I’m making a strong argument for cooking more shellfish at home. It’s relatively easy to check quality on (if they’re wide open or stinky, they’re no bueno), they let you know when they’re finished cooking (they pop open), they release the most beautifully flavored juices that create intoxicating and steamy aromas in your nose holes and they cook in minutes.
I did a version of this dish at The Horsemen (a tiny restaurant in Brooklyn where I’ve spent most of this past decade, aka my 30’s) a couple of years back and it struck me recently that it was a pretty approachable recipe and would be easy to cook at home; sweat some vegetables in oil, add some wine and clams, steam them open throw in some herbs and spoon everything over a nice thick piece of toast with a generous plop of garlic mayo on top. Of course, I’m still sneaking a few tricks into this one. Namely some yuzu kosho, the famed Japanese condiment consisting of fermented chilies and yuzu, an incredible citrus renown for its fragrant skin and electric juice. Salty, spicy and a bit sour, it ends up being a great accompaniment to the anise flavor of the fennel and pastis. I’m also throwing a pinch of saffron into the aioli, but you can skip this step without sacrificing the integrity of the finished dish.
Soffritto (spelled many different ways) is the base of a lot of great Italian dishes. It’s essentially vegetables (in this case fennel and onions) cut fairly small and stewed until tender over low heat. This technique coaxes natural sugars out of the vegetables and also helps to thicken sauces and create a greater depth of flavor. I also gently toast some thinly cut lemon peel in olive oil before cooking the clams to brighten up the umami-rich broth.
For the dish I cooked this weekend, I used bread from Otway Bakery. If you’re in Brooklyn (or NYC), definitely check them out! They’re doing some really great baking and I figured it would be nice to give them a little shout out here. I also made the aioli from the recipe in my forthcoming cookbook, just to make sure it still works. It’s been a while since we tested all of those! Alas, all was as it should have been and I ended up having a small pot of clams to myself on beautiful March morning.
Hope you give this one a try!
Clams with Fennel Soffritto and Pastis
Serves 2
