One of the great things about the Northwest is our abundant seafood. If you happen to like clam chowder and maybe buy that stuff at Costco (check the sodium, more than 600mg per 8 oz serving) I have a better idea: local clams steamed in low sodium chicken broth and white wine. Part of the fun is finding the clams yourself. Of course, you can buy your clams at any fish market and many of the Asian markets. If your idea of fun is a day at the beach with the grandkids, you might be surprised to learn that our small neck clams can be found on many beaches near the mean tide line and in sandy areas only a few inches below the surface.
After digging a few, rinse them several times in fresh clean seawater and leave in a bucket with a pinch of cornmeal in the water to allow the clams to open and clean themselves of any sand. After at least 6 hours or several days later (don’t forget to change the water), scrub the shells to remove any dirt and set aside for steaming.
For the stock to steam your clams you will want one part fresh mushrooms and two parts zucchini cut into bit size pieces. As a rule, I have about half as much vegetables as clams. So your prep might look like this.
4 C clean clams in the shell
2 C zucchini in bit size pieces
1 C mushrooms halved
2 tsp basil chopped or dry flakes
2 tsp thyme chopped of dry
1 tsp dry tarragon
1 tsp dry oregano
1 garlic clove
2 C low sodium chicken broth (70mg/serving)
2 C dry white wine
2 C baby spinach divided between two large soup bowls
Put the spices including the garlic in a large pot with the wine and broth and bring to a boil. Then add the clams and top with the mushrooms and zucchini and cover the pot. A glass lid makes it easier to watch so you don’t overcook. When the clams open, ladle the hot broth over the spinach to wilt and top with the clams and vegetable mixture. Discard any clams that did not open. You will need cocktail forks and a soup spoon to enjoy this meal. If you aren’t watching carbs, a crusty whole grain sourdough bread is great addition.
Clams are good source of Lysine and other amino acids. Most people don’t eat more than 3 oz. of clams and served this way and the clams have only 73 calories. 3 oz. of clams does have 25.5 mg of cholesterol and 12.5 mg of protein. (One egg poached has 185 mg of cholesterol and only 6.3 mg of protein.) Served this way including the broth, there would be approximately 600 mg of sodium but a commercial clam chowder would probably be twice that by the time you had that second helping. If you skip the bread, half of your calories in this meal will be from healthy plant sources with a low glycemic load.
Ken Corliss, OD
Board Certified, American Board of Optometry
(253) 845-0585