How to Shuck a Clam

When I read over Giada's recipe for clams oreganata, one word was completely foreign to me. The recipe called for "scrubbed and shucked clams." Shucked? I never encountered that word before, so I did what most people do when they don't know something - I looked it up on Google. Shucking a clam basically means removing the clam from its shell. Sounded simple, but I had no clue how to properly shuck a clam. This kind YouTube-er then showed me how. I was a little nervous because I wasn't experienced as this old man clearly was, and shucking the clams seemed kind of dangerous.
Nevertheless, I got out my small paring knife and began to shuck the clams. The very first clam I tried to shuck opened up pretty easily, but I had a hard time getting the knife inside the lip. The second one got a little more difficult, and after the second one, I couldn't get the knife in any of them. I tried my best, cut my finger, and realized that it wasn't doing any good. Frustrated, I had to figure out a way to get the clam meat out of it's shell. I knew this shucking thing wasn't working out, and I remembered that steaming the clams would make them open up.

Even though it didn't follow Giada's recipe, I steamed the clams, and once they opened I removed the meat from inside and put them aside. I saved one of the two shells on each clam, and placed them on a baking sheet. A breadcrumb mixture would be needed for this recipe, and it consisted of breadcrumbs, oregano, parsley, mint, oregano, olive oil, salt and pepper. I placed the clam meat back on each shell lined on the baking sheet, topped it with the breadcrumb mixture, and drizzled some more oil on the top. The clams were broiled for about 3 minutes, just to brown the breadcrumb mixture. Since the clams were already cooked, the end result was a little too chewy. I didn't mind too much, but the textures would have worked better if I was able to shuck each clam. I don't think I would make dish again, but it was a good dish to try and had a very nice presentation. The hassle of shucking the clams wasn't worth the end result. Maybe one day I'll be able to successfully shuck...more than two clams!

I also made Pinzimonio - An olive oil dip consisting of olive oil, of course, salt, and pepper. It was ridiculously simple, didn't taste bad, but I didn't think it was a very flavorful, unique recipe. If nothing else is available, it makes a good snack with baby carrots.

Time spent: 1 hour and 30 minutes