Beach Blanket Clambake Recipes

KITCHEN CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Slice the kielbasa diagonally into 1-inch thick slices. Set aside. Saute the onions and leeks in the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed 16 to 20 quart stockpot over medium heat for 15 minutes, until the onions start to brown.
• Layer the ingredients on top of the onions in the stockpot in this order: first the potatoes, salt, and pepper; then the kielbasa, little neck clams, steamer clams, mussels, shrimp, and lobsters. Pour in the white wine. Cover the pot tightly and cook over medium-high heat until steam just begins to escape from the lid, about 15 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and cook another 15 minutes. The clambake should be done. Test to be sure the potatoes are tender, the lobsters are cooked, and the clams and mussels are open. Remove the lobsters to a wooden board, cut them up, and crack the claws. With large slotted spoons, remove the seafood, potatoes, and sausages to a large bowl and top with the lobsters. Season the broth in the pot to taste, and ladle over the seafood, being very careful to avoid any sand in the bottom.

BEACH BLANKET CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Dig a shallow pit in the sand and line with large stones. Gather driftwood from the beach and pile on top of the coals. Create a bonfire by burning the wood for 1 to 2 hours until the rocks are red hot. Rack off the ashes. Set 1 cinder block on each corner of the pit to form the base. Lay a barbecue grate (or a piece of steel) on top to make a table. Gather seaweed from the beach and place a thick layer on the metal.
• Place the potatoes and corn on the rack, then cover with a thin layer of seaweed. Mound the lobster tails, claws and kielbasa evenly on top, then cover with another thin layer of seaweed. Set the clams and flounder on top and cover with another layer of seaweed. Finally, set the oysters on top, then cover with a thick layer of seaweed. The juice from the seafood will drip down and flavor the corn and potatoes. Cover the entire bake with burlap or a tarp soaked in seawater. The tarp traps in the seaweed steam and bakes the food. Keep the tarp wet by pouring seawater over the top if needed. Cook until the clams open and the lobster is bright red, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

GRILLED CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Toss the basil, dill and chives in a small bowl. Whisk the mayonnaise with half the serrano, the lemon zest, lemon juice, 1 grated garlic clove, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 2 tablespoons water in a medium bowl. Stir in 2/3 cup of the herbs (set aside the rest for topping). Cover and refrigerate.
• Using kitchen shears, cut along the outer curve of the shrimp shells from the head end to 1/4 inch from the tail. Remove the top vein and rinse the shrimp under cold water (leave the shrimp in their shells). Transfer to a large bowl and add 6 cups cold water, 3 tablespoons salt and the sugar; stir. Cover and refrigerate 1 hour. Put the clams in a separate bowl, add enough cold water to cover and stir in 1/4 cup salt; cover and refrigerate 1 hour.
• Preheat a grill to medium high. Toss the potatoes with 1/4 cup olive oil, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 teaspoon pepper in a medium bowl. Place the potatoes in a single layer in the center of a large sheet of heavy-duty foil. Wrap and seal into a packet, then wrap in another piece of foil to cover the seam side. Grill, flipping, until the potatoes are charred and tender, about 20 minutes per side. Keep wrapped.
• Meanwhile, set aside a 4-inch piece of sausage for the clams. Grill the remaining sausage until charred, 4 to 6 minutes per side. Let cool, then cut into 3-inch pieces; cover to keep warm. Grill the corn, turning, until charred, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool, then cut each ear in half crosswise. Drain the shrimp and grill in batches until lightly charred, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes per side. Toss the corn and shrimp with the melted butter and the remaining grated garlic clove. Cover and set aside.
• Drain and rinse the clams. Slice the reserved sausage 1/4 inch thick. Heat the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet on the grill. Add the sliced sausage and cook, tossing, until just starting to brown, about 5 minutes. Add the fennel, shallots and the remaining serrano and cook, stirring, until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the 4 sliced garlic cloves and the tomato paste and cook until the tomato paste turns brick red, about 1 minute. Add the wine and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the clams, cover and cook until all the clams have opened, 5 to 10 minutes. (Discard any unopened clams.)
• Combine the corn, shrimp, grilled sausage and potatoes on a large platter. Leave the clams in the skillet. Serve with lemon wedges, the reserved herbs and the herbed mayonnaise.

BACKYARD CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Make sure the clams and mussels are all alive. The shells should be tightly closed. If they're open, they should close when you tap them. If any remain open, discard.
• Build a fire in your covered grill and soak a couple handfuls of wood chips in water. Put the potatoes and onions in cold, salted water, bring to a boil, and cook for 15 minutes, till potatoes have softened. Drain. Pull the husks back from the corn but leave them attached. Pull off all the silks, then pull the husks back into place and tie around the corn with a strip of husk.
• Drop the lobsters in boiling water for about 3 minutes till they're bright red. Remove from water.
• When the coals have burned down to red-hot, spread the wet wood chips across them. Lay the lobsters close together on the grill rack, spread the shellfish around them, and spread the vegetables over the top, ending with the asparagus lying in a single layer at the top. Put the lid on the grill and open the vents. Cook for about a half hour, until the mussels and clams have opened. Serve with bowls of melted butter.

CLAM BAKE ON THE BEACH

Steps:

• Dig a shallow pit in the sand and line it with large stones. Pile wood on top of the coals. Burn the wood for 1 to 2 hours until the rocks are red hot; rake off the ashes. Set 1 cinder block on each corner of the pit to form the base; lay a barbecue grate on top to make a table.
• While the stones are heating prepare the herb butter: Mix the butter with the cheese and herbs; season it with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
• Place a thick layer of seaweed on the grate. Place a layer of potatoes on the rack and cover them with a thin layer of seaweed. Put the corn on next and then another thin layer of seaweed. Now put on the kielbasa and top it with a thin layer of seaweed. Next mound the clams on top and cover with a thick layer of seaweed. Cover the entire bake with burlap or a tarp soaked in sea water. Keep the tarp wet by pouring sea water over the top if needed. Cook until the clams open and the potatoes are tender, about 1 hour.
• Pull the husks back from the corn and remove the silk. Brush generously with the herb butter and garnish with grated Parmesan.

CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Preheat your grill until it's fairly hot. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Parboil the lobsters for just 3 minutes and then remove. To start the outdoor clambake, spread a thick layer of seaweed directly on the hot grill rack. The potatoes and corn go down first since they will take the longest to cook. Arrange the potatoes and corn on the seaweed in a single layer, then cover them with more seaweed. Put the lobsters on top, along with the kielbasa; cover with more seaweed. Spread the clams on top and cover with another layer of seaweed. Finally, set the oysters on the top, and blanket them with a thick layer of seaweed. As the seafood cooks, the juices will drip down and flavor the corn and potatoes. Cover the entire bake with a burlap bag that has been soaked in water; it traps in the seaweed steam and bakes the food. Cover the grill. Cook until the clams open and the lobsters are bright red, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Keep a bucket of water handy and check the burlap periodically to make sure it stays wet. Serve with lemon wedges and melted butter.

ULTIMATE CLAMBAKE

Steps:

• Before you leave the house, put the potatoes and a few large pinches of salt in a very large pot and add water to cover; bring to a boil and cook until they are about half done, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and transfer to a container to take with you to beach.
• Take all the ingredients to the beach, along with a shovel, a tarp, a few garbage bags, a bucket, some cheesecloth, a box of matches, lots of newspaper, firewood and kindling. Find a spot above the high-water mark and dig a 4-by-2-by-2-foot hole. Build a fire in the hole with newspaper, kindling and some wood. (Keep everything else upwind of the fire.) Feed the fire quickly and steadily with more kindling and wood.
• Find about 30 rocks, each 6 by 4 inches or bigger. Start adding the rocks to the fire, a few at a time, slowly over the course of about an hour, while continuing to feed the fire with wood. While the rocks are heating, gather enough seaweed to half-fill 2 or 3 garbage bags.
• When the rocks are white hot (this should take about an hour), stop adding wood but let the fire continue to burn. Meanwhile, make 8 to 12 cheesecloth packages, each containing a few of the clams, mussels and potatoes. Peel back the husks of the corn but don't remove them; remove as much of the silk as you can, then fold the husks back into place.
• Remove any remaining wood from the fire with a shovel; a bed of coals topped by a layer of white-hot rocks should remain. Immediately dump the seaweed over the rocks, creating a layer at least 2 to 3 inches thick; no rocks should remain exposed or you will burn the food (and maybe the tarp). Sprinkle the seaweed with about a gallon of seawater. Put the cheesecloth packages, corn and lobsters in a single layer on top of the seaweed. Cover the food in an additional layer of seaweed and cover the entire pit with a tarp, weighing the edges of the tarp down with rocks.
• Cook undisturbed for 30 to 40 minutes. Put the butter in a heatproof saucepan. When the seafood is ready, peel back the tarp and put the pan of butter on the fire until it melts. Remove the tarp entirely, transfer the food to serving platters and serve everything with the melted butter, lemon wedges and more salt.