. Its adductor muscle is also very large. The fresh ones are also suitable for cooking with minced garlic vermicelli. The dried products of Jiangxuan are commonly used in Cantonese cuisine. The scallops enhance the flavor. After the adductor muscle of the scallops is dried, the appearance is very similar to that of the scallops. The general trade name is dried scallops to show the difference.
Both of these shellfish are very developed adductor muscles, cylindrical, so they are also called shellfish. Scallop is a general term for a variety of sea scallop species. The scallop adductor muscle has a mild and sweet taste, and has a large amount of meat. During the breeding season, the gonads will expand, the taste is better, and the price is cheap. It is also a very close seafood on the market.
Mussels: Mussels mainly live in the intertidal zone or shallow water areas. The common ones are the Far Eastern mussels (Modiohus kurilensis), the emerald mussels (Perna viridis) and the thick-shelled mussels (Mytilus unguiculatus), etc. The trade name is mussels in the south. , The north is called Haihong, and there are many other common names. There are many ways to eat mussels, such as frying, steaming, roasting, and making soup. The meat can also be taken out and dried for consumption.
Oysters: Oysters, also known as oysters, are commonly used on the market are the big oysters (Crassostrea gigas), with a large yield, the oyster meat is tender and sweet, steamed with garlic, charcoal grilled, and cooked in soup. The most famous way to eat oysters is Just eat it raw. The first time I heard about eating raw oysters was in the text of the Chinese textbook “My Uncle Jules”. There is no need to add any seasonings to raw oysters, just squeeze a little lemon juice, and the oysters used for raw food should not be too large. The duck egg size is just right, as the oysters are too big to swallow.
Blood cockles: Blood cockles (Tegillarca granosa), also known as mud cockles, is one of the most popular Haixian in the southern market. Choose blood cockles with a size of about 3 cm, scald them in boiling water, and eat them with seasonings. The meat is very crispy, and the taste is delicate and sweet. In Fuding, Fujian, there is a kind of flying cockles from Kipmen. It has a pair of “little wings” during the breeding season. The locals pick them out and sell them at high prices.
Geoduck: Panopea generosa, commonly known as geoduck, is a high-end seafood that has only become popular in recent years. Because this product is produced on the west coast of the United States, it has not been a long time since it came to my country. The clams I mentioned before mainly eat the meat in the shell, or the axe foot, adductor muscle or gonads, but the geoduck is special. Except for the crusty skin, eat only the tender meat inside, usually cut into thin slices and sashimi directly, or boiled, stir-fried, and soup and porridge. Geoduck meat is fresh and slightly sweet, and it tastes tough.
Now that the weather is getting hotter and hotter, and the clams in the sea are getting fatter and fatter, do you want to meet up with friends, eat some small seafood, have a few bottles of beer, and enjoy the night.
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