Riso con le Vongole -- Rice with Clams
- Here's a simple recipe from Genova, in Liguria. To feed 6-8 you'll need:
- 4 1/2 pounds (2 k) live clams, washed and purged (see instructions)
- 3 1/2 cups (700 g) rice
- Olive oil
- Minced parsley (figure about 1/4 cup)
- An onion, minced
- Tomato paste
- Salt & pepper to taste
Bring water to a boil, salt it lightly, and cook the rice until it reaches the proper al dente stage.
While this is happening, sauté the onion and parsley in about 1/3 of a cup of olive oil, seasoning the mixture with salt and pepper. While the mixture is sautéing, heat the shellfish in another pot, shaking them about, until they open. Drain the clams, reserving their pot liquor, which you should filter through a fine cloth. Stir the clams into the simmering herbs, add their pot liquor, and cook for a little more; just before removing the pot from the fire stir in some more minced parsley and a little tomato paste. Use the sauce thus obtained to season the rice.
A couple of observations: First, this is a considerable departure from standard risotti, and if you're more comfortable with the pilaf technique in which you calculate the amount of water to add to the rice (usually two times as much water), feel free. Second, the authors don't say anything about shucking the clams, I might shuck some, for fear that the sauce would otherwise be in large part shells. Finally, if one of the shellfish fails to open upon being cooked, do not eat it! It was already dead when it went into the pot, and eating it could make you quite sick.
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