We’ve made this dish many times over the years but just recently landed on the perfect recipe. It sounds easy, right? But it takes just the right balance of simple ingredients plus some good clams.
I usually buy our littleneck clams at our local grocery store (Wegmans) where they come in 50 count bags. Don’t worry if you’re off by a few. The key is ensuring you have a large skillet or braiser that fits them in one layer and that you can cover. I recently added a 5-quart Le Creuset braiser to my cooking collection. It’s my new favorite pan. It has a wide cooking surface plus higher sides than most skillets. It’s perfect for this dish.
You want to add a little heat to these clams. I was looking for something fun for Ed’s Christmas stocking and came across Flatiron Pepper Company (likely from a social media ad). I had never thought to look beyond the red pepper flakes sitting in my spice cabinet. Flatiron Pepper Company’s tagline is “you’ll never go back to generic red pepper flakes” – they were right as we are hooked! I got three varieties of varying heat – Hatch Valley Green (mildest), Dark and Stormy (medium) and Four Pepper Blend (hot – we haven’t opened this one yet!). The Scoville Heat Scale puts generic red pepper flakes between 30,000 to 50,000 Scoville units – right about where the Hatch Valley Green land.
For this recipe I used Dark and Stormy (50,000 to 70,000 Scoville units) which consists of chipotle, ancho and habanero peppers. The chipotle peppers add just the right amount of smokiness to this dish. While I’d recommend adding Flatiron Pepper Company’s pepper flakes to your spice cabinet, you can also use a combination of red pepper flakes and chipotle powder.
In the past I may have skipped the butter – don’t make that mistake. The butter adds a creaminess to the dish and ties everything together.
Be sure to serve this with some good bread so you can sop up the great sauce.
| Linguine with Clams | Print |
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 shallots, finely chopped
- 6 garlic cloves, finely minced
- ¾ teaspoon red pepper flakes (or to taste) (see Notes)
- ¼ teaspoon chipotle powder (or to taste) (see Notes)
- 1 cup dry white wine
- 50 littleneck clams, rinsed well (count is approximate)
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
- Juice and zest of one lemon
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 8 ounces linguine or long pasta (regular or gluten-free) (see Notes)
- 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- Freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Baguette for serving
- Boil water for pasta.
- In a large skillet or braiser (that you can cover) heat extra virgin olive oil over medium heat. Add shallots and stir until soft, about 2 to 3 minutes.
- Add garlic, red pepper flakes, chipotle powder, ½ teaspoons salt and a few grinds of black pepper. Stir for one minute.
- Add clams in a single layer.
- Pour wine over clam mixture.
- Cover pan and steam until the clams begin to open, 8 to 10 minutes. You may need to increase the heat to medium-high for a few minutes, then bring it back to medium.
- Cook pasta (according to package) while clams are cooking.
- When clams have opened, remove pan from heat. Stir in butter, lemon juice and lemon zest. Divide pasta between bowls and top with clam mixture.
- Garnish with fresh parsley and freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese.
* If you’re using dried pasta, add the pasta to the pot of boiling water just as you add the clams to the pan. They take about the same time to cook. If you’re using fresh pasta, add to water a few minutes before the clams are done.
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