Harvesting and Cooking Razor Clams: They claim that one could always find something new to discover each time they wake up. Nevertheless, the older one gets, one may find themselves in a situation where they wonder whether they have forgotten something each day. However, I recently learned two amazing things:However, I recently learned two amazing things:
1) A pump sprayer can be used surprisingly well to gather razor clams.
2) Fresh razor clams, when properly prepared, are absolutely delicious.
Razor clams are pretty interesting creatures, too. Did you know they can swim? I was skeptical at first, but I saw it in a YouTube video—it’s true! They use their big feet to propel themselves, almost like squids.
Their big foot helps them in other ways too. They can hop around the ocean floor like they’re on a pogo stick. They use both swimming and hopping to avoid predators and find a good place to live.
Razor clams are picky about where they live. They prefer spots just below the low-tide line with lots of moving water. In the right place, you can find up to 200 clams per square yard.
That big foot also helps them burrow fast—really fast. They can dig down three feet in no time if they sense danger. For thousands of years, this digging skill kept them safe from humans trying to catch them.
But humans are great problem-solvers. Sometime in the last century, someone figured out how to catch them easily by using salt.
I first heard about this about ten years ago, but it’s hard to say exactly who started it. Some say it began in Ireland, but razor clams aren’t native there—they were first found in Europe in 1978. Commercial harvests in places like Massachusetts suggest this method became common in the past decade. So, what’s the secret? It’s salt.
You can find a razor clam in the keyhole-shaped hole its siphon leaves in the sand. Mix up a salty solution, spray it into the hole, and the clam will pop up, trying to move to a new spot. I saw this happen recently with my friend Paul in Barnstable Harbor on Cape Cod. Paul, a former marine biologist, had done this only once before.
We went out during a full-moon low tide. At first, we didn’t have much luck—the clams might’ve been too deep or the sand too thick. But as the tide went out further, we started to succeed.
We pumped some of our salty solution into a hole, and within a few minutes, a clam would come up. Some popped completely out of the sand, while others just poked their heads out.
It was like a game of whack-a-mole. Paul sprayed the holes, and I waited for the clams to show themselves. Once they did, I grabbed them—they put up quite a fight sometimes!
We had the most luck near the water’s edge at low tide. After using two gallons of solution, we ended up with about 50 razor clams and called it a day.
On the West Coast, people use a “clam gun” to harvest Pacific razor clams since salting is illegal.
Two weeks later, we went back on a new-moon low tide morning, better prepared with four gallons of even saltier brine. I found out you can only dissolve about 3-2/3 cups of salt into a gallon of boiling water. This time, we were patient, waiting for the tide to bottom out. We bagged over 100 razor clams in less than an hour—it was fast and fun.
You might worry that salting could harm the clams, but a 2019 study by Roger Williams University found it didn’t hurt them much. It caused a bit of irritation to their gills that healed quickly, and the extra salt in the sand went back to normal after a few hours. Still, some places don’t allow salting, so check your local rules before trying it. Rules about clam size and how many you can take also vary—where we were, there were no size limits and a one-peck-per-week limit.
Now, let’s eat some Razor Clams: Harvesting and Cooking Razor Clams
The first night, I kept it simple, steaming them for about four minutes and serving with melted butter. They were mild, not too salty, and had a hint of sweetness. What impressed me most was their texture—not chewy at all, more like cooked shrimp.
The next night, I tried them over pasta and came up with this recipe. Before that, I’d never thought to mix clams with mushrooms, but they go great together.
Recipe: Pasta with Razor Clams and Mushrooms
Ingredients
- 20 razor clams (about 1 cup chopped)
- 1 10-ounce package fresh pasta
- 1½ cups baby bella mushrooms, sliced
- 2 tablespoons garlic, diced
- 1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Pinch of red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoons butter
- ½ cup dry white wine
- ⅓ cup light cream
- ⅓ cup clam broth
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- Black pepper
- Fresh parsley, chopped
- Grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Wash the clams under cold water and steam for 1 minute, saving the broth. Let them cool, shuck them, and cut into thin strips.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add red pepper flakes and mushrooms, and sauté for 5 minutes until they release liquid. Add garlic and cook another minute. Add butter and wine; cook 5 minutes until reduced. Lower the heat and season with salt and pepper.
Meanwhile, Pasta is getting cooked.
Add oregano and clams; cook for 3 minutes, stirring. Add cream and clam broth; toss with cooked pasta. Taste and add more salt or pepper if needed.
Serve topped with Parmesan and parsley. Enjoy!
Recipe: Asian-Style Noodles with Clams
Ingredients
- 12 large razor clams
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons fresh ginger, minced
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ cup shredded spinach
- 1 large carrot, peeled into thin strips
- 3 green onions
- 2-4 dried red chiles (optional)
- 2 clumps Cantonese egg noodles, cooked
- 1 teaspoon Sriracha hot sauce
- 2 teaspoons soy sauce
- 3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoons mirin
- ¼ cup coconut milk
- 2 cups chicken stock
Instructions
Wash clams, steam 1 minute, shuck and slice thinly.
Slice white ends of green onions and cut green tops into thin slices for garnish.
Melt butter in pot, add ginger, garlic, and white onion parts, and cook 3 minutes. Peel carrots, add strips and dried chiles to pot with chicken stock, bring to a boil, reduce to low, and add mirin, soy sauce, Sriracha, vinegar, and coconut milk. Remove from heat, add spinach and clams, and let rest 2 minutes.
Put noodles in bowl, top with broth, and garnish with onion slices. This light, spicy dish is good with seafood.
With many clams left in the fridge, I made a classic. Fried clams are messy and a joy.
Nowadays, hand written letters are rare, and printed index cards are uncommon. I’m sorry to Mr. Daniels that it took two years to answer his recipe question. Making fried clams at home isn’t easy, but well done, you’ll have a great snack.
Razor Clams Recipe: The Best Fried Clams You Will Ever Eat
Ingredients
- 24 razor clams (or steamers)
- ¾ cup corn flour (cornmeal)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon Old Bay seasoning
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 1 cup buttermilk
- Peanut oil for frying
Instructions
Prepare Clams: When the clams are not very large, and fresh carefully wash them, then steam for a minute before shelling them. This process should be Rinsed quickly in cold water.
Soak in Buttermilk: Rinse the clams well with water then put the clams in buttermilk and soak them for 20 minutes.
Mix Dry Ingredients: Then, in a bowl, mix corn flour with all-purpose flour, sugar, Old Bay seasoning, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper then transfer to a big zip-close bag.
Coat Clams: Put the buttermilk aside, drain and pat the clams dry; season with salt and then put them into the bag with the flour mixture. This ensures that the clams are well coated with the flour mix, therefore shake the bag gently so that the outstanding is all over the clams. Chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes while shaking the bag once in a while.
Fry Clams: Place pb-oil in a fryer and heat to 360 F. Pan fry the clams in small portions for 1 minute each with a little coconut and curry to give it colour appearance golden. Take out and put on a metal dry rack.
Serve: Let the fried clams stay warm on a 200-degree oven as you fry other batches or before serving them. Can be eaten with lemon, tartar or ketchup sauce.
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