How To Cook Clams Casino

4/14/2022

How To Cook Clams Casino

This clams casino is layered with flavors, but easy to prepare. [Photograph: Vicky Wasik]

Clams casino should be a great dish—what could be bad about clams, bacon, butter, and bread crumbs? But all too often, it’s executed all wrong. Not this time. Meet the make-ahead, no-shuck, easy-as-pie clams casino recipe that just happens to taste better than most others out there.

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the broiler on high. Arrange the clams on a heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet. Broil until they open, 5 to 7 minutes, removing each clam with tongs as it opens and transferring it to a clean rimmed baking sheet to cool. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Heat clams and water in braising pan on HIGH, covered; steam 4-5 min, just until clams begin to open. Remove from heat; discard any clams that did not open. Strain clams into a bowl, reserving liquid. Add bacon and shallot to braising pan on MED-HIGH. Cook, stirring, about 5 min, until bacon is crispy.

Why It Works

Toasting panko bread crumbs in rendered bacon fat makes a crispy topping that’s also a vehicle for flavor.
Cooking the clams first allows us to collect all their juices, then reduce them down with shallots, garlic, more bacon, and white wine. The eventual result: bacon-clam compound butter.
Pre-cooking the clams, then packing them back into their shells with the compound butter, means that this recipe, unlike most others, can be made well ahead of time and finished in the oven right before serving.

Yield:Makes 2 dozen clams, serving 6 to 8

Active time:1 hour

Total time:1 hour (plus 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours purging time)

Rated:4.4

Ingredients

For the Bacon Bread Crumbs:
6 ounces bacon, finely diced
1 cup panko bread crumbs
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the Clams:
2 ounces bacon, finely diced
3 large shallots, minced (about 1 cup)
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
Pinch red pepper flakes
1/4 cup dry white wine
24 littleneck clams, purged and scrubbed (see note)
1/2 cup minced flat-leaf parsley, divided
2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

1.
For the Bacon Bread Crumbs: In a large skillet, cook 6 ounces diced bacon over medium-high heat, stirring, until fat has rendered and bacon is browned and crisp, about 7 minutes. Lower heat if skillet gets too hot and begins to smoke.
2.
Stir in bread crumbs to evenly coat in bacon fat and cook, stirring and tossing, until bread crumbs are lightly toasted, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl to cool. Season very lightly with salt and pepper.
3.
For the Clams: In a large sauté pan, cook 2 ounces diced bacon over medium-high heat until fat has rendered and bacon is lightly browned and crisp, about 3 minutes. Stir in shallots, garlic, and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until shallots have softened, about 4 minutes.
4.
Add white wine and clams, cover, and cook, checking occasionally, until the clams begin to open. Using tongs, transfer opened clams to a large bowl to cool, continuing to cover sauté pan and checking frequently for newly opened clams. Continue until last clams have opened. (Some may open only a crack; this is fine, just pry the shell fully open.)
5.
Uncover sauté pan and cook, stirring, until wine and clam liquid have evaporated and the shallot-bacon mixture has become jammy. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
6.
In a medium bowl, stir shallot-bacon mixture and 1/4 cup parsley into softened butter until thoroughly incorporated. Season lightly with salt and pepper. (Clams can be salty, so be careful not to over-season.)
7.
Working one at a time, pry off top shell of each clam and discard, making sure no shell fragments from hinge fall into clam. Free each clam from bottom shell, then set back in bottom shell and transfer to a rimmed baking sheet.
8.
Using a butter knife, pack clam butter all around and over each clam, sealing each into the bottom shell. Sprinkle a small amount of bacon bread crumbs on top of each clam, pressing lightly to adhere. At this point, you can cover the baking sheet with plastic and refrigerate clams for up to 1 day before cooking. (You will have clam butter left over; keep it refrigerated in a sealed container for up to 1 week. It’s delicious tossed with spaghetti for an easy weeknight meal.)
9.
When ready to serve, place clams in a 450°F oven and cook until butter is melted and clams are fully heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Stir remaining 1/4 cup parsley into bread crumbs, then sprinkle a generous amount on top of each clam. Return to oven for 1 minute to warm bread crumbs, then serve right away with lemon wedges.

Special Equipment

Rimmed baking sheet

Notes

To purge clams, submerge them in a large container of salted cold water and let stand for 30 minutes. Lift out clams. If there is no sand in the bottom of the container, they’re ready to scrub and use. If there is sand, drain and rinse the container, fill with fresh salted water, and return clams for 30 more minutes. Continue this process until the water is clear and free of sand.

How To Steam Clams

Source: Read Full Article

A classic favourite from old America, clams casino is a dish that consists of small clams topped with stuffing and baked until they are golden brown. Clams casino serves as a great hors d’oeuvre, whether you’re sitting down to a family dinner, or whetting the appetites of your guests at a party.

Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 4 servings
Utensils: Baking tray, bowl, pot, knife, serving plates and spoon.

Ingredients:
Littleneck clams: 1 lbs
Salami, finely diced: 80g
Sun-dried tomatoes, finely diced: 80g
Breadcrumbs: 100g (1cup)
Butter, melted: 50g
Juice of lemon: 1 cup
White wine (for steaming): 100ml

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Instructions

Start by preparing the clams for use by washing them thoroughly. Next, you will need to open them. If you are adventurous, you may pry all your clams open with a clam knife – however, this generally tends to take a long time, and if you’re looking for a short and easy way out, simply steam the clams open. For steaming purposes, take a large pot, pour in the white wine, and slowly bring it up to a boil.
Image courtesy: samcooks.com
Next, toss your clams into a strainer, place this above the pot, and put a lid or cover on it. Allow the clams to steam, until they all open up – this should take roughly 8 minutes. You will need to monitor the heat carefully, to make sure the wine doesn’t all evaporate. If you lose a lot of it in steam, lower the flame, and add a bit of water to the pot.
Image courtesy: howtofood.net
3
While the clams are steaming away, combine the diced salami, diced sun-dried tomatoes, breadcrumbs, butter, and lemon juice in a bowl - your stuffing is now ready. Put this aside to use later.
Image courtesy: dailypundit.com
Check on your clams, and if they’ve all opened up, you know they’re done. Throw away the ones that do not open, and remove the top shells of all the clams.
Image courtesy: whatscookingamerica.net
5
Using a knife, separate the clams from their bottom shells so that they are easier to eat out of the shell later, and line them up on a baking tray. Next, use a spoon to place a small amount of the stuffing on each clam, and proceed to pack it all down.
Image courtesy: aspicyperspective.com
Slide the baking tray on to the middle rack of your oven, and broil them for around 3 to 5 minutes, or until the stuffing is browned. Take them out, and serve them with a wedge of lemon, on a bed of coarse sea salt or seaweed, to evoke a feeling of the ocean.
Image courtesy: cloudfront4.bostinno.com