Abalone

I was reading that you can eat the epipodium and the bottom of the foot.  do any of you do that?  how 'bout in chowder?

You can eat it--if it's not extremely fresh then it's the first part to go extremely tough...  I too have heard it's good for chowder.  My dad grinds up ab (especially if it has a reason to be tough like having been in the freezer, or tough, outer parts) and makes a great dish he calls "Cajones de Abalones" where he adds chopped peppers and a sauce that holds the pieces together while he deep fries egg sized balls of it.  It's tasty and gets around the tough issue.

You can eat it--if it's not extremely fresh then it's the first part to go extremely tough...  I too have heard it's good for chowder.  My dad grinds up ab (especially if it has a reason to be tough like having been in the freezer, or tough, outer parts) and makes a great dish he calls "Cajones de Abalones" where he adds chopped peppers and a sauce that holds the pieces together while he deep fries egg sized balls of it.  It's tasty and gets around the tough issue.

Thanks.  I tried it last night.  It was tough!  I'm gonna chop it fine and add it to some soup tonight.

I was reading that you can eat the epipodium and the bottom of the foot.  do any of you do that?  how 'bout in chowder?

I always eat the foot but I thinly skin the outside off because it is tough. You can also eat all the black frilly pieces. Just trim them off and then take a plastic brush to them and scrub the black off under some water. Pound and and cook how you like.