Fish Time

Looking for fastest way to remove sand from steamers?

74Formula233

Let them cleanse themselves in salt water......

I have heard the stuff about putting black (or hot?) pepper in the water, but to me that sounds like a wive's tale.

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biggradyholt

I soak them in the sink...my sink will hold about a bushel....rinse them down several times....i liberally coat them with black pepper at various stages of filling the sink...you cannot use too much. It will not spoil the steamers or make them hot/spicey. Do this several times let them soak as long as you can ...repeat process several times if possible.....Enjoy!

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AlloyToy

We usually anchor our boat in deep water. I hang an onion bag off a cleat and as we dig them we'll make trips and fill the onion bag. The boat in deeper water with a moving current usually does a good job of flushing them

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"First The Bite Then The Fight"

Andy

We use to bring home some salt water and place the clams in a cooler with the seawater and add corn meal after a few hours their necks will stick way out and the sand will wash off in the cooler...

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Scup

The methods suggested for purging steamers work. What does not work anymore in Southeastern CT is catching them in the first place. Where I am located it is loaded with hard shell clams but not steamers (aka piss clams or soft shell clams). They used to be all over the place in the sixties, but all the spots I used to catch them in are worthless now. Do not have a clue as to what happened to them. However, hard shell clams are plentiful and with the exception of steaming or frying them, they are really a good clam for just about everything else including eating them raw. I did try frying a bunch of them up, and they were very tasty but sort of rubbery. The only time a hard shell clam gets sand inside, is when the tangs of the rake get into an opened clam before it has a chance to clam up. The tang prevents them from closing completely hence a few can pick up some mud.

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Fish Time

I will try saltwater in fridge will give them at least 4 hours
they are harder to find and Niantic does not allow most of the river

AlloyToy

Another method that an old Italian guy showed me once was to soak them in a sea water/ice slush, let them sit for a bit, then go up to the soaking pot and kick it LOL!!!! He claimed that startling them made them purge their inside contents...........can't say it did or didn't work but I know one thing I wasn't about to argue

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"First The Bite Then The Fight"

Capexcape

you are right about kicking the bucket.
It truly works.
1st start of with freshly dug clams well rinsed.
Just put them in a clean bucket of seawater ,and whenever you walk by , just kick it and they will squirt , obviously purging.
Appx next day pour off top clean water,save .Dump out clams and bottom of bucket will have sand.Dump and rinse .Put clams back in with saved clean seawater.
Simple, and clean clams.
No messy cornmeal to claen up!!!!!!!!
Ps dont put them in an area with finished walls or inside house as they will squirt and ruin paint job.
Dave

Fish Time

Thanks for all the methods I will post how I make out after claiming this weekend