Seafood is a tricky thing. It can be tricky to cook (for me, anyway. I am apparently incapable of pulling a fish from a pan or oven before it is overcooked). It can be tricky to buy (I asked our butcher if he could recommend a good fish place in the neighborhood and he said that he couldn’t in good faith recommend any of them). It can be tricky to know what kind of fish is ok to eat if you’re pregnant, nursing, thinking about babies, or have friends with kids. No one wants you picking up their kids with your gross mercury hands.
That’s why I like clams. They are easy to cook. Even if you overdo them, they’ll just be a little chewy, nothing too bad. They are easy to buy. If the shell is closed and it’s not broken, it’s good. If you cook them, they’re fine to eat and you don’t have to worry about your future kids having mutant powers or anything.
So here’s a recipe for linguine with clams. If you are trying to impress people a lot, make your own linguine. If you’re trying to impress them a little, buy the nice kind of linguine. Or if it’s just a simple dinner at home, use plain old grocery store linguine. It’s a quick, easy summer dish with minimal clean-up.
Linguine with clams
serves 2-3
linguine
2 dozen clams
4 cloves garlic
3 sprigs rosemary
4-5 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
salt
pepper
pinch of red pepper flakes
1/4 cup olive oil
Scrub the clams.
Put about an inch of water into the bottom of a large pot and put it on high heat. Put the clams in and steam them until they open (this should just take a few minutes once the water gets boiling). Pull them with tongs and try to save as much of the liquor inside them as you can in a bowl.
Put a large pot of salted water on for the linguine.
While you wait for the water to boil, chop the clams, garlic, and herbs. Try to get the garlic and herbs really small.
Once the water is boiling, add the linguine.
In a pan over medium heat, add the olive oil, garlic, herbs, red pepper flakes, reserved clam liquor, and salt and pepper to taste. When the linguine is almost done, add the clam itself to this pan.
Drain the pasta, put on plates, and spoon the contents of the pan over it.
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