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From Invasive Species to Local Specialty: Japan Embraces the Quahog Clam

  • From Invasive Species to Local Specialty: Japan Embraces the Quahog Clam
  • A plate of sushi made from the edible mollusks once plentiful in Tokyo Bay: (center) akagai frill with cucumber; (clockwise from upper left) torigai, honmirugai, aoyagi (bakagai), kobashira (adductor muscles of the aoyagi), tairagi, shiromirugai, hamaguri, and akagai.

    A plate of sushi made from the edible mollusks once plentiful in Tokyo Bay: (center) akagai frill with cucumber; (clockwise from upper left) torigai, honmirugai, aoyagi (bakagai), kobashira (adductor muscles of the aoyagi), tairagi, shiromirugai, hamaguri, and akagai.

  • The popular yakihama bentō, a Chiba specialty, is based on a local seaside snack made from freshly dug hamaguri clams, but nowadays the clams are brought in from elsewhere.

    The popular yakihama bentō, a Chiba specialty, is based on a local seaside snack made from freshly dug hamaguri clams, but nowadays the clams are brought in from elsewhere.

  • Fisherman Sawada Yōichi uses his boat and a professional-grade clam rake to dig for quahogs off of Funabashi in Chiba Prefecture.

    Fisherman Sawada Yōichi uses his boat and a professional-grade clam rake to dig for quahogs off of Funabashi in Chiba Prefecture.

  • The catch nowadays days is almost all quahog, with an occasional akagai or hamaguri mixed in.

    The catch nowadays days is almost all quahog, with an occasional akagai or hamaguri mixed in.

  • Local chefs showcase their creativity at the first Japan Clam Chowder competition, held in Funabashi in February 2019. All 13 entries were made using Sanbanze hard clams, the local name for the American quahogs that have made a home in Tokyo Bay.

    Local chefs showcase their creativity at the first Japan Clam Chowder competition, held in Funabashi in February 2019. All 13 entries were made using Sanbanze hard clams, the local name for the American quahogs that have made a home in Tokyo Bay.

  • Uchiumi Kintarō, the young owner of Funabashi seafood wholesaler Kanehachi Suisan, chaired the organizing committee for the first Japan Clam Chowder Competition.

    Uchiumi Kintarō, the young owner of Funabashi seafood wholesaler Kanehachi Suisan, chaired the organizing committee for the first Japan Clam Chowder Competition.

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