There’s a stretch of northeast coast on New Zealand’s South Island where the mountains fall into cool, clear waters. Surf pounds sandy beaches and grapevines climb the river valleys and rolling foothills. This is Cloudy Bay, on the shores of the Marlborough region – one of New Zealand’s most famous food and wine areas.
It’s home to over 30 winery cellar doors, award-winning restaurants and eateries specialising in shellfish. It’s also the source of Cloudy Bay Clams – a range of wild-harvested clams prized by top restaurants across New Zealand. And they’re now available in Australia.
Sold in-shell, Cloudy Bay Clams are known for their premium yield, distinct flavour and striking appearance on the plate. But being new to Australia, they need a bit of an introduction.
The range includes several species, each with a different flavour profile, texture and ideal use in the kitchen. The diamond shell has a beige, diamond-shaped shell and sweet, fragrant meat with notes of seaweed, a buttery flavour and nutty aftertaste. The tua tua – highly regarded by Māori communities – is superb eating. It has a delicate, sweet aroma of kelp and toasted nori. Raw, it’s citrusy with a hit of ocean spray. Cooked, it’s reminiscent of smoked fish and soy, with a lingering umami finish. Then there’s the storm clam, harvested slightly further out in the surf zone at four to eight metres deep. It has a deep-cupped shell and meat in two parts. The long, pearl-white tongue has a rich, sweet flavour not unlike scallop, while the body tastes of crayfish and sea kelp.
The Cloudy Bay Clams team is known for its commitment to quality. Their fishers use specially designed flat-bottomed boats that hug the shore where the clams live. Clams are secretive – they spend most of their lives beneath the sand in the surf. Fishers rake through the sand with a multi-pronged fork that pumps fresh seawater through the tines, dislodging the clams and flicking them into a basket. Only the right size and species are taken – the rest are returned to the sea to quickly re-settle.
Within hours, the harvest is taken to a nearby processing plant and purged in tanks of fresh, flowing seawater. Over 24 hours, the clams naturally release any sand. They’re then blast-frozen and packed.
Cooking with them, the first thing you notice is the flavour of the sea. They still hold a little seawater when frozen – it seasons sauces beautifully if left in the pan. The shells are a feature too – beautiful, tactile, shaped to cup the meat and cut a smart silhouette in a dish. There’s something wholesome about eating them straight from the shell.
The meaty, brothy, umami flavour is sensational. They bring incredible depth to dishes like pasta alla vongole, where the clams shine. But they’re also robust enough to take on bolder flavours. I’ve cooked them in a tomato-based sauce with garlic and New Zealand sauvignon blanc – a perfect match for their origin.
I’ve got them earmarked for a New England clam bake. But with so much meat in each shell, I’ve also used them in a thick soup of seafood and winter veg – to make, of course, classic clam chowder.
Find the recipe here.
