You all know that NYC was not my favorite place. When asked, I always said that my favorite thing about New York City was how close it was to other great places. Every summer, in an attempt to escape the NYC heat, I’d go to New England and explore (and eat copious amounts of seafood). It was there that I fell for the miracle that is the stuffed clam. Is it super clammy? No. It’s really like a thanksgiving stuffing with a bit more oomph, but stuffed inside a clam.
You can play around with the recipe. You could add more breadcrumbs, different sausage, switch for bacon, do mushrooms instead of meat - the shell's the limit!
Ingredients:
8 quahog or chowder clams [I couldn’t find big clams, only littleneck, so I did 24]
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 ounces chopped Spanish chorizo sausage [you could also use kielbasa/smoked sausage]
1/2 c. minced onions
1/4 c. minced celery
1/4 c. minced green peppers
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. fresh bread crumbs made from Hawaiian buns
3 TB chopped fresh parsley
1/4 c. reserved steaming liquid
1/2 c. grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
Chopped parsley, for garnish
Cajun/creole seasoning (I used Emeril’s Essence)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, and bring a pot of salted water to a boil.
Add the clams to the boiling water, cover, and cook for about 6 to 8 minutes or until the shells open. Discard any shells that do not open. Remove the clams from the pot and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan. When the clams are cool enough to handle, gently pry the shells apart enough to remove the clam, leaving the hinge attached. Loosen the muscle in the lower shell and remove the clam from the shell. Save the 6 nicest shells and place the shells on a parchment-lined baking sheet and set aside. Finely chop the clam meat and set aside.
Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add the chorizo and cook until rendered, about 2 minutes. Add the onions, celery and peppers. Season lightly with Essence. Cook for 2 more minutes. Stir in the remaining garlic, the breadcrumbs, and reserved clam meat and remove from the heat. Stir in the reserved cooking liquid and 2 tablespoons of the parsley. Season with Essence and cool slightly.
Pack the stuffing mixture into one side of each shell. Using your hands, pat the stuffing firmly into each clam shell. Top each evenly with the cheese and the remaining parsley [I just mixed them into the cooled filling]. Close the shells as tightly as possible and wrap with aluminum foil or tie the shell tightly with butchers twine.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Unwrap the clams and place on a serving platter. Garnish with additional parsley and Essence and serve hot.
I made these for my mom's 70th birthday celebration alongside a shrimp boil and cheddar/garlic biscuits. Amazing!
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