Vongole is a southern Italian staple combining seafood and pasta in a wonderfully flavorful dish that comes together quickly, but tastes like it took much longer.
You can use fresh or frozen clams, your favorite white wine and orzo or another pasta you have on hand. This dish will bring a bright, summery feel to your table anytime of year, just grab a loaf of crusty bread and enjoy those fresh seafood vibes.
Let’s get started…
You will need about 3 dozen littleneck clams, some garlic, anchovies or capers, crushed red pepper, a dry white wine, some stock (seafood, vegetable or even chicken will work fine) and orzo.
You can make the seafood flavor more bold by adding seafood stock and clam juice into the sauce or tame it down a little by swapping out vegetable or chicken stock.
Preparing the clams will depend on whether you use fresh or frozen.
Frozen clams are usually pretty clean, so you can steam them directly from the freezer. No need to thaw or go through the cleaning process.
If you are using fresh clams, place them into a large bowl of cool salty water to soak for about an hour. This will help purge the salt from inside their shells. Towards the end of their soak, use a soft brush to scrub the outside of their shells and rinse them before transferring them into a clean bowl.
Begin by cooking 8 ounces of dried orzo according to manufacturers directions.
While the orzo is cooking, placing a large pot or dutch oven over medium heat. Add a quarter cup of olive oil, 5 large cloves of finely minced garlic and 4 anchovy fillets or a tablespoon of capers, depending on what you have on hand or what you prefer. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until the garlic is fragrant and the anchovies or capers are broken down a good bit.
Next, add about a half teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, a cup of dry white wine and your clams.
Cover the pot and steam the clams for about 8 minutes. Eight minutes is usually the perfect time to pop the good clams open.
At the 8 minute mark, start carefully transferring the opened clams onto a plate and discard any clams that didn’t open.
Now that the clams are ready to go, reduce the heat to medium low and add 2 tablespoons of butter, 8 ounces of clam juice or stock (depending on how bold you want the clam flavor to be) and the cooked and drained orzo.
Allow the orzo to rewarm in the sauce, while you remove most of the clams from their shells. I like to leave just a few in the shell to garnish each bowl with, but this is totally optional.
If you are a clam lover then you are going to love this salty seafood dish. The orzo does a wonderful job of soaking up that buttery clam sauce and when you squeeze some fresh lemon over the bowl, the freshly steamed clams are absolutely delicious.
If you happen to have access to fresh clams, this is a wonderful recipe to celebrate their beautiful, briny flavor.
Vongole has been a staple in southern Italy for generations and once you make it for yourself, you will know why…
Buon appetito!
Orzo alle Vongole
Ingredients
- 3 dozen littleneck clams, fresh or frozen
- 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- 5 large garlic cloves, finely minced
- 4 anchovy filets or a tablespoon of capers
- 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 cup of dry white wine (such as Sauvignon Blanc)
- 3 cups of stock (seafood, vegetable or chicken)
- 8 ounces of dried orzo
- 8 ounces of clam juice (or additional stock)
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- lemon wedges (garnish)
- fresh parsley, finely chopped (garnish)
Instructions
- If using fresh clams, soak them in cool salt water for an hour and then scrub and rinse them. Place them in a clean bowl and set aside until you are ready to steam them (if using frozen clams, steam them frozen, no need to thaw)
- Bring 3 cups of stock to a simmer, add 8 ounces of orzo, cover and cook until tender (10-12 minutes)
- Place a large pot over medium heat, add 1/4 cup of extra virgin olive oil, 5 large finely minced garlic cloves and 4 anchovy fillets or a tablespoon of capers
- Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring frequently
- As soon as the garlic is fragrant and the anchovies or capers are broken down, add 1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper flakes, a cup of white wine and the clams
- Cover the pot and steam the clams until they open
- As the clams open, transfer them into a bowl and keep the bowl covered with a towel to trap the heat inside (discard any clams that haven’t opened after about 8 minutes)
- Once all of the clams have been transferred out of the pot, reduce the heat to medium low and add 8 ounces of clam juice, 2 tablespoons of butter and the cooked orzo
- Remove most of the clams from their shells and add them into the pot (reserve some in the shell for garnishing)
- Garnish with fresh parsley and lemon wedges
- Serve with crusty bread
Reader Interactions