This is a simple preparation
that in only infrequently cooked in homes. Demonstrating just how easy it is to
achieve restaurant quality at home with minimal effort will encourage others to
try it. I let my “student” do all the steps. This is more memorable than if you
do it.
3 Pounds
live clams (or 50-50 Clams and Mussels), washed & cleaned
3 Tablespoons
sweet butter and 2 Tablespoons good olive oil
1
Cup white wine (Pinot Gris or Sauvignon Blanc)
3
Garlic cloves, minced
¾ Cup
minced shallots
Freshly
ground black pepper
1/2
Cup Italian parsley, finely chopped
Start by rinsing the clams in
water. If you also using mussels, clean these and remove any beards with a
sharp pairing knife. Discard those that are open (dead) or broken shells. Then
let clams stand covered in a bowl water for two hours to which you add a
tablespoon of corn meal. Do not touch the bowl or the clams will “clam up”. You
want them to open and drop any excess sand they might have, and additionally,
they may be full of salt water which otherwise will make the dish too salty. Do
not skip this step. After two hours, rinse with cold water twice.
Preheat the oven to 170 F and
put your serving platter in it.
Heat a large heavy-bottomed
pot with plenty of surface area2. Add and heat the oil, when smoking add the
clams and half the parsley. Season generously with pepper (Use some red pepper
too, if it pleases you.) Flip, then cover,
and cook until all the shells steam open. (Discard any that stay closed.)
Remove the clams with a slotted spoon to a heated serving platter. Stick in
warm oven to stay warm. Filter the broth through a very fine strainer (need to
be able to filter sand) and pour the strained liquid back into the pot. Add the
wine, garlic, shallots and reduce liquid on high to concentrate the flavor. Remove
from heat, add remaining parsley, the shellfish and swirl in the butter. Taste
and correct seasoning.
If serving a pasta (spaghetti
or linguini), cook a pound of it "al dente" then toss the clams and pasta in a
serving bowl.
Notes:
1.
Farmed mussels
and clams generally do not contain sand but it does not hurt to soak in cold
water. Additionally, since these are raised in salt water, their opening will rid some of the undesirable salt.
2.
I use a 14-inch
cast-iron skillet with three-inch lip. Its thickness allows a lot of heat to be
stored in a preheated pan allowing the chef to flash cook a large bunch of cold
clams/mussels quickly so they remain tender.
3.
The smaller the
mussels and clams, the sweeter and the tenderer these will be. So if you have
the chance to pick these out of the pile, cull the small ones.