The Beloved Rhode Island Seafood You May Not Have Heard Of

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.

If you're looking for some of the best seafood in America, you hardly need to look beyond the New England coastline. The Northeast region is brimming with regional specialties like lobster rolls (we found 16 of America's best ones), chowders, clam bakes, and fried clams. Each of New England's six states takes full advantage of the underwater treasures in the nearby Atlantic Ocean, and in tiny Rhode Island, residents celebrate a dish that is little-known outside of the state. That dish, known as "stuffies," consists of Portuguese-inspired stuffed clams made with large quahogs.

Stuffies are, perhaps, the most famous snack in the state of Rhode Island. To make them, a stuffing is made with cooked, chopped quahog clams, breadcrumbs or crackers, aromatic vegetables, Portuguese chouriço, paprika, herbs, butter, and garlic. This filling is placed inside hollow quahog shells and baked. While they may look similar to another popular baked mollusk dish, clams casino, the two aren't quite the same. Clams casino is made with smaller clams (such as littlenecks), and the stuffing is placed on top of the whole steamed clams inside their shells. You can find stuffed clams all along the New England seaboard, but stuffies are an inherent Rhode Island specialty and the Ocean State's favorite comfort food.

California is the state with the largest number of people with Portuguese ancestry, but Rhode Island has the densest population. In the nation's smallest state, 6.81% of the residents are Portuguese (via World Population Review). Large numbers of immigrants from Portugal came to America in the late 1800s, settling largely in Rhode Island and nearby Massachusetts. Many found work in the fishing and clamming industries, so naturally their native ingredients (like chouriço and Spanish paprika) were paired with local delicacies, including quahog clams. Some historians also believe that an Italian influence contributed to stuffies' origins, and that the dish was created, in part, to stretch certain ingredients into filling meals for blue-collar fishermen and other workers.

Using quahog clams is crucial to stuffies' identity as well, and Rhode Island is home to a unique type of quahog with purple coloring on the inside of the shell. The large shells are perfect for holding a generous amount of stuffing inside. The dish is so connected to the state that you can find it in all kinds of eateries, from casual roadside establishments to fine dining restaurants, and of course, residents often make stuffies at home.