On food and cooking the science and lore of the kitchen ( PDFDrive ) 443

Though most are 3 lb/1.5 kg, geoducks can reach 15 lb/8 kg with a neck 3 ft/1 m long!. Food Words: Mollusc, Abalone, Clam, Oyster, Scallop, Squid The general term for these hard-shelled

elephant’s trunk Though most are 3 lb/1.5 kg, geoducks can reach 15 lb/8 kg with a neck 3 ft/1 m long!

Food Words: Mollusc, Abalone, Clam,

Oyster, Scallop, Squid

The general term for these hard-shelled

creatures, mollusc, comes from the Indo-European root mel, meaning “soft,” which the inner body parts indeed are Abalone

entered English via Spanish from the Monterey Indian word for this streamlined

snai l , aulun Clam began in the Indo-European gel, a compact mass: cloud, cling, and clamp are its linguistic relatives Mussel derives from the Indo-European mus, meaning both “mouse” and “muscle,”

which moves quickly like a mouse under the skin Since mussels hardly move at all, their dark, oblong shapes must have

suggested the comparison Oyster, from the Indo-European ost, “bone,” names the

mollusc with the heavy and bone-colored

s h e l l Scallop, with its unusually symmetrical and patterned valves, comes

via the Middle French escalope, from a Germanic word for “shell.” And squid? To

date, the linguists are stumped It appeared out of nowhere in the 17th century

Their burrowing and siphoning

musculature makes clams fairly chewy

creatures The tenderer portions of large

clams (mantle, quick muscle) may be cut out and prepared separately The large geoduck neck is usually scalded and the tough

protective skin removed before the meat is sliced and/or pounded very thin for eating raw

or either gentle or prolonged cooking

Mussels The handful of mussel species we

usually eat have become cosmopolitan: they have hitched rides or been intentionally introduced to various parts of the world, where they both grow naturally and are