There’s a lot to like about clams. They are among the most affordable types of seafood and have some of the lowest mercury levels among seafood. Clams are also a very versatile ingredient. They’re great steamed, baked, boiled, and fired, in soup, on pasta, or all by themselves with a generous helping of garlic butter. A key factor in the culinary versatility of these mollusks is the fact that there are a few different species of clam, each lending itself to certain preparations. Picking the right clams for the job is essential to a successful meal.
There are primarily seven species of clam sold in the United States. On the West Coast, you’ll find the Pacific species of razor clams, Manila clams, and the famously huge geoduck clam. On the East Coast, you’ll find surf clams and jackknifes, but none of these varieties are quite as common as hard shell and soft shell clams. Hard shell and soft shell sound like generic descriptors, but they actually refer to two specific species of clam. You’re quite likely to encounter these at some point, especially if you live on the East Coast, so let’s get the differences straight, because the names of these species aren’t really very useful.