Scallop

Scallops are bivalve molluscs of the family Pectinidae, prized for their sweet, delicate flesh and relatively rare in tinned form compared to mussels and clams. The great scallop, or vieira (Pecten maximus), from the Galician rías and the coasts of Brittany is the most celebrated in the conservas tradition, hand-packed in its own juices or in Galician sauce. Two smaller relatives have their own pages: zamburiña (Aequipecten opercularis), the everyday scallop of Galician conservas, and hotate (Mizuhopecten yessoensis), the Japanese scallop of Hokkaido and Aomori.

How to eat it: the shellfish forms. Over rice cooked with sofrito, straight from the tin as a pintxo with bread, or over a potato with the sauce. A plain base lets their sweetness lead.