Spaghetti alle Vongole

Clams opened in the pan, their liquor emulsified with oil and pasta water.

Shellfish. Not vegetarian — contains shellfish.

Ingredients

• 1.2 kg small clams in shell
• 400 g spaghetti
• 4 garlic cloves, sliced
• 1 dried chilli
• 100 ml dry white wine
• a large bunch of parsley
• 7 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method

1. PURGE THE CLAMS 2 HOURS in cold water as salty as the sea, in the dark, changing it twice. They spit out their grit, and skipping this puts sand in every mouthful with no way to get it out later.
2. Throw away any that stay open when tapped.
3. Warm the oil with the garlic and chilli, then add the clams and the wine and cover. They open in 3 to 4 minutes.
4. LIFT EACH ONE OUT AS IT OPENS rather than waiting for the last. Thirty seconds too long and a clam is rubber, and they do not open together.
5. STRAIN THE PAN LIQUOR THROUGH MUSLIN and return it. Whatever grit survived the purge is in it.
6. Cook the spaghetti to two minutes short and finish it in the liquor with a ladle of pasta water, tossing hard so the oil and starch emulsify into something that clings.
7. Return the clams, add the parsley, and serve. NO CHEESE: it smothers the clam and the liquor, which is all the dish is.

Our own recipe. This one was written for this site rather than taken from anywhere, so there is no source to point you at. The quantities and the order of the steps are choices, not the only way to do it.

Filed under Italy · All recipes