''Corbicula japonica'' is an edible
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
brackishwater clam
Clam is a common name for several kinds of bivalve mollusc. The word is often applied only to those that are deemed edible and live as infauna, spending most of their lives halfway buried in the sand of the sea floor or riverbeds. Clams h ...
, a
bivalve
Bivalvia () or bivalves, in previous centuries referred to as the Lamellibranchiata and Pelecypoda, is a class (biology), class of aquatic animal, aquatic molluscs (marine and freshwater) that have laterally compressed soft bodies enclosed b ...
mollusk
Mollusca is a phylum of protostomic invertebrate animals, whose members are known as molluscs or mollusks (). Around 76,000 extant species of molluscs are recognized, making it the second-largest animal phylum after Arthropoda. The ...
in the family
Cyrenidae, the basket clams. Its
common name
In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...
s include Japanese basket clam, Japanese blue clam, and shijimi (its Japanese name).
Summary
Japanese basket clams settle at the mouths of rivers in
brackish
Brackish water, sometimes termed brack water, is water occurring in a natural environment that has more salinity than freshwater, but not as much as seawater. It may result from mixing seawater (salt water) and fresh water together, as in estuari ...
water. During low tide, people are able to see them in
tidal flats
Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal ...
and collect them for food. Their shells are roughly 30-35mm and are reddish-brown while young, turning black as they mature. Their shells are glossy and have a tendency to grow concentric circles from their base, similar to ''
Corbicula fluminea''. The inside of their shells is purple when they are young and becomes white as they mature. Their reproduction is based on
gonochorism
In biology, gonochorism is a sexual system where there are two Sex, sexes and each individual organism is either male or female. The term gonochorism is usually applied in animal species, the vast majority of which are gonochoric.
Gonochorism con ...
.
Culinary Use
Japan
In Japan, the clam is usually called ''shijimi'', though this technically refers to the ''
Corbicula'' genus in general. The more precise name is ''yamato-shijimi'' ("Japanese ''corbicula''"). ''Shijimi'' and ''asari'', (''
Lajonkairia lajonkairii'') are two of the most common clams used in soups and ''
tsukudani
is thinly-sliced seafood, meat or seaweed that has been simmered in soy sauce and mirin. As a flavorful accompaniment to plain rice, ''tsukudani'' is made salty enough to not go bad, allowing high osmotic pressure to preserve the ingredients fr ...
'' (simmered seafood).
miso soup
is a traditional Japan, Japanese soup consisting of miso paste mixed with a ''dashi'' Stock (food), stock. It is commonly served as part of an meal, meaning "one soup, three dishes," a traditional Japanese meal structure that includes rice, sou ...
Freshwater clam Ramen.JPG, Shijimi in ramen
is a Chinese noodle dish popularized in Japan. It includes served in several flavors of broth. Common flavors are soy sauce and miso, with typical toppings including , nori (dried seaweed), menma (bamboo shoots), and scallions. Ramen h ...
YamatoShijimi01.jpg
Shijimi-don (Jyūsan-ko).jpg
See also
*
Ornithine
Ornithine is a non-proteinogenic α-amino acid that plays a role in the urea cycle. It is not incorporated into proteins during translation. Ornithine is abnormally accumulated in the body in ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency, a disorder of th ...
References
{{Taxonbar, from=Q11345179
Cyrenidae
Bivalves described in 1846