Gretchen’s table: Linguine with clam sauce is a sweet and garlicky dish
Linguine with clam sauce is one of those classic Italian dishes that every home chef should have in regular rotation. Not only is it super easy to make with fairly simple ingredients, but it’s incredibly light and flavorful for a pasta dish. And it’s not fishy at all, like you might suspect, but sweet and garlicky, with plenty of chopped parsley adding a fresh, earthy touch.
My husband had been clamoring for me to make it for weeks, after seeing a video of an Italian chef whipping it up on Instagram. It’s the one seafood he can safely eat, and after watching him pull up and repair a section of kitchen floor that had been ruined by a leaky dishwasher, I had to agree he deserved the treat of homemade pasta with his choice of topping.
All in all, it took about 10 minutes, if you don’t count the time spent scrubbing the clams with a brush under cold water or the 15 minutes or so it took to run fresh pasta dough through my noodle roller.
You can find live hardshell littleneck clams — a super sweet and tender variety — in many larger groceries and also in seafood markets . That can of chopped canned clams tucked on a shelf, forgotten, in your pantry makes a fine substitute for fresh in a pinch (not to mention cheaper), and will eliminate the worry of clam shells stinking up your garbage until trash day.
I had the time on a lazy Sunday for homemade linguine, but any favorite boxed spaghetti or other long pasta is fine. Cook the pasta while you make the sauce and dinner is ready in a flash.
Linguine with Clam Sauce
PG tested
1/2 cup olive oil
5 cloves garlic, minced
Pinch red pepper flakes
1/2 cup dry white wine
Splash of fresh orange juice
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley, plus more for garnish
2 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed, rinsed and drained
1 pound fresh or boxed linguine, or any long pasta you prefer
Pour the olive oil into a large saucepan set over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic and stir for a minute or two, until it is sizzling and fragrant (but be careful not to burn it). Sprinkle in red pepper flakes, then add wine and a good splash or two of orange juice, and bring to a boil.
Add parsley, then dump in the clams and gently shake the pan so they spread out evenly across the bottom. Give it a gentle stir, then place lid on top, and adjust the heat so the liquid stays at an even simmer.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil for the pasta. Add pasta and cook until it is al dente, usually between 1-5 minutes depending on the thickness of your pasta if it is fresh, and 10 minutes if it is dried.
Cook clams just until the shells open, about 5 minutes; larger shells might take a minute or two longer. Discard any clams that don’t open, because that means it’s dead.
If desired, remove half of the clams to a bowl, remove the meat from the shell and finely chop with a sharp knife. You also can serve the clams right from the pan onto the pasta.
When pasta is cooked, remove from the pan with a slotted spoon or tongs into a large bowl. Pour clams and sauce on top, and add chopped clam meat, if using. Toss gently to combine until all the strands are nicely coated with sauce, garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately.
Alternatively, you can drop the pasta right into the saucepan and toss well to combine.
Serves 4.
— Gretchen McKay, Post-Gazette
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