Spring Tradition: Razor Clam Digging [Part 2] Sand purging after returning home, and cooking.

👇Continuing from last time.

■First things first

After returning from clam digging, the first thing I did was dissolve artificial sea salt in water to make seawater for purging sand and mud.

Bringing back seawater from the site is the easiest way, but it's heavy. That's why we always keep artificial sea salt on hand.

I put the roughly washed razor clams in here and let them spend the night. Aeration is essential for this process.

This is my beloved machine, the "Suishin SSPP-7S".

It's small, durable, and the world's best air pump that makes almost no noise. The bubbles are louder than the pump itself. With this and some artificial seawater, I can purge sand to my heart's content.

■Sharing the catch

Along the way, I shared some with an acquaintance, so the amount of razor clams was halved.

And then, a night passed. The razor clams are lively, but it's quite a sight.

(⚠️Please be careful, as this image is somewhat shocking)

It seems razor clams don't get sand inside their bodies like Manila clams do; it just gets stuck between the meat and the shell, so the sand-purging process itself is simple.

However,

They spit out a massive amount of mud, grime, and waste, all tangled in mucus. It takes all night to get them to expel it. You really get a strong sense that they were living by inhaling the ocean.

Even so, this is much better than last year.
Last year, the water turned completely gray, with zero visibility. What was that?
It terrified me to think what would have happened if I had eaten them without letting them purge.

Well, now that they've expelled what they needed to, all that's left is to give them a good scrub and they're ready.

■ Cooking Examples

For cooking, I made "the one sautéed in garlic and olive oil with a splash of white wine" and "the grilled one."

👇 That dill.

■ Disturbing

Now, as you may have already noticed, the meat of the razor clam is... long, thin, and looks like an earthworm.

(⚠️ Once again, this is a somewhat shocking image, so please be careful.)

When you remove the shell, it suddenly becomes scary—a disturbing clam. That is the razor clam.
It is the type that needs the shell to act as a civilized label saying, "This is food."

By the way, an acquaintance I shared some with has experience working at a Japanese-style restaurant, and when I asked, they said that at the restaurant, "It was delicious, but it wasn't popular." It must be because of this appearance.

Adding herbs is supposed to make almost anything look stylish, but razor clams won't even allow that. They are thin, but they are clams with backbone.

However, even if they look scary, they are just clams after all.
They are delicious when you eat them.
Humans get used to things quickly.

Thanks to carefully purging the sand and mud, there was no fishy smell at all, and I was able to enjoy them very much.

■ Satisfaction

Fun to catch, disturbing to look at, but delicious to eat. Razor clams are the best.
I've had my fill for this year, so until next year.

👇 The trilogy, grandly concluded. Now you too are a razor clam hunter.