Is it Lobster ?????

[Jungle Jane]

Steamed clams...MMMM!!! :D My favorite and pretty hard to find in IL!

Was on the short Enchantment cruise last week...no lobster. Didn't miss it.

 

MMMMMMMMMMMM even with the grit! YUMM! Must be fresh from the ocean, not one of those cultivater thingys where they're fed corn junk to get the grit out. YUCK! Sometimes you bite into one of those and it has a belly full of what tastes like corn muffin batter :eek: No thanks! Give me fresh from nature, grit and all! That's what the broth and drawn butter is for anyway.... And no clam "strips" either! Gotta be the whole gushy belly! LOL! :D

 

<<SALIVATINGG>>

[EMTRa]

MMMMMMMMMMMM even with the grit! YUMM! Must be fresh from the ocean, not one of those cultivater thingys where they're fed corn junk to get the grit out. YUCK! Sometimes you bite into one of those and it has a belly full of what tastes like corn muffin batter :eek: No thanks! Give me fresh from nature, grit and all! That's what the broth and drawn butter is for anyway.... And no clam "strips" either! Gotta be the whole gushy belly! LOL! :D

 

<<SALIVATINGG>>

 

OH YUM!!!! Me too...must be fresh..that's why I only have them in San Fran at the wharf or East Coast or Caribbean. Found them while in Key West at Red Fish Blue Fish. They were tiny but fresh! Grit and all! :D

[sail7seas]

Steamed clams are the BEST....I agree. Being from Boston, it is something I made from time to time for us and we always enjoy a bowl or two of them during our Canada/New England cruises. They are so easy to make at home, I wish I thought of them more often. :)

 

Best thing about all the food on all the ships..... No one makes you eat it. If they serve you lobster or anything else you don't care for, don't eat it. Easy! If you like the lobster with or without the butter they may or may not serve in the method you wish, have it or don't according to your own choice. ;)

 

 

 

[RetiredMustang]

... Have you ever had crabs from Maine? They are very small, but the meat is very good....its a pain in the neck to get the meat out of the legs...

 

 

Jan,

 

Yes, I have had Maine lobsters, and even in Maine on a business trip once. A story I tell on myself: I was in the Navy and stationed in the Pentagon many years ago when one day a colleague had to go on temporary duty on an aircraft for a few days in New England somewhere -- it may indeed have been Bangor, as there is a Navy air station there.

 

He said the aircrew usually went somewhere the last day and bought live lobsters to bring back, and did I want some while he was going? Of course I did! Figuring about 6 dollars apiece for a nice live one in the supermarkets around here (this was a long time ago :D ) , I gave him a 20, figuring I might get four or maybe even five lobsters since they were probably cheaper from the source, so to speak.

 

A few days later, he showed back up with a box and put it on my desk. When I opened it, it contained a dozen or more lobsters of about 1.5-2 pounds or so each! Have you ever seen the movie "Annie Hall" with the scene with Woody Allen and Diane Keaton in the kitchen with the lobsters loose? That was pretty much my house that night. I invited some neighbors, and we enjoyed them very much! And we just did our best with the little legs (we discovered teeth did a better job than those little wooden mallets or the fancy lobster-shaped pliers.)

 

And, oh yeah, soft-shell crabs! The Banks have wonderful seafood, but I think the best softshells are in Annapolis on the harbor, or perhaps Baltimore. Man, ... I can tell it's about time for a trip to Phillips on Maine St. or J. Paul's in Georgetown (or Baltimore) for a crab cake!

 

Dave

[Jungle Jane]

I gave him a 20, figuring I might get four or maybe even five lobsters since they were probably cheaper from the source, so to speak.

 

A few days later, he showed back up with a box and put it on my desk. When I opened it, it contained a dozen or more lobsters of about 1.5-2 pounds or so each! Have you ever seen the movie "Annie Hall" with the scene with Woody Allen and Diane Keaton in the kitchen with the lobsters loose? That was pretty much my house that night.

 

That reminds me of when I was a kid growing up summers in Maine, we'd have a bunch of people over and get "lobstah's and steamah's" and after the trip to the "lobstah pound" before it was time to cook, all us kids would claim and name a lobster and we'd put them on the deck floor for a race! None of them moved very far other than just flailing around. Come to think of it I guess we pretty much tortured those poor things. But then we cooked and ate them.

 

Ah....memories...

 

And NO I don't really talk that way LOL!!!!!

[billfish]

I used to do a little bit of commercial Lobstering in Boston Harbor and from time to time I would bring a bunch home for a feed. It probably sounds mean but my cat loved to play with them on the kitchen floor . Somewhere I have pictures of a few of his encounters . Good thing they were banded. They have very stong Claws.

[sail7seas]

Mustang....... You would be lucky to get a single 1 1/2 pounder for $20 today. :( We went to our local pound about 3 weeks ago and got two - two pound male lobsters. I think they cost something like $57. Really delicious but pricey.

 

[billfish]

It is amazing the mark up on Lobsters and Clams . I've done alittle of each. Most recently Clamming more so from the standpoint of keeping active than from the income. I get 12 to 15 cents each for a littleneck. By the time it reaches a plate at a Restaurant it costs a dolllar or more.

 

WOW

[JCDeck]

I love all the seafood....but I do think the waters are all over fished and taking less might be a good thing. They can replenish. I love crab, especially BLUE!:p

[sail7seas]

It is amazing the mark up on Lobsters and Clams . I've done alittle of each. Most recently Clamming more so from the standpoint of keeping active than from the income. I get 12 to 15 cents each for a littleneck. By the time it reaches a plate at a Restaurant it costs a dolllar or more.

 

WOW

 

Many of the clam beds are closed ...... and every year it seems we have red tide at some locations. Sometimes at lots of locations. When clamming for yourself, be very careful where you are. Some are not safe or are restricted but I'm sure you know that.

 

Actually, we've been eating lots of mussels. They're very tasty when properly prepared.

[JCDeck]

Many of the clam beds are closed ...... and every year it seems we have red tide at some locations. Sometimes at lots of locations. When clamming for yourself, be very careful where you are. Some are not safe or are restricted but I'm sure you know that.

 

Actually, we've been eating lots of mussels. They're very tasty when properly prepared.

 

Love mussels. lots of red tide when the water gets too warm. It stinks too!:eek:

[ChBoxers800]

Jan,

 

Yes, I have had Maine lobsters, and even in Maine on a business trip once. A story I tell on myself: I was in the Navy and stationed in the Pentagon many years ago when one day a colleague had to go on temporary duty on an aircraft for a few days in New England somewhere -- it may indeed have been Bangor, as there is a Navy air station there.

 

He said the aircrew usually went somewhere the last day and bought live lobsters to bring back, and did I want some while he was going? Of course I did! Figuring about 6 dollars apiece for a nice live one in the supermarkets around here (this was a long time ago :D ) , I gave him a 20, figuring I might get four or maybe even five lobsters since they were probably cheaper from the source, so to speak.

 

A few days later, he showed back up with a box and put it on my desk. When I opened it, it contained a dozen or more lobsters of about 1.5-2 pounds or so each! Have you ever seen the movie "Annie Hall" with the scene with Woody Allen and Diane Keaton in the kitchen with the lobsters loose? That was pretty much my house that night. I invited some neighbors, and we enjoyed them very much! And we just did our best with the little legs (we discovered teeth did a better job than those little wooden mallets or the fancy lobster-shaped pliers.)

 

And, oh yeah, soft-shell crabs! The Banks have wonderful seafood, but I think the best softshells are in Annapolis on the harbor, or perhaps Baltimore. Man, ... I can tell it's about time for a trip to Phillips on Maine St. or J. Paul's in Georgetown (or Baltimore) for a crab cake!

 

Dave

 

Okay Dave, you've done it. We are in MD and there is NOTHING like the Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab. We crab quite a bit in the summer and early fall off our boat and after eating our fill, we pick the rest for crab meat and freeze it.

 

It's completely your fault that I just now pulled the last 2 lbs out of the freezer to make crab cakes for dinner! :D

[Jungle Jane]

Okay Dave, you've done it. We are in MD and there is NOTHING like the Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab. We crab quite a bit in the summer and early fall off our boat and after eating our fill, we pick the rest for crab meat and freeze it.

 

It's completely your fault that I just now pulled the last 2 lbs out of the freezer to make crab cakes for dinner! :D

 

 

ChBoxers...what time is dinner? Count me in!

[RetiredMustang]

Okay Dave, you've done it. We are in MD and there is NOTHING like the Chesapeake Bay Blue Crab. We crab quite a bit in the summer and early fall off our boat and after eating our fill, we pick the rest for crab meat and freeze it.

 

It's completely your fault that I just now pulled the last 2 lbs out of the freezer to make crab cakes for dinner! :D

 

ChBoxers800,

 

Blues are the best tasting crabs! I admit it, even though I am a native Washingtonian (the state, not the District :D ), and although lord, don't the blues make you work for it, compared to Dungeness!

 

(Also, I realized on re-reading the thread that I mis-read Jan_in_Maine's post asking if I ever had crabs in Maine, not lobsters. But, lobsters were on my mind then, and I answered with the story about them. Man, I have got to start slowing down and read the posts more closely. :p )

 

But, back to crabs now. I remember summers in Tidewater (round aboot Tahdwattuh) in the 70's --Lynnhaven Inlet was a great spot -- with a net, a string and a chicken neck and coming up with a bushel o' blues in a couple of hours or less. Simpler times, and simpler pleasures, but I would go back to that place and time tomorrow if I could.

 

This winter without blue crabs has been way too long. After spending time on this thread this week, I have made plans: This weekend DW and I are going to see the cherry blossoms on the Tidal Basin, and then end up at M and Wisconsin in Georgetown, and get a J. Paul's crab cake for lunch!

 

... Unless you want some help with that last 2 pounds out of the freezer ...

 

Dave

[Putterdude]

The lobsters they serve on ships are a farmed product that come from various countries including Mexico. The good folks from New England & the Maritime Provinces of Canada know the difference just as we in the North West and Alaska can tell a farmed raised salmon from a great distance.

[sail7seas]

We New Englanders also recognize wild salmon from farm raised. :)

 

At least, This New Englander does.

 

You are right about us knowing our cold water, hard shell lobsters from the 'other stuff'. For us, there is no comparison.

 

[WEELYNCRUZER]

I should have read the newspaper ad before I quoted prices. Tail meat is 57 a pound and tail claw mix is 46 a pound. Knuckle meat is 32 a pound. That is still less per pound thanj buying live lobsters and steaming them and taking out the meat. You throw alot away.The shells weigh alot. During molting season they are soft shelled and full of water. Steamers are another story. You can't beat them. We can go out to the flats and dig 10 qts. in 45 minutes,. You can meat them to get the sand out or put some vinegar and black pepper in the bucket with seawater and they are sand free in about 6 hours. I learned that from a brooker that digs all the time. Actually it is a fork with a 14 inch handle and it is l shaped. In Nh your allowes 10 qts in a dig.:D

[Jungle Jane]

I should have read the newspaper ad before I quoted prices. Tail meat is 57 a pound and tail claw mix is 46 a pound. Knuckle meat is 32 a pound. That is still less per pound thanj buying live lobsters and steaming them and taking out the meat. You throw alot away.The shells weigh alot. During molting season they are soft shelled and full of water. Steamers are another story. You can't beat them. We can go out to the flats and dig 10 qts. in 45 minutes,. You can meat them to get the sand out or put some vinegar and black pepper in the bucket with seawater and they are sand free in about 6 hours. I learned that from a brooker that digs all the time. Actually it is a fork with a 14 inch handle and it is l shaped. In Nh your allowes 10 qts in a dig.:D

 

Gosh, I feel like a foreigner in my own neighborhood! I have never clammed. Is it like totally backbreaking? Might like to try it sometime...do you need a license or anything? Sounds dumb but you must not just be able to go digging holes wherever you want and you have to have a license to fish....

[billfish]

Gosh, I feel like a foreigner in my own neighborhood! I have never clammed. Is it like totally backbreaking? Might like to try it sometime...do you need a license or anything? Sounds dumb but you must not just be able to go digging holes wherever you want and you have to have a license to fish....

 

 

Good Questions:

 

There are a few different methods for harvesting clams. Dry digging above the high water line, plunging in the water and raking in the water. All of the methods require a moderate amount of exercise depending the type of bottom ,sand ,mud gravel or rocky . Quite frankly I find it quite enjoyable .

 

Regulations are established by the individual towns and vary quite widely .

The towns provide maps of areas that are open to commercial and non-commercial digging as well as days that digging is allowed. The towns monitor water quality to ensure that clams will be safe for human consumption.

 

Permits/ licenses are required and may cost between $5 to $65.

 

Where I live the best digging is for hard shell clams ( Quahogs ) but there are a few spots that have fair digging for soft shell Steamers.

 

It is a fun thing to do on a hot Summer day The grand children have a ball following me around.

 

Give it a try

[sail7seas]

My family has used an age old method for getting sand out of steamers. About thirty minutes before cooking, we fill the kitchen sink with really cold water, add a very generous handful or two of cornmeal and let the clams soak. Pulls all the sand out. A good rinse and they are ready for the pot! Delicious!

[Jan_In_Maine]

Same that we do here too ... cornmeal works wonders!!

[sail7seas]

:) We New Englanders don't mess around with our shellfish!!! :) It's so good in its simplest form.....no need to get fancy with it.

 

[Jungle Jane]

My family has used an age old method for getting sand out of steamers. About thirty minutes before cooking, we fill the kitchen sink with really cold water, add a very generous handful or two of cornmeal and let the clams soak. Pulls all the sand out. A good rinse and they are ready for the pot! Delicious!

 

I've had them done like that before and what I got was a clam belly full of corn goo-I posted about that earlier in this thread. I've had the corn goo bellies more than once...I now ask if the clams are corn fed for sand and if I get a yes I skip the clams and get something else.

[sail7seas]

Never heard of such a thing. Lived here all my life and this is the first..... :) Sorry you got a belly full of cornmeal. Doesn't sound very good.

[westcafe]

we fill the pot with 2 cans of beer and water to cover them and let them set over night to get the sand out. Works great they must burp a lot or something.