Linguine / Linguini with clam sauce
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Clams are called vongole in Italian and so this dish is sometimes called Pasta Vongole. And you will find this pasta in practically all Italian restaurants.
Traditionally, this dish is most often served with spaghetti as Spaghetti Volgole, or with linguine / linguini.
(Linguini is said to be a "misspelling" of linguine but both spellings have become generally accepted, with linguini being more commonly used.)
There are two main versions of Linguini with clam sauce - one with a red tomato-based sauce and the other with a white sauce that is basically the liquid from cooked clams plus wine.
That other pasta recipe is one of the very few with a sauce that is neither tomato, oil or cheese-based. Click here for the white Linguini with clam sauce recipe.
For now, let's enjoy the tomato-based red clam sauce.
Note: For this version of Linguini with clams, pictured below, I've used a species of large clams, each about 2-inches across. I fine these clams more meaty and satisfying to eat, compared with regular clams with tiny morsels of meat.
Some cooks claim, however, that the small clams are more delicious. I don't know. If they are delicious but cannot be felt, what's the point?
Tomato-based linguini with clam sauce
- 1kg fresh clams, cleaned and scrubbed / or 400g ready-prepared clams
- juice of half a lemon
- 4 tbsp olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, crushed
- 2 cans (800g) chopped tomatoes
- ground black pepper, to taste
- 300g dried linguini cooked according to instructions
- chopped parsley for garnish
Method:
- Clean the clams by soaking them in fresh water for 20 minutes. During this time, the clams will expel their salt as well as sand. Lift up the clams -- do not pour them out as you would then pour the sand with it -- and place in another container. Using a brush, scrub to clean them further.
- Place the clams in a large saucepan, together with the lemon juice. Cover and cook over medium heat, shaking now and then, until most clams are open. This takes about 4 to 5 minutes, depending on the strength of your fire. Do not over-cook the claim. Look out for clams that have not opened and discard those.
- Heat the oil in a large saucepan, add crushed garlic and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes. You may cook till the garlic browns very slightly, but do not allow them to burn.
- Add the chopped tomatoes and stir well. Bring to the boil, cover, reduce the heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
- Add the clams to the sauce and season with black pepper. Stir and cook for about one minute, until clams are heated.
Notes about clams:
Clams are sometimes sold ready-shelled and ready-cooked, either frozen, chilled or in cans, soaked in brine. Unless you know of a good brand, try to avoid these as ready-prepared clams tend to be tasteless and rubbery. They won't make a very satisfying Linguini with clam sauce!
When buying fresh clams to make linguini with clam sauce, avoid those that are permanently open. Some may be open but will shut tightly once "disturbed". Those that remain open - even when you prod them - are already dead, smelly and should not be eaten. Also, avoid clams with broken shells.
There are many - apparently over 2,000 - different types of clams. The types used in pasta dishes are generally small, with smooth shells that are about 2cm to 4cm across. Choose bigger clams if possible, as the flesh shrinks when cooked and small clams will become very small! But some cooks say the small clams taste better.
Clams come from sandy beaches and have white flesh. Even among these, some clams are rounder and have thicker shells, while others are more oval in shape and have thinner shells. They generally taste similar.
Clams vs cockles
I have seen, however, one Linguini with clam sauce recipe that talked about cockles. Perhaps the words clams and cockles mean the same thing in some cultures. In Asia, however, cockles refer to a shellfish with ridged (as opposed to smooth) shells. These cockles live usually in black mud and have red, "bloody" flesh.
This is a totally different shellfish, which the Chinese in Southeast Asia use in a curry noodle dish called laksa, as well as fried rice noodles. Do not use it for your Linguini with clam sauce recipe. The taste will be very different.
This said, however, you may vary this recipe using mussels, scallops or other shellfish -- except that it will no longer be a Pasta Vongole (since "vongole" means clams).
Click here for another Linguini with clam sauce recipe, using white clam sauce prepared with white wine.
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