Do you recognize it? That's right, this is elephant mussels! There may be some people who have seen or eaten elephant mussels, many people are impressed by it, in addition to the taste is very good, the appearance of elephant mussels is also difficult to forget after a glance.
In fact, elephant mussels are not mussels, not even Unionidae. Don't be misled by the name! The scientific name of the elephant clam is called the elegant goddess clam, which belongs to the genus Panopea, and the word panopea comes from Greek mythology, she is the daughter of the Greek gods Thespius and Megamede. The elephant mussel is the largest burrowing clam in the world, which is also one of the longest-lived animals of any kind, with a lifespan of more than 140 years; The oldest has been recorded at the age of 168.
They are mainly distributed along the North Pacific coast, mainly in the southern Part of Alaska, B.C., Washington and California, and in Baja California, Mexico, but the elephant mussels produced in the Canadian province of BC are the best quality and most famous.
Catching them requires divers to find the location of the elephant mussels, use a directional spray gun called a "bayonet" to break through the surrounding sediment, you can see their "big nose", and then you can catch them
When divers catch elephant mussels underwater, they will pack them into the net pocket they carry with them, and after each catch, they will be hoisted back to the boat, and then the staff on board will handle the packing.
Returning with a full load, the weight of the elephant mussel in each net pocket cannot exceed 50 pounds, otherwise the shell of the elephant mussel may be crushed. Fat Canadian elephant mussels!
The English word for Elephant IsOduck, which means "dig deep" in the local language. Chinese name is the hieroglyphic description of the elephant's nose. In fact, it is not the nose of others, this is called the rainbow tube, elephant mussels are used to eat, this is also the most delicious part, you can shabu-shabu, you can also make sashimi, very delicious, eat very chewy!