Cultures around the world eat clams along with many other types of shellfish.
North America In culinary use, within the eastern coast of the United States and large swathes of
the Maritimes of Canada, the term "clam" most often refers to the
hard clam,
Mercenaria mercenaria. It may also refer to a few other common edible species, such as the
soft-shell clam,
Mya arenaria, and the ocean quahog,
Arctica islandica. Another species commercially exploited on the
Atlantic Coast of the United States is the surf clam,
Spisula solidissima.
Scallops are also used for food nationwide, but not
cockles: they are more difficult to get than in Europe because of their habit of being further out in the tide than European species on the West Coast, and on the East Coast they are often found in salt marshes and mudflats where mosquitoes are abundant. There are several edible species in the Eastern United States:
Americardia media, also known as the strawberry cockle, is found from Cape Hatteras down into the Caribbean Sea and all of Florida;
Trachycardium muricatum has a similar range to the strawberry cockle; and
Dinocardium robustum, which grows to be many times the size of the European cockle. Historically, they were caught on a small scale on the
Outer Banks, barrier islands off North Carolina, and put in soups, steamed or pickled. Up and down the coast of the Eastern U.S., the
bamboo clam,
Ensis directus, is prized by Americans for making
clam strips, although because of its nature of burrowing into the sand very close to the beach, it cannot be harvested by mechanical means without damaging the beaches. The bamboo clam is also notorious for having a very sharp edge of its shell, and when harvested by hand must be handled with great care. On the U.S. West Coast, there are several species that have been consumed for thousands of years, evidenced by
middens full of clamshells near the shore and their consumption by nations including the
Chumash of California, the
Nisqually of
Washington state and the
Tsawwassen of
British Columbia. The butter clam,
Saxidomus gigantea, the Pacific razor clam,
Siliqua patula, gaper clams
Tresus capax, the geoduck clam,
Panopea generosa and the Pismo clam,
Tivela stultorum are all eaten as delicacies. Clams can be eaten raw, steamed, boiled, baked or
fried. They can also be made into
clam chowder,
clams casino,
clam cakes, or
stuffies, or they can be cooked using hot rocks and seaweed in a
New England clam bake. On the West Coast, they are an ingredient in making
cioppino and local variants of
ceviche.
Asia India Clams are eaten more in the coastal regions of India, especially in the Konkan,
Kerala,
Bengal and coastal regions of
Karnataka,
Tamil Nadu regions. In
Kerala, clams are used to make curries and fried with coconut. In the
Malabar region it is known as "elambakka" and in middle kerala it is known as "kakka". Clam curry made with coconut is a dish from Malabar especially in the
Thalassery region. On the southwestern coast of
India, also known as the
Konkan region of
Maharashtra, clams are used in curries and side dishes, like Tisaryachi Ekshipi, which is clams with one shell on.
Beary Muslim households in the
Mangalore region prepare a main dish with clams called Kowldo Pinde. In
Udupi and
Mangalore regions, it is called in the local
Tulu language. It is used to prepare many dishes like , , and .
Japan In Japan, clams are often an ingredient of mixed seafood dishes. They can also be made into
hot pot,
miso soup or
tsukudani. The more commonly used varieties of clams in Japanese cooking are the
Shijimi (
Corbicula japonica), the
Asari (
Venerupis philippinarum) and the
Hamaguri (
Meretrix lusoria).
Europe Great Britain The rocky terrain and pebbly shores of the seacoast that surrounds
Great Britain provide ample habitat for shellfish including clams. Historically, British cuisine has been more heavily based on beef and dairy products than seafood, although there is evidence going back to before most recorded history of coastal shell middens near Weymouth and present day York. much of the seafood cultivated for aquaculture or commercial harvesting is exported, and 70% of this goes to the European Union, though present-day younger populations are eating more of the catch than a generation ago. Staple favourites of the British public and local scavengers include the razorfish,
Ensis siliqua, a slightly smaller cousin of the
bamboo clam of eastern North America. These can be found for sale in open-air markets like Billingsgate Market in London; they have a similar taste to their North American cousin. Cockles, specifically the
common cockle, are a staple find on beaches in western Wales and further north in the
Dee Estuary. The accidentally introduced hard-shell quahog is also found in British waters, mainly those near England, and does see some use in British cuisine. The
Palourde clam by far is the most common native clam and it is both commercially harvested as well as locally collected, and
Spisula solida, a relative of the Atlantic surf clam on the other side of the Atlantic, is seeing increased interest as a food source and aquaculture candidate; it is mainly found in the British Isles in Europe.
Italy In Italy, clams are often an ingredient of mixed seafood dishes or are eaten together with pasta. The more commonly used variety of clams in Italian cooking is the
vongola (Venerupis decussata), although regional cuisines include the
tellina or
(Donax trunculus), the o
(Callista chione), the (
Solen marginatus, a kind of
Razor clam), and the
(Venus verrucosa). ==Religion==