Back at it again… and this time I’m making spaghetti alle vongole (spaghetti with clams). The recipe is dead simple: clams, minced garlic, mince shallots (or onions), crushed red pepper, parsley, white wine, butter, and salt to taste.
Method: While your spaghetti is cooking, saute the garlic, shallots, red pepper and bit of parsley until fragrant and tender. Then add about a 1/2 cup of wine per serving and reduce the volume by half. Add your clams and steam, covered, for 3-5 minutes. Drain the spaghetti when done and stir into the sauce. Add the pat of butter and then finish with the rest of the parsley, reserving some to garnish on top. Plate and top with some more parsley and enjoy!
A note on this particular dish: I’m using frozen clams to test how it tastes vs. fresh clams. I didn’t expect it to be as good but I was very surprised at how close it came. And it was much better than canned clams for sure! It was pretty cheap too… 2 pounds for $10 and they were already cleaned and cooked. For those times when I can’t find fresh clams, these will definitely do!
