Freshly gathered quahogs.Talk about local. I am completely amazed by my mother: she now has a shellfishing license and digs for quahogs! This word is pronounced "co-hog" and it's a hard-shell clam that is found in the coastal Northeast. With her license, Mom can gather 10 quarts of these shellfish, which she stuffs and serves with yummy butter dipping sauce. The method for collecting quahogs, as I understand it, is to check the shellfishing warden's report on the health of the shellfish and the ocean waters, then to head out with your gathering equipment. You tie a 10-quart basket around your waist and it floats by your side as you wade through the water, scraping at the bottom of the ocean with a special rake. Mom says it's quite an arm work-out and I am dying to see her in action - her next goal is scallop gathering! These are my favorite seafood, so I am eager to taste the results.
Wonder where I get my enthusiasm for food?Mom and Uncle Bob with the results of their shellfishing!
As a kid I used to snorkel for them in Maine and my grandfather taught me to eat them raw. Otherwise, according to him, they are too tough. I never really sweated the red tide thing (I truly bought the whole month with 'r' thing). Here in Alaska the surf clam looks remarkably similar. Is it the same? Patrick
ReplyDeleteBy the way, I just zoomed in on the picture and noted the 'devil's club teashirt' - someone has been to the Alutiiq Museum gift store! Also those quahogs look a lot smaller than the ones I used to catch. perhaps the reason I needed to eat them raw.
ReplyDeletePatrick