Digging for Softshell Clams: A Family Adventure

I head out with my family for a quick trip to the river in search of softshell clams (Mya arenaria), also called mud clams and eastern soft-shells. Softshells are common in the Pacific Northwest, and digging them is relatively easy which makes it a great activity for kids too. I also show you my method for how to clean softshells. A single softshell clam doesn't provide a lot of meat, but if you're used to eating crayfish this probably won't seem like a reason not to dig softshells! Softshells make for an excellent clam chowder.
Although softshells are invasive to the Pacific Northwest, here in Oregon these is still a limit and a shellfish license is required, so please make sure you're compliant before you head out. Additionally, they look superficially like gaper clams (which have very different harvesting restrictions) so be sure not to confuse the two species, although I've found they inhabit very different areas so you're not likely to mix them up.
If you have any clam cleaning or cooking suggestions or if you just want to share your own clamming (mis)adventure stories, please leave a comment. And finally, I hope you are staying safe and healthy during the coronavirus pandemic. We took this short clamming trip just before the advisement came out to restrict unnecessary trips.

[@gus473]

👍 The kids will surely remember their clamming adventures! Thanks & stay safe and well! 😷🤞😎

[@gus473]

Are they good deep fried as well as in chowder....? 🤔

[@WesternEclectic]

@@gus473 Good question, Mike. I have to admit I haven't actually tried them fried. My family likes the chowder so much that we always just end up making that. I think they could be very good deep fried; the key is not to overcook them. Overcooked clams have the consistency of rubber bands!

[@gus473]

@@WesternEclectic When we have had them Back East (MA, ME, NJ, NC), the ones that include the bellies were our favorites! Worth trying, I think! Thanks and keep posting! 👍

[@saulloya9877]

If the world had more people like you we wouldn’t need to take the edge off, you my friend are that guy I look out the window and wave at on the road!

[@WesternEclectic]

Thank you Saul! I will be sure to wave back!

[@SCREEVER333]

Your videos are dope man. Love your crawfish video. Keep em coming plz!

[@WesternEclectic]

Thanks Anthony!

[@jeffmutrie227]

On the east coast we eat the entire clam. It's very tasty. Try that next time you dig soft shelled clams. We call those exact clams steamers out east.👍

[@WesternEclectic]

Thanks Jeff! Another viewer from the East Coast just recently mentioned the same thing. I had no idea! I am excited to give this a try next time (and I hope to show it in an upcoming video). Are the larger ones OK to eat whole too, or is it better to choose smaller ones? Do you have to let them sit in saltwater for a while to purge them? I'd be grateful for any additional guidance on this. Thanks again!

[@themudbugjuggler9912]

Taking the kids on an adventure is social isolation at it's finest! Glad to see your thumb all healed up, that was a gnarly cut. I forgot to mention last video that seeing that crab living in the clam, was just one of the coolest things ever. Thanks so much for sharing, and stay safe and healthy :)

[@WesternEclectic]

Hey thanks for checking in and--as always--it's great to hear from you. Yeah, I it really surprised me when I first discovered a pea crab in a gaper clam, but now I'm used to it and just expect them to be there (which, by the way, they always are). I hope things are OK for you in NY. I know your state has had its share of illness, so I hope you and your family are staying healthy. Take care.

[@chawks37ckt]

I asked only earlier today about a new video and bam there it is! I like the crawfish videos the best, I live in Boise and we have plenty in our rivers and lakes around here. Keep up the videos!

[@WesternEclectic]

Hey Chris as a matter of fact it was your comment that inspired me to finish and post this video. More crayfish videos to come once the season gets going. Thanks for your support and encouragement!

[@jodyseaman1885]

Thanks, I may try my luck. Never had been clam digging. Then a few years ago learned how to dig razor clams. Now I am hooked so will try these soft shell clams.

[@WesternEclectic]

Good luck! They're easy to dig once you find out where they are.

[@johnstecich7990]

im from the northeast where we harvest these commercially and recreationly .... there most common to steam whole then dip n butter and shuck live and do fried whole clams . best way to prep as i do is cut a 3 inch pvc in half and use that as runners on the bottom of a cooler then place a milk crate or two on top and load your clams into the crates let them soak for a day or 2 or 3 in salt water thatll help them purger then you can harvest them as u please.

[@WesternEclectic]

Hi John, thanks for the advice! Recently I've had some other folks from the East Coast comment about how I could do this differently and I'm definitely planning to try it your way next time. I'm a bit confused about what the PVC pipe is for. What do you mean by "runners"? Does it just go inside the cooler to keep the milk crates off the bottom of the cooler? Thanks again for your help; I haven't found anyone here on the West Coast that seems to know how to prepare these clams the way you do them out there.

[@williamkuhns2387]

Shuck soft shell clams cut away belly leaving only foot and siphon connected. Make a dry-wet-dry deepfry breading recipe using cornmeal and pan fry in lard (not veg oil). Tartar sauce and cocktail sauce are great with fried clams.

[@WesternEclectic]

Hi again William and thanks for the tips. It took me forever to clean all these softshell clams, and I have now had a few people (many from the East Coast) tell me of better/easier ways to do it. What do you do about the tough outer skin on the siphon? Do you remove it, or just go ahead and cook it with that still on?

[@williamkuhns2387]

@@WesternEclectic Definitely remove tough siphon sheath by blanch/shock method of dipping into boiled water (simmer) then plunge into icewater bath. Sheath should slip off easy. Blanch/shock is used to remove delicate fruit and vegetable skins (especially tomatoes) and take home some seawater (if you can) to let clams purge sand out for just a few hours then wrap in damp cloth in fridge overnight if not shucking right away. Dosnt matter if they die as long as they are in very cold fridge. I am a classical trained chef so feel free to ask as many questions!!

[@WesternEclectic]

@@williamkuhns2387 OK thanks this is really helpful! One of these days soon I'm hoping to get back out to dig some more softshell clams, and it would be fun to make a new video about preparing them. If so, I'll likely take you up on your offer to check back in with you with more questions about doing it right. And I'm not sure where you're located, but if you're ever in western Oregon feel free to get in touch; you're welcome to email me at [e-mail]. Take care!

[@williamkuhns2387]

@@WesternEclectic Thank you I will email you with cooking tips and tricks. My spouse and I live in Salinas, California. :)

[@WesternEclectic]

@@williamkuhns2387 OK great thanks!

[@great-grandmakirk8828]

Are these good fried? Just found ur channel,very interesting, I hope that you and ur family stay safe in this scary time.

[@WesternEclectic]

I haven't tried them fried, but as long as they're not overcooked I imagine they would be great. The secret is to just barely cook them; they are easy to overcook. I have tried to eat gaper clams (a similar species) that were cooked a bit too long and I could barely chew them! Anyhow, glad you found the channel and I hope you stay safe too.

[@FISHERMAN331977]

These are great fried and also you can steam them and once the shell is it open they're good to eat with butter

[@Trystiansky]

I miss clam digging. I'm in Birch Bay, WA, so this new WA government COVID closure sucks. I think it's bs. Most of us are rarely in contact with anyone else while clam digging, so it doesn't make sense to me. Anyhow, enjoy the chowder, I've got some frozen from last season I'll have to thaw now. Cheers! =)

[@WesternEclectic]

Yeah, as you can see in the video the stretch of river where we were clamming was essentially deserted and I agree this is typical most of the time for clamming. But, on the other hand I'm OK with taking some time off to try everything we can to keep everyone safe. I'm glad you still have some clams from last season! Nice! And it sounds like we're both be looking forward to when this pandemic is over and we can get back to the things we love like clamming, fishing, catching crayfish, etc. Take care!

[@TedSeeber]

Please tell me this was recorded *before* the request to shut down the coast. Also, a trick my family taught me- it's a lot easier to clean these if you store them in the fridge buried in corn masa overnight- the masa imitates the sand these animals normally filter, and if you wait overnight, they'll replace all the sand with corn flour.

[@WesternEclectic]

Hi Theodore, yes, this was recorded before the request to stop travel to the coast. As can be seen in the video, the area along the river where we went was essentially deserted, so avoiding other people was a nonissue. But on the highway my wife and I were shocked at the amount of traffic. Sure enough, the next day I read the news that folks on the coast were (quite rightly, in my opinion) furious that so many people had ignored safety and driven out there anyway to hang out in groups in the towns and on the beaches. I hope this has been stopped. Interesting suggestion about the masa! I usually don't have a problem with sand or mud in the clams, rather it just gets tedious cleaning so many of them and removing the tough outer skin can be hard, but the trick of freezing the clams first solves that. Anyhow, take care and please stay safe and healthy!

[@M3hammerdown]

Take some eastern advice. No one here cuts these open. Steam them open with some onions and celery in the broth. They open and come right off the shell. Dunk in butter. Done!

[@WesternEclectic]

Thanks for the advice! Softshell clams are a lot of fun to harvest but it's a lot of work to cut them all open and clean them... It's great to know I could just use your East Coast method and skip this step--it sounds like I've been doing it the hard way, haha. So you just eat the whole thing, like we do for oysters? Or do you only eat the siphon part after steaming them?

[@M3hammerdown]

@WesternEclectic once they steam open, everything peels off the open shell with a slight pull from the siphon. The dark outer skin slips right off, you'll see. Then, dunk it in butter and eat the whole thing. In fact, they aren't even referred to as soft shell clams as often as their common name, "steamers" in New England. Quick and easy. Its how restaurants and home cooks serve them everywhere here in RI. Oh, also.... once you rinse them, leave them in a bucket of clean salt water for a couple hours and sprinkle a good amount of corn meal or black pepper in the water. They will spit out all the sand and be much better to eat whole. Enjoy!

[@WesternEclectic]

@@M3hammerdown Thank you for the clarification! Next time I'll try it!

[@M3hammerdown]

@@WesternEclectic Be sure to update your reply and tell me what you think. Hopefully I improved your shellfish life permanently haha!

[@WesternEclectic]

@@M3hammerdown Will do!

[@trucksrus6321]

Sounds and looks like Jesse Eisenberg

[@WesternEclectic]

Ha! Yeah maybe... I'll take it as a compliment! 😊

[@trucksrus6321]

@@WesternEclectic one of my favorite actors 😎