Japanese Scallops

Having a huge adductor muscle, scallops are probably the most popular shellfish topping in the world. Their adductor muscle occupies the greater part of their body, which is their most remarkable biological characteristic. With that muscle, they open & close their shells quickly to move in the seawater as if they were flying. “Hotate” is the Japanese name for scallops, and it means a standing sail. This word might have come from observations of the way they move.

 In Japan, Hokkaido and Aomori, two of the northernmost prefectures, are the top two places of production. I still remember that when I drove along the eastern coast of Aomori Prefecture, many flags with the word “scallops” on them, were waving along the edge of the road.

To fit the size of the sushi rice, scallops are sliced into half vertically, but leaving one end connected; it is then opened outward, spread out, and placed onto the sushi rice. Does it look like a scallop which is in the picture on the left? I sometimes wonder whether what I am about to eat is really the scallops or not because they are made so beautifully flat!

 The color of this topping is cream with a slight orange tone. Meaty, creamy, and sweet - these are the main features of the raw scallops. People who don’t like shellfish says that their texture is unusual, and they have an unpleasant ocean smell. I guess that scallops are very popular because they are “unshellfishlike” having characteristics people generally prefer. Most of sushi restaurants have scallops as their standard topping. Soy sauce with “wasabi” is the common dipping sauce for sushi. But some people prefer to eat this topping with a pinch of salt and lemon juice, in order to more fully enjoy the gentle sweet taste of the scallop.