This is a super simple dish that almost anyone can prepare. The white wine and clam sauce gives the pasta a sweetness while the bacon gives it a bolder, saltier flavor as well. It’s a pretty light sauce and doesn’t bog you down like creamy white sauces or classic marinara sauces. With prep and cook time, it should take about an hour.
Ingredients you’ll need:
- Clams (I bought a pound. Smaller clams work better)
- Shallots, garlic, onion, parsley
- Lemon juice (from one lemon)
- Bacon (I bought the pre-cooked Canadian bacon packages)
- Butter, salt, pepper to taste
- Pasta (I used spaghetti, but you can use whatever)
- White wine ($2 bottle at Whole Foods)
I’m sorry I don’t give specific amounts of each ingredient. I like cooking by just estimating and adjusting to taste so I really don’t know how much I use of most things.
How do make it:
Before beginning, rinse the clams to wash away any sand and grit that’s still in the shells. Nobody likes biting into crunchy little particles of sand in their food.
While you boil water for the pasta and cook it, you can do all the prep work and begin cooking the wine sauce as well. Find a small to medium-sized pot/pan with a lid that you will use to boil your clams. Chop up the onion, shallot, garlic and bacon, then sautee these items in the pot until the onions are clear and you can smell that great aroma of bacon and caramelized onion hitting your nose.
At this point, add the clams, parsley and lemon juice. Fill the pot with white wine until the clams are fully submerged but no more than that. Add a pinch or two of salt and some butter to balance out the white wine. Without it, the white wine may become too strong and overpower any other taste. Turn down the heat to about a medium or medium-low and cover pot with a lid. Let sit and stir once in a while until the clams pop open by themselves. This should only take a few minutes. Once the clams are open, the clam and sauce is pretty much done.
Additional step if you like:
At this point you can pour the white wine and clam sauce over the pasta and bon appetit.
But I like to throw some pasta into a small sautee pan with some of the white wine clam sauce and really make sure the taste is evenly distributed by sauteing and mixing it together for just a minute. It’s an extra step and there will be an extra pan to wash, but I think it makes a big difference that really distributes the flavor.
And with that you’re ready to eat! Super easy to do – just throw everything into a pot and let the bad boy cook. Accompany the pasta with a nice glass of white wine and you’re ready for a treat.
eatingwithderek 