Handling Instructions

Freezing Clams

• It is best to freeze them as quickly as possible after harvesting if you don’t plan to eat them fresh. You can put them in the freezer to ‘save them’ if you realize that you won’t be able to fix them in a reasonable period of time, but follow the next instructions if you do so.
• Wash them thoroughly under cool water to rinse off any remaining sand or beach matter so they may be dropped directly into a pot of boiling water from the freezer when ready to cook.

Freezing Oysters

• Same as the first point under freezing clams except that washing oyster shells can be a futile process.
• Oysters freeze best after they have been shucked.
• After shucking, rinse off any shell fragments that may have gotten mixed in with the meat from the shucking process.
• Store them in an airtight bag like Ziploc or vacuum pack them.
• You can freeze them in their shells if you plan to cook them on the BBQ, on a sheet under the broiler or in the microwave (all these cooking methods are in-shell). Do so before they are completely thawed for best results.