This is a kind of shellfish that grows at the junction of salt and fresh water. The clam shells have turned yellow and very shiny under the long-term erosion of yellow sand, so they are called yellow sand clams.

It wasn’t until I arrived in Guangdong that I learned that the Pearl River, the third largest river system in China, actually has eight mouths that enter the sea, and all of them are named after the character “men”. In addition to the famous Humen where the opium was destroyed, there are also Hengmen, Modao and Hengmen.

Gate, Chicken Cry Gate, Niwan Gate, Yamen and Hutiao Gate.

These estuaries, named after gates, form the developed water network of the Pearl River Delta. They are all junctions of salty and fresh water. When the river flows to the sea, it brings with it a large amount of organic matter, and when the seawater rises, a lot of marine plankton flows in.

It brings rich nutrients to the aquatic products in these waters and has given birth to many famous aquatic products.

Huangsha clams from Doumen Shangheng and Xinhui Muzhou are one of them.

The first time I heard about Huangsha Clam was on a Sunday afternoon in April 1994. I don’t remember the reason. Many students in the accounting training class asked that get out of class end at four o’clock. Only Doumen Tsingtao Brewery and Qianwu Sugar Factory back then A few students from the school were not in a hurry to leave after class. After answering a few questions, Kuang Sheng from the Qianwu Sugar Factory suggested treating me to yellow sand clams. Amo from the brewery offered to treat me to a taste of Tsingtao beer. Several other students Everyone was making noises. Some said that it was the season for clams to be plump and it was better to choose the right day. Some said it was rare for Mr. Kuang to treat him to Tsingtao beer.

Everyone was talking about it, which made me feel itchy. I wanted to see and taste the plump yellow sand clams, but also wanted to drink Tsingtao beer.

At that time, I only knew that there were sand clams. I had picked them up casually when I was looking for snails in my hometown in Jiangxi and Fujian. However, there was little meat and lots of shells, so there was nothing to eat. I had never touched them specifically to eat them.

In addition, Doumen Tsingtao beer was very popular at that time, and some people said that clams and beer are a perfect match.

So, I got on the Xingfu 125 and set off with these guys.

What I didn't expect was that this place called "Shibansha" where you can eat yellow sand clams was so far away. It took about half an hour to reach Lianzhou by motorcycle after crossing the Jing'an Bridge.

Just when I thought I had reached my destination, the motorcycle in front of me continued to refuel and headed towards Xinhui. After driving for another ten minutes, we arrived at a picturesque ferry.

When the car stopped, I thought we should have arrived. I didn’t expect that not only did I not arrive, but I also had to make the transition. It really fulfilled the saying "The aroma of wine is not afraid of the depth of the alley". In order to eat a meal of clams, I actually had to ride a motorcycle for nearly an hour.

By car, the distance should be close to thirty kilometers.

After the transition between people and vehicles, as soon as we got off the ferry, there were three big blood-red characters "Tiebansha" written in red paint on a big stone. In this ancient village called Tiebansha, we only rode for a few minutes and arrived at a restaurant by the river.

inside.

The restaurant was packed with people, and even though we arrived so early, there were no empty tables.

I walked around the old street for a long time, and after touching the so-called yellow sand clams that we also have in my hometown many times at many stalls, Kuang Sheng finally got a table in line, and it was actually a semi-open-air seat by the river.

After pouring beer and having a drink, Kuang Sheng told me that Tiebansha belongs to the boundary of Xinhui Muzhou and we have left Zhuhai.

This place is also the most inland of the Modaomen estuary of the Pearl River. The river surface is wide, the water is gentle, and the environment is beautiful. The unpolluted river water is very suitable for the growth of aquatic plants. The "fish, shrimp, and clams" produced are known as the three treasures of Muzhou.

Especially the yellow sand clams are big, plump, tender, white and delicious. You can try them right away.

What happened next was eye-opening and amazing to me.

Just as we were about to drink our second glass of beer, an aunt brought a large round aluminum basin and placed it in the center of the table. The basin was steaming with steam, and countless yellow sand clams with their mouths cracked by the steam were lying in the basin.

, there are white clam meats the size of thumbnails lying inside the pale yellow clam shell.

Just then, a gentle breeze from the river blew by, and a wonderful fragrance blew in front of me. I couldn't help but greedily took two sips, and just said in the vernacular: "It tastes good." Kuang Sheng had already packed a bowl of yellow for me.

Sand clam, I unceremoniously picked up a white and tender piece of sand clam meat and put it into my mouth. I couldn't put it down. My mouth was filled with the unique tender fragrance of sand clam meat and oil. I didn't stop at all with my chopsticks, and no one was needed.

After decorating the house, I poured it into the bowl with a spoon, and couldn't wait to put the clam meat into my mouth one by one.

It wasn't until we had eaten two boxes of sand clams that weighed two pounds each that we started to drink the second glass of beer.

In the evening of that day, six large pots of yellow sand clams were served, plus river fish, river shrimp and two vegetables, along with a small bottle of Tsingtao beer produced in Doumen. Several people put the clams, shrimps, fish and vegetables on the table.

and the beer in the box, completely destroyed.

I have never forgotten the feeling of sighing at the delicious yellow sand clams, drinking cool Tsingtao beer, and feeling whether it was the river breeze or the sea breeze.

Even when I later worked in the city, I took the Xingtianxia team on many hikes to taste the delicious yellow sand clams from Tebansha. Of course, there were also fish and shrimps, as well as the original and delicious sand clam soup.

White rice.

It must be explained that although the yellow sand clams in the iron plate are big and fat, they are heavy in shell and light in meat, or they have more shell and less meat. However, the steamed clam meat is fat and tender, melts in the mouth, and seems to have no residue. It is

Delicious food that you can never get enough of.

I don’t remember who from the “Xingtianxia” team said that after eating for a long time, I almost swallowed my tongue and was not full.