Linguine with Clams

Clams are not on my radar. I don’t think about them, I don’t cook them, and I rarely order them at restaurants. It may have something to do with an unfortunate experience with steamers as a child. Those nasty little tongues still freak me out. Maybe I’m just a philistine.

Recently I walked out of the house craving nothing other than linguine with clams. Go figure.  It turns out that those littler morsels, ignored by me for so long, are a measly $5 per pound. Win! With prices that low I can use fancier wine in my sauce.

A logical pairing for the clam’s subtle flavor is a lemon, butter broth and the key to really bringing out the flavors in the dish is to take your time and slowly, carefully, craft your broth. You don’t want the garlic to burn or the juices to evaporate. This is not a thick sauce, just a wonderful complex coating that you can sop up with some crusty french bread. The jus should be balanced, an equal combination of butter, lemon, wine and garlic and you should be able to taste each flavor. Take your time and flavor the sauce as you go. Don’t commit to all of the lemon juice at once, rather add, taste and add again. You can always increase ingredients, you can never take away, a fact that is important to remember in all cooking.

Your final product should be tender clams and perfectly al dente pasta in a fragrant, slightly tangy sauce that begs to be eaten by the spoonful. Enjoy!

Linguine with Clams (serves 4)

1 pound littleneck clams, scrubbed
1 pound dry linguine
8 oz cherry tomatoes, halved (we used sweet cherubs)
6 cloves garlic, diced
4 tbsp butter
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup vegetable broth
1 tsp red pepper flakes
juice of 1 lemon
1/4 cup parsley, chopped
4 slices, thick cut bacon

Cook your bacon on medium high heat until crispy and set aside. When cooled, chop into small pieces.

In a large pan, preferably a wok with plenty of room to work, melt the butter until foamy. Once the foam subsides add garlic and cook until golden. Add the pepper flakes,wine, broth, tomatoes, and lemon juice and bring to a boil. It should smell fragrant and delicious. Once the alcohol from the white wine has cooked down and the tomatoes have begun to soften, add the clams and let simmer. Steam the clams in the fragrant broth until each open, about 8-10 minutes.

In the meantime boil your pasta with olive oil and a generous palm full of salt. When your pasta is just about finished cooking, about 10 minutes, drain it in a large collander. Add the cooked pasta to your broth and allow to continue to cook on medium for another 2-4 minutes to finish. When you are just about ready to serve add the chopped parsley and bacon.

Serve while still hot in deep bowls with crusty bread to soak up with juices.