{"id":6316,"date":"2020-11-06T22:31:26","date_gmt":"2020-11-06T22:31:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.seafood-harvest.com\/?p=6316"},"modified":"2023-01-23T11:17:06","modified_gmt":"2023-01-23T18:17:06","slug":"a-clambake-in-the-desert","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.seafood-harvest.com\/index.php\/2020\/11\/06\/a-clambake-in-the-desert\/","title":{"rendered":"A Clambake in the Desert"},"content":{"rendered":"

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If you have the privilege of living along the coastal regions of the Northeast as I do or have taken a visit to the shores of Maine, you\u2019ve probably experienced a clam bake or, at least, a clam boil as a culinary adventure. If you\u2019re in the tidal regions of the Carolinas, Louisiana or Georgia, a clam boil is about the same as a \u201clow country<\/a>\u201d boil (Frogmore Stew) except in New England lobsters are used instead of crabs and crawfish.<\/p>\r\n

The difference between a clam bake and a clam boil is simple: a bake is done in a pit dug on the beach (or your backyard) while a boil is cooked in a large pot or on a charcoal grill. Both are delicious!<\/p>\r\n

The \u201cPope of Peppers\u201d asked me to develop a recipe for cooking a classic New England clambake in the desert heat of New Mexico. Here\u2019s what I created.<\/p>\r\n

\"live<\/a>\r\n

Live Lobsters on Rockweed<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

There is a difference amongst lobsters. Aside from the Maine (Atlantic) lobster available on the East Coast with large claws and the Rock or Spiny (Florida) lobster from the Gulf regions of the East Coast with no claws, lobsters may also be hard- or soft-shelled. Soft shell lobsters (also called shredders or new-shell) are harvested when the lobster is molting (usually from July through November) while hard-shell lobsters are at their peak from October to December and again in the spring. The difference? Soft-shell lobsters contain more water as the lobster grows to fill the new shell while hard-shelled lobsters are packed full of meat with little water. (As a side note, about 85% of all the lobster harvested in the U.S. is from Maine.)<\/p>\r\n

Lobsters yield about 20 percent of their weight: a 1 1\/4- to 1 1\/2-pound hard-shell Atlantic lobster will yield about five ounces of lobster meat (claws, knuckles and tail)\u2026 about what goes in a decent-size lobster salad roll served throughout the New England region. Surprisingly, the yield from Spiny lobster is about the same even though it doesn\u2019t have claws.<\/p>\r\n

\"clambake<\/a>\r\n

Digging the Clambake Pit<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

A clam bake begins with gathering seaweed (Rockweed) that\u2019s attached to the rocks along the shoreline and digging a pit, usually about three by five feet and a couple of feet deep (about the same size as a pig roasting pit if you happen to have one!).<\/p>\r\n

Gather about a couple of dozen or so medium-size (softball-size) stones to heat in the fire. You\u2019ll also need wet burlap sacks and a tarp to trap the steam. Once the stones and seaweed have been collected, prepare the fire with hardwood (or driftwood if you\u2019re fortunate enough to be on the beach). Some prefer to simply start a fire in the pit atop the stones, while others line the pit edges and bottom with stones.<\/p>\r\n

The stones used for cooking are placed in the center of the pit and the fire is started. The fire needs to burn until the stones are hot, about an hour or so. A layer of wet seaweed is placed over the stones, followed by traditional regional foods such as steamers, mussels, quahogs and lobsters. Side dishes usually include unshucked corn on the cob, sweet onions and sausage (lingui\u00e7a, andouille or chouri\u00e7o). Alternating layers of seaweed and food are piled on top and the entire mound is covered with wet burlap sacks and a tarp to contain the steam. The food is allowed to steam for a couple of hours until everything is fully cooked.<\/p>\r\n

\"clambake<\/a>\r\n

Loading the Clambake Pit<\/p>\r\n<\/div>\r\n

If your fish monger doesn\u2019t have Maine lobsters, there are several on-line sources (most from Maine) but be warned lobsters need to be shipped via next day service so they tend to be a bit pricey\u2026 expect to pay about $100 to $150 for two 1 1\/2-pound hard-shell lobsters (the price includes next day shipping). Rockweed is also available on-line but it\u2019s also expensive\u2026 30 pounds of Rockweed will set you back about $120 plus shipping. If you don\u2019t want to pay for Rockweed, purchase some dried seaweed in the Asian section of your supermarket and rehydrate it in salt water. The taste isn\u2019t quite the same but it\u2019s pretty close.<\/p>\r\n

\"stockpot\"<\/a>Somewhat less labor intensive than a clam bake is a clam boil where everything is steamed in a large stock pot. The flavor is almost, but not quite, the same. (Optional items for the clam bake\/clam boil include mussels, hard-shell clams, jumbo-size shrimp, sweet onions, Red Bliss potatoes and cherry peppers.) Although you could boil all of the ingredients a better method is to steam everything.<\/p>\r\n

To do a clam boil you\u2019ll need a large (21- to 30-gallon) stock pot, a steamer basket and a high pressure propane cooker (such as a turkey fryer).
If you don\u2019t have access to sea water, replicate the 3.5% salinity by adding four ounces of kosher salt (about 1\/3 cup) to one gallon of filtered or bottled water. Don\u2019t worry about not having the other minerals naturally occurring in sea water.<\/p>\r\n

What you\u2019ll need for a clam boil (serves four):<\/h2>\r\n