Shellfish

What to look for…

Shellfish can be broken down into 3 basic categories:

• Crustaceans (crabs, shrimp, lobster, crayfish)
• Mollusks (mussels, clams, abalone, scallops, oysters)
• Cephalops (octopus and squid)

Flavors, textures and varieties vary widely.  Shellfish do not have a long fresh shelf life so eat ‘em up fast. See the chart below for some info.

How do you know when they are cooked?

Shrimp cook until medium-rare (do not overcook or the meat will become dry and loose its flavor.  When Lobster and crabmeat turns red and opaque in center when cut.  Clams, mussels and oysters point at which their shells open – throw away any that do not open.

TYPE	SOURCE	CHARACTERISTICS	METHOD
Clams, Butter	Puget Sound	Lean rubbery, sweet	Bake, steam, stew, sauté
Clams, Quahog	East Coast	Large hard shell	Bake, steam, stew, sauté
Clams, Littleneck	East and West Coast	Small, usually eaten on the half shell	Bake, steam, stew, sauté
Clams, Razor	West Coast	Soft shelled	Bake, steam, stew, sauté
Clams, Soft	East and West Coast	Soft shelled	Bake, steam, stew, sauté
Conch	Southern Florida, Gulf, Caribbean	Tough…you need to beat it to tenderize it	Bake, braise, broil, stew
Crab, Blue	Atlantic and Gulf	Sweet, succulent meat	All
Crabs, Blue soft	Atlantic and Gulf	Sweet, succulent meat, they have shed their shells	Pan fried and grilled are best, sautéed, bakes
Crabs, Rock	Atlantic North Carolina to Texas	Sweet, succulent meat	All
Crabs, Dungeness	Pacific	Sweet, succulent meat	All
Crabs, King	North Pacific Atlantic	Ya only eat the legs with these bad boys	Steam, bake
Lobsters	Tropics, Australia, South Pacific	Firm meat not as sweet as Maine Lobster	Steam, boil love
Lobsters, Spiny (crayfish)	Tropics, Australia, South Pacific	Eat the tails only.	All methods…Steam, grill etc.
Mussels	Atlantic, Pacific, Mediterranean	Slightly tough and sweet	Steam and love em
Oysters, Easter	Atlantic	Range from bland to salty to firm to tender, better than the pacific oyster	Steam, bake, Raw
Oysters, Pacific	Pacific	Range from bland to salty to firm to tender	Steam, bake, Raw
Oysters, Olympia	Puget Sound	Range from bland to salty to firm to tender
Scallops, Bay	East Coast	Small and sweet meat, sweeter than Sea Scallops	All
Scallops, Sea	Larger Sweet and moist, less tender and more chewy than bay
SHRIMP Colossal, Extra Jumbo,Jumbo,Extra LargeMedium, Small, Extra Small	Fresh and Salt water All over the world	Sweet and lovely	All cooking methods
Squid	Salt water, moderate climate throughout the world	Light extremely firm flesh
Snails	California	Dense, chewy