bivalves Archives · bburi kitchen

Six Korean spring clams

Spring brings all kinds of good things to the fish market, and one of these is the bounty of fresh clams.

I remember winters as a kid when my mom would make seasoned ggomak for us, serving them with a hot, steaming bowl of white rice.

Ggomak (꼬막) refers to a small group of clams known as “blood cockles” in English—so named because their blood is a bright red.

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Oysters are curious, divisive creatures, beloved by some, despised by others.

If saejogae is the king of clams, then bajirak (바지락) is the humble but hardy peasant, a clam as common as air.

Saejogae in English is “egg cockle,” but literally translates to “bird clam” in Korean, since the meat inside the shell resembles a bird’s beak.