Shellfish — About your seafood

Manila Clams

**SINGLE clam orders will be in a compostable bag WITH a label. DOUBLE clam orders will be in a yellow mesh bag with a label INSIDE the bag. If you're unclear on your order check the packing list in the cooler. PLEASE don’t take a double order if you have a single order!**

Neptune’s Delight members can look forward live Manila Clams (approximately 2.5 lbs per bag) fresh from Willapa Bay, WA. Sustainable, and super fresh, these little beauties are a real treat. Click on the picture of clams for fishery info.

It’s very important to scrutinize each clam. Unlike mussels, clams live in the muddy intertidal zone (inhale the sweet scent of low tide! haha...) so check every clam, even if it takes 10 minutes, and discard any that are cracked, broken, or open (and don’t close when you tap them).

A note on prep and storage: Bring a bag – your clams are packaged in a net so that they can breathe but they may drip so bring another container.

Most of you guys will be familiar with clams but in case you are not, here are some things you need to be aware of:

It is impossible to guarantee 100% survival rate in the clams, so it’s necessary to go over them thoroughly before cooking. You’ll receive a generous portion to account for any dead loss.
Clams are alive, and open up when they die. If any of your clams are open before you cook them, tap them a few times: if they close up, they are still alive. If they do not close up they are dead and should be discarded.
Rinse your clams. I don’t rinse them because it shortens their shelf life, but rinsing just before cooking is a good idea.
As far as cooking clams, nature provided them with a built in timer for boiling or steaming. Fill up a heavy pot with a lid with about 3/4 cup of white wine (or fresh water), bring it to a boil. When the clams open up they're done. Those clams that do not open up should be discarded.
Put them in a bowl with the wine-clam sauce and enjoy!

ORIGIN: Willapa Bay, WA

METHOD: Aquaculture

RECIPES: Manila clams with soy butter, garlic-steamed manila clams, manila clams with parsley pesto, manila clams with spaghetti, any mussel recipe.

ShellfishKirk LombardOctober 15, 2020Clams

Butter clams

Neptune's Delighters, you are in for a treat! We are really excited to be offering these rare and delicious clams for you this week. Check out our special Butter clam info page for more details, or read on for some basic info on your delicacy.

The Meat

Butter clams are delicious buttery mollusks of total wonderment. I can't believe we have them for sale. They are wild gathered from Tillamook Bay Oregon by professional clam divers. (I think that's what I want to be when I grow up). Anything that can be done with a clam can be done with a butter clam. You can eat them raw. You can steam them. You can use them in a chowder. I personally like them in chowder. But that's me.

Prep

Butter clams have a hard time closing their shells all the way. So if they are a little bit open when you get them that doesn't mean they're dead. Tap the neck of the clam. If it withdraws, or moves a little, it's alive. It's a good idea to cut off the dark tip of the siphon (neck).

To eat raw, take a sharp knife and cut the clam right down the middle of the two shells. You will then have meat on both sides. Take your knife and shuck the meat just like you would an oyster, then slurp it down! Yum! Look out, it's nature's viagra! How to prep a butter clam video (prep starts at 6:30, enjoy the diving part first!)

For chowders, soups, paellas, cioppinos etc you may want to tenderize them: drop them in the pot, bring to a boil, when the shells open fully they're done. Remove the clams from their shells and beat them lightly with a tenderizing mallet.

Health Concerns

All filter feeding bivalves (mussels, clams, oysters, scallops) are potential PSP risks. The area where these clams are gathered in Tillamook Bay is checked regularly by biologists to ensure a safe product.

ORIGIN: wild gathered from Tillamook Bay, Oregon by professional clam diver Brad Farmer

RECIPES: click for recipes!

VIDEO: How to prep a butter clam video (prep starts at 6:30, enjoy the diving part first!)