Weeknight Pasta With Clam Sauce Recipes

SPAGHETTI WITH CLAMS

Steps:

• In a large pot, bring to a boil 6 quarts of salted water. Add pasta, stirring constantly in the beginning to prevent it from sticking together. Cook until al dente, about 8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large saute pan. When almost smoking, add shallots and garlic and saute until soft and translucent, about 3 to 4 minutes, being careful not to burn the garlic. Add the clams and wine. Cover and simmer for 6 to 8 minutes or until most clams have opened.
• Add 2 tablespoons chopped parsley. Whisk in butter to thicken sauce slightly.
• Drain pasta in a colander. Do not rinse pasta with water - this will remove the pasta's natural starches. Place pasta into the clam saute pan and mix thoroughly. Check seasoning.
• Pour pasta into large serving bowl. Zest lemon over the dish, being carefull not to zest the white part of the lemon, which is bitter. Garnish with remaining parsley. Serve immediately.

SPAGHETTI WITH CANNED CLAMS

Steps:

• Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the breadcrumbs, granulated garlic and a pinch of salt and pepper. Toast the breadcrumbs, stirring occasionally, until lightly golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Set aside.
• Fill a large pot with water. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and season generously with salt. Add the spaghetti and cook to al dente, 6 to 8 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large saute pan or skillet, add the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil along with the garlic and red pepper flakes. Turn the heat on low and let cook until fragrant, for a few minutes. Stir in the wine and cook another 1 to 2 minutes. Add the clams, then turn up the heat to medium and bring to a simmer. Season with salt and pepper. Use tongs to take the pasta out of the water directly into the pan (this works best when the pasta is a couple minutes away from being done; you want it really al dente so it finishes cooking in the sauce). Use tongs to toss. If dry, add a little pasta water. Add the parsley. Toss until coated in the sauce and the pasta is tender. Serve with the toasted breadcrumbs sprinkled on top.

SAUCY CLAM PASTA

Steps:

• In a large pot, cook spaghetti in salted water. Let it cook until just under al dente. Approximately 2 minutes short of the package directions. Reserve 1 cup of pasta water before draining pasta. Once the pasta has been drained, coat in two tablespoons of olive oil to help prevent clumping.
• Meanwhile, in a small dutch oven, melt together butter and olive oil over medium-low heat. Add garlic, dried herbs, and chili flakes. Cook for about a minute or until the garlic is fragrant. Be careful not to burn.
• Add in white wine, and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer, and reduce by half, about five minutes.
• After, add in vegetable stock and pasta water. Bring to a boil, again, then add the clams. Lower the heat to a simmer, and put the lid on the dutch oven. Let the clams cook until they open, about 10 minutes.
• Once the clams have opened up, remove from the sauce, placing them onto a separate plate. Throw away any clams that have remained closed.
• Add lemon zest, juice, parsley, spaghetti, and heavy cream (if using), and a large helping of shaved parmesan and freshly cracked black pepper. Let simmer until the pasta is al dente. Season with salt if needed.
• Plate the spaghetti and clams, then ladle the sauce over it. Serve with crusty bread.

LINGUINI WITH CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and the linguini and cook to an extra chewy al dente, 7 minutes or so. The linguini will continue to cook in sauce, later. To a large skillet heated over medium heat, add oil, anchovies, garlic, thyme and red pepper flakes. Cook together until anchovies melt into oil and break up completely. Add wine to the pan and give the pan a shake. Add clams and their juice. Drain pasta and add it to the clam sauce. Toss and coat the pasta in sauce with clams until the pasta absorbs the flavor and juices, 2 to 3 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt, add parsley and serve.

WEEKNIGHT PASTA WITH CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions; drain.
• While pasta cooks, drain the clams and reserve 3/4C of the clam liquid.
• Melt butter over medium heat in skillet.
• Add garlic to butter and sautee 1-2 minutes- do not brown.
• Add cream and clam liquid.
• Bring to a boil, stirring often.
• Reduce heat to medium low and simmer for 10-15 minutes.
• Add the clams and parsely till clams are heated.
• Turn off heat and add Monterey Jack cheese and pasta and toss well.
• Serve hot and season with parmesan and fresh ground pepper if desired.

MARK BITTMAN'S PASTA WITH CLAMS

Steps:

• Steam the clams in a covered pot (a glass top is very nice, voyeuristically speaking). You don't need any liquid other than what the clams will release. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it.
• After the clams open - it could take as little as 10 minutes - uncover and cool. Take the meat out and strain and reserve the liquid; make sure to leave any sand behind. Chop the clams if they're big.
• Cook the pasta in the boiling salted water. Put 1/4 cup olive oil in a deep skillet over medium heat. When the oil is warm, add the red pepper flakes and garlic and cook for about 30 seconds. Add the clams and continue to cook, stirring, for about a minute. Add about 1/2 cup of the reserved clam liquid.
• Drain the pasta when it's nearly done and stir it into the clams. Cook, stirring, until the pasta is tender and the mixture is saucy. Add more clam-cooking liquid (or hot water or white wine), if necessary. Taste and adjust seasoning, adding a little more oil if you like. Garnish, and serve.

LINGUINE WITH CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and cook according to package instructions until 2 minutes short of al dente (it will finish cooking in the sauce). Reserve 1/2 cup pasta water, then drain pasta.
• While the pasta cooks, make your sauce: Heat the oil in a deep-sided 12-inch skillet over medium. Add the garlic, red-pepper flakes and oregano and cook until the garlic is pale golden, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the vermouth and simmer until reduced by half, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the clams with their juices and cook until just warmed through, 1 to 2 minutes more. Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed.
• Add the cooked pasta directly to the skillet along with the butter and lemon zest and toss until the butter has melted and the pasta is glossy with sauce. If needed, add 1/4 cup reserved pasta water. Stir in half the parsley.
• Serve pasta topped with a drizzle of olive oil, if desired, and the remaining parsley. Serve lemon wedges alongside if you like.

ONE-POT CLAM SPAGHETTI

Steps:

• Place the spaghetti, clams with their juices, olive oil, oregano leaves, crushed red pepper, garlic, onion and a good pinch of salt in a large high-sided skillet. Add 4 1/2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Cook, stirring and turning the pasta frequently with tongs, until the spaghetti is al dente and most of the liquid has evaporated and thickened, 9 to 10 minutes.
• Remove the pan from the heat and fold in the spinach, Parmesan and butter. Toss to make sure everything is well coated and combined. Season to taste with black pepper and more salt if needed. Serve, garnished with more oregano leaves and crushed red pepper flakes.

PASTA WITH CLAMS, WHITE WINE AND SPICY ITALIAN SAUSAGE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Place the clams in a large bowl and cover with cool tap water. Salt the water well and let the clams sit for 20 minutes to an hour to purge them of sand and grit. Drain and scrub the shells well under cold running water.
• Set a large roasting pan across two burners. Heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onions and garlic and saute for 2 to 3 minutes, or until softened. Add the chile, fennel and sausage, and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally to break up the sausage.
• Once the sausage is nicely browned, deglaze the pan with the white wine. Add the clams and stir everything together until well combined. Arrange the tomatoes on top, add the thyme, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Transfer the pan to the oven and cook until the clams pop open and the cherry tomatoes are roasted and juicy, 10 to 12 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large pot of boiling, salted water, cook the linguine until al dente. When the clams are done, return the roasting pan to the stovetop over high heat. Simmer to reduce excess liquid and to open any clams that are still closed (stirring vigorously with a wooden spoon also helps).
• Taste sauce and season with salt as needed.
• Drain the pasta and transfer it directly into the roasting pan. Add the butter, lemon zest and juice, and the parsley. With tongs, toss everything together to coat the pasta in the sauce.
• Serve topped with plenty of grated pecorino if using.

SPAGHETTI WITH RED CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Drain the clams reserving 1/2 cup of their juice and set aside. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and cook until softened, but not browned, about 3 minutes. Add the pepper flakes and cook for 30 seconds more. Add the reserved clam juice and tomatoes, increase the heat and bring to a boil. Cover, and lower the heat to maintain a gentle simmer, cook for 15 minutes. Set aside. Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat, salt generously. Cook the pasta until al dente, tender yet still slightly firm. During the last 5 minutes of cooking the pasta stir the clams, basil, and parsley into the sauce. Bring to a simmer and season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain the pasta and add to the sauce and toss to combine evenly. Divide among warmed bowls and serve.

LINGUINE AND CLAMS WITH FRESH RED SAUCE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Cook the pasta according to package directions until 3 minutes shy of al dente. (It will finish cooking in the sauce; pasta should be toothsome but not crunchy.) Reserve 1 cup of the pasta cooking water, then drain pasta.
• Meanwhile, once pasta is cooking, in a large skillet, heat oil over medium. Add tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and start to pop, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic until fragrant, about 1 minute.
• Add reserved clam juice (you should have about 1 cup) and stir to scrape up any browned bits on the bottom of the skillet. Add sauce, pasta, 1/2 cup of the pasta water and the butter back to the large pot, and cook, stirring vigorously, until sauce is thickened and pasta is al dente, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1/4 cup more pasta water if a thinner sauce is desired.
• Turn off the heat and stir in the clams, cheese and parsley. Season with salt and pepper.
• Divide pasta among bowls and garnish with cheese, parsley, black pepper and red-pepper flakes, if using.

CHEF JOHN'S SPAGHETTI WITH RED CLAM SAUCE

Steps:

• Pour olive oil into cold skillet. Add garlic, capers, anchovy paste, and red pepper flakes. Place over medium heat and cook and stir until the oil is infused with the flavors of the mixture, about 5 minutes, taking care not to brown the garlic. Add tomato sauce and rinse jar with 1/4 cup water; add water to skillet. Pour in wine and juice from clams, reserving the clams. Bring to a simmer until slightly reduced and thickened, 7 to 9 minutes.
• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Cook spaghetti in the boiling water, stirring occasionally until almost al dente, or about 1 minute less than directed on package. Drain. Return pasta to the pot off heat.
• Stir clams into the sauce. Pour sauce over pasta. Stir; cover the pot to allow it to finish cooking off heat and to allow the pasta will absorb some of the sauce, about 3 minutes. Stir in Parmesan cheese. Top with chopped fresh basil and/or parsley.

SPAGHETTI WITH CLAMS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, soak clams in cold water.
• Add spaghetti to boiling water, and cook until slightly underdone; pasta will finish cooking in sauce. Meanwhile, place a large saucepan over medium-low heat, and add olive oil, garlic and chili pepper. Sauté gently, reducing heat if necessary so garlic does not brown.
• Add vermouth and clams, and cover. Clams should open in about 2 minutes. (If pasta is ready first, drain it and toss with a small amount of olive oil.) Add hot drained pasta, cover, and shake pot gently. Allow to simmer for another 1 or 2 minutes until it is done to taste.
• Discard any clams that have not opened. Add half the parsley, and shake pan to distribute evenly. Transfer to a plate or bowl, and sprinkle with remaining parsley.