【Reading】ほたてがい

【English Name】Scallop

The hotategai (Japanese scallop) is a large bivalve of the family Pectinidae living in the cold seas of northern Japan, with a shell diameter of about 20 cm. Its name comes from the legend that it raises one shell like a sail ("ho") and advances over the sea surface. Major production areas are Hokkaido (the Sea of Okhotsk and Sea of Japan sides), Mutsu Bay in Aomori Prefecture, and the Sanriku coast; bottom-sowing and hanging (ear-hanging) aquaculture spread from the 1950s onward. In sushi the thick, easily-flaking adductor muscle is used, characterized by sweetness derived from glycogen and umami from glutamic and succinic acids. It is served as nigiri, seared, or in gunkan-maki. The mantle ("kaihimo") has a crunchy texture and is used as a snack or in gunkan-maki, while the midgut gland ("uro") tends to accumulate shellfish toxins and heavy metals and is removed before cooking.