While the traditional method involves soaking clams in salted water to get them to spit out the sand, this process is time-consuming and often ineffective. Today, I’m sharing a quick tip passed down by an experienced fisherman with over 10 years of experience. With this method, you can get clams to release all the sand without using any salt or oil, and it only takes 5 minutes. The result? Clean, tasty clams that retain their natural flavor.
1. How to Select Fresh Clams
Choosing fresh clams is an extremely important step before cleaning them. Fresh clams usually keep their shells closed tightly, only opening slightly when touched and then quickly closing again. If you see any with shells wide open that don’t react or close slowly, they are likely dead and should not be purchased.
Opt for clams with smooth, brightly colored shells as they are not only fresher but also easier to clean.
2. The Quick Sand-Spitting Trick
Ingredients:
– Fresh clams
– High-proof white alcohol
– Clean water
– A stainless-steel basin with a tight-fitting lid
Instructions:
– Rinse the clams: Give the clams a quick rinse under running water to remove any dirt or sand from the shells.
– Alcohol stimulation: Place the clams in the basin, and add just enough strong alcohol (about 15ml per 500g of clams). The strong-smelling alcohol will stimulate the clams’ survival instincts, causing them to open their mouths to breathe and quickly expel the sand. Additionally, the alcohol reduces the surface tension of the water, making the sand-spitting process smoother.
– Gentle shaking: Cover the basin with another container and gently shake for about 5 minutes (avoid shaking too vigorously to prevent shell breakage). This action stimulates the clams to release sand more effectively.
– Soaking: After shaking, you’ll notice the clams have started to spit out sand. Now, add clean water to the basin until the clams are fully submerged, and let them soak for 10 minutes to ensure they release any remaining sand.
– Final rinse: After soaking, remove the clams from the basin and give them a final rinse under clean running water. At this point, most of the sand should be gone, and you can confidently proceed to cook them.
Delicious Clam Dish Suggestions
With your clean clams, you can create a variety of mouthwatering dishes, such as:
Garlic Clams
Ingredients: Clams, minced garlic, ginger slices, scallions, soy sauce, Chinese cooking wine, cooking wine, salt, sugar, and oil.
Instructions: Sauté the garlic and ginger, add the clams and stir-fry over high heat until they open, then add the remaining ingredients and scallions, and mix well before serving.
Steamed Clams with Egg
Ingredients: Clams, eggs, clam broth, soy sauce, sesame oil, and scallions.
Instructions: Beat the eggs with the clam broth (ratio 1 egg: 1.5 broth), strain, pour into a bowl, and steam for 4 minutes. Then, add the clams and steam for another 6 minutes, finishing with a drizzle of seasoning.
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