Register Correspondent

For those of us who remember when abalone were plentiful enough to eat the tasty shellfish as burgers, today’s increasing availability of the succulent mollusks from farms is welcome news after years when they were virtually unavailable.

Don’t expect them to be cheap or plentiful, however. Though you can now enjoy abalone once more, they’re best reserved for special occasions.

Now commercial collecting of abalone is forbidden in California, though limited sports fishing is allowed. Be caught with too many, however, and you’re looking at a big fine.

Why all the fuss? The rare shellfish with its distinctive single shell containing a series of holes, is indeed tasty eating. Simply sautéed with a thin batter and served with a lemon sauce, it’s among life’s great pleasures, though creative cooks have created many other treatments as well.

Only six farms produce abalone commercially in California, three on land and three in the ocean.

On a recent trip to Monterey for the Cooking for Solutions conference on sustainable food, we were fortunate to be able to visit Monterey Abalone Company to see how they’re grown.

Monterey Ab was started in 1992, and it hasn’t been an easy life. It took three years to get the required permits even though it’s on the existing commercial wharf north of the famous Fisherman’s Wharf in Monterey. Abalone actually improve water quality, as do other shellfish, yet some regulators are suspicious of any commercial operations in the sea.

The abalone company occupies a garage-like space near the wharf’s end. The heart of the operation, however, is down below. You carefully descend a vertical ladder to the catwalk, being careful not to tumble into the water below. In the cramped, wet space, you can see the cage-like boxes in which the shellfish grow; otters would eat them if they weren’t protected.

The company buys “seed” California red abalone about 1 inch in diameter and 3 to 5 grams in weight from hatcheries, then raises them to market size. The seed abalone are placed in suitable cages and suspended in the fast-moving currents.

The abalone are fed giant kelp (Macrocystis), which is harvested each week locally and transported in the company’s boat to the farm.

Giant kelp is one of the fastest-growing plants on earth. Fronds have been measured to grow as much as 3 feet per day under ideal conditions.

It is abundant along the rocky coast of the Monterey Peninsula, particularly in the spring, summer and fall. During winter, storms and less-favorable growing conditions make the kelp canopy less abundant. Local kelp harvesters work together through the Monterey Kelp Cooperative to ensure that harvests are sustainable and that other users of the resource are not impacted.

Farm-raised red abalone can grow as fast as an inch per year under optimal conditions. As they grow, the number of abalone per cage is reduced to maintain desired growth rates.

The fastest-growing abalone are selected to grow to the larger sizes. Monterey Abalone sells their abalone starting at 3-1/2 inches, or about 4 oz. each, up to 6 inches (1-1/2  pounds live weight); the minimum size that sport abalone divers can take is 7 inches.  

If you’d like to try abalone the easy way, Chef Peter Pahk often features it at the Royal Oak restaurant at Silverado Resort, but I’d call to confirm if you’re headed there with that in mind.

You can also cook abalone at home.

Abs are sometimes available as frozen steaks, but the preferred version is live.

You can get live abalone at the new Kanaloa Seafood in the Oxbow Public Market, though you may have to order ahead. They sell live farmed abalone, typically in sizes perfect for one serving.     

In all honesty, cleaning them is a bit messy and may require a glass of wine to start. Most cooks (and divers) pound them extensively to tenderize the meat; for larger abalone, they use mallets with teeth that make the steak look like white cube steak.

Like other mollusks, you should cook them very quickly or for a very long time — but it seems a crime to cook the delicate meat in stews. They can also be consumed raw, sliced very thin for sashimi or carpaccio, but be warned that they can be tough if thick — or cooked for more than a very short time.

A number of recipes are featured at the Monterey Abalone Company Web site, montereyabalone.com. The first recipe featured today is adapted from that listing. Chef Pahk shares another, Asian-inspired recipe with us, too.

The abs are best paired with a crisp sauvignon blanc or unoaked chardonnay.