Steamed Clams

Try to buy farmed clams as much as possible, generally sold under various names: cockles, arc shells, Manila clam, short necked clam, hard clam, and grooved carpet shell clam. Avoid arctic surf clams because of major habitat and by-catch concerns. Read more about clam sustainability here.

• 4 lbs live littleneck clams
• 3 shallots (chopped)
• 2 cloves garlic
• ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
• ½ stick butter
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
• 1 cup dry white wine
• ½ cup dry vermouth
• French bread

Clean clams well discarding any opened ones (if they are open tap them, if they don’t close discard them). The most reliable way to get the clams free of sand is to soak them in cold salted water for a few hours and then rinse them well with fresh water; this will cause them to purge all of the sand out.

In a large pot over medium heat, add the butter, garlic, shallot and red pepper (if you do not use red pepper, add 1 tsp fresh ground black pepper) and sauté until tender (2 min.).

Add wine and vermouth (use 1 ½ cups wine if you don’t have any vermouth) and bring to a rapid boil. Add the clams and cover. Steam clams for 6-9 min. stirring occasionally.

Remove and DO NOT EAT any clams that have not opened. Add the chopped parsley and serve in soup bowls. The bread is for dipping in the sauce, a pleasure not worth missing.

Serves four.