Shellfish
Sakhalin surf clam (Hokkigai)
【Nigiri sushi: Kai】
The official name of this shellfish is Ubagai, but at the markets, it’s called Hokkigai. Hokkigai doesn’t grow very quickly and it takes 3 to 10 years for one to grow to the 7 or 8cm required to be sold at the market. They have a long lifespan of 30 years or longer. Hokkigai lives in the sandy areas in the Tohoku region and further north. They can be found from the Hokkaido coast to the Choshi coast in Chiba.
It wasn’t originally used as an Edomae sushi topping. Tokyo sushi restaurants started using Hokkigai relatively recently, as the sushi toppings that can be found in Tokyo Bay started waning. Hokkigai was used in sushi in the Tohoku and Hokkaido regions before it was used in Tokyo. It can even be considered a staple sushi topping in Tohoku and Hokkaido.
Leg portions are eaten as sushi toppings. Immersion in hot water turns the dark tip into a pale purple color and sweetens the taste. Hokkigai is often compared to Akagai and though it’s not as fragrant, Hokkigai is sweeter and more flavorful.