Species sheet · The Edible River
Asian clam
The little shell for the morning after.
- In miso soup, Japanese style (shijimi-jiru)
- Stir-fried with garlic, soy and chilli, Taiwanese style
- In a clear broth, as in Korea
- In French
- Corbicule
- Scientific name
- Corbicula fluminea
- Status
- Invasive species
- In the water
- A small freshwater clam from East Asia, buried by the thousand in the sand of rivers and estuaries. In Europe it now carpets the Loire, the Rhône and the Seine.
- Season & buying
- Invasive in Europe: gathering and eating it is encouraged, in clean water and within local fishing rules. In Japan and Korea, all year round.
- Common length
- ~2.5 cm
- How to identify it
- Oval, thick shell, yellow to olive brown
Strongly marked concentric ridges
Purple pearly interior
On the plate
Small, mild, delicate meat that gives a deep, almost sweet broth.
Avoid: Leaving it in the broth once open: the meat toughens; pull it out the moment the shells part.
In Japan as in Korea, a soup of these little clams is the classic morning-after remedy, served to soothe the liver.
In Umay recipes
One Umay recipe calls for it.
