Quahog Quahog Venutius Category="Molluscs"Category="Seafood"Quahogs (pronounced "KO-hog", IPA /kohɑɡ/, "kwag", or "kwa-HOG", IPA /kwɑhɑɡ/), mercenaria mercenaria or venus mercenaria, are also called hard-shell clams, and by terms referring to different sizes from smallest to largest, "littlenecks", "cherrystones", "quahogs", and "chowders". The Quahog takes its name from the Narragansett Indian word "poquauhock" (the word is similar in Wampanoag and some other Algonquin languages), and as New England Indians made valuable beads called Wampum from the shells (especially the purple color), the scientific name Mercenaria mercenaria is related to the Latin word for "money".

Quahogs are salt-water mollusks that thrive in salt concentrations of 18-26 ppt, which is less salty than open ocean salinity of 35 ppt, and thus thrive in less-salty tidal estuaries and bays. They have a "foot" they use to dig themselves into the sand and mud, and they are filter feeders, and are susceptible to concentrating human toxins if the toxins are present in their environment (especially, see Red tide, and more commonly Coliform bacteria).

They are quite common throughout New England, north into Canada, and all down the Eastern seaboard to Florida, but are particularly abundant between Cape Cod and New Jersey where seeding and harvesting them is an important commercial seafood industry. Tiny Rhode Island, situated right in the middle of "quahog country", has supplied a quarter of the nation's total annual commercial quahog catch, and the quahog shell is the Rhode Island state shell. The species has also been introduced and is farmed on the Pacific coast and in Great Britain and Europe.

Restaurants known as raw bars specialize in serving cherrystones served raw on an opened half-shell, usually with a Cocktail sauce with Horseradish, and often with Lemon. Sometimes, quahogs are steamed and dipped in butter, though not as commonly as their soft-shelled clam cousin, the "Steamer". Littlenecks are often found in-the-shell in soups, stews, "Clams casino", or substituted for European varieties such as the Cockle in southern european seafood dishes. The largest chowders with the toughest meat are used for flavor in more processed forms including the traditional Clam chowder and stuffed clam.

The Quahog achieved prominence in popular culture in the animated Television show Family Guy, which takes place in the fictional town of Quahog, Rhode Island, which was named after this legendary clam.

Recipes

Though quahogs are especially delicious raw on the half shell, they can be combined in an assortment of wonderful recipes:
Shogun Clams:
Fried eggs (two sides done)
About 5 minutes to prepare.
Popular breakfast dish in the USA and Western Europe.
Often served with toast or other fried dishes.
Ingredients:
2 teaspoons of butter (or olive oil)
2 or 3 large eggs, depending on appetite
Seasoning to taste
Equipment:
A small (10") frying pan
A spatula
Gas ring, at medium heat
Method:
#Melt the butter in the pan over medium heat
#Crack open the eggs into the pan and let fry until the yolks begin to harden at the edges (indicated by a lightening in the yolk color).
#Using the spatula, flip the eggs over and allow to cook for one minute.
#Add seasoning to taste, and serve.
Serves:
One
Notes and Variations:
It is a cardinal sin for fried eggs to allow the yolk to break. If the cook ensures that the eggs are fresh the yolks will be more 'pert', and less liable to break.

Preparation & Cooking

It's especially important to prepare quahogs properly to remove sand and mud lodged in their stomaches. Here's the best way to accomplish this:

1. Let the quahogs stand in sea water for 15 minutes. If using tap water, add salt so the quahogs so they will stay alive. This technique will release the sand and mud in their stomaches.

2. Scrub the shells thoroughly with a stiff bristled brush under cold water.