The clam sauce, strictly red, is one of the two sauces from my childhood.
The other is meat sauce (we don’t call it ragù, but meat sauce). My mom made both frequently, the meat sauce strictly on Sundays, the clam sauce on other days when we could buy clams (often, because back then they were cheap food) or when some acquaintance-fisherman-fishmonger gave us a bag, which happened quite often.
In the summer, clam sauce was THE sauce for spaghetti, sometimes tagliolini, but spaghetti was more popular, while in winter, it was THE sauce for polenta.
All the memories I have of eating polenta at my house during my childhood and beyond, at least until high school, are tied to clam sauce. Polenta with clam sauce was certainly a tradition from my mom’s family, but it’s also a customary recipe in my area, in southern Romagna, which now, in this era of old recipe revivals, is often found in restaurants (even if it’s usually much less tasty than my mom’s 😛).
Clams were so common on my mom’s childhood table that my grandmother… well, here’s a family anecdote… were so common, as I was saying, that my grandmother Maria made a path of shells in the courtyard. How cool!, she used all the shells like gravel! A testament to the number of clams eaten, almost all caught by my grandfather. What a wonder. 💛
So, given these circumstances, could my mom not assimilate this preference for clams? And then pass it on to her daughter?
Although we didn’t have a shell path at our house. 😃
〰 〰 〰
- Difficulty: Easy
- Cost: Medium
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 3
- Cooking methods: Stove
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 10.5 oz cooked and shelled clams
- 14 oz tomato passata
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 bunch parsley
- 2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil
- pepper or chili (to taste)
Tools
- Knife
- Pan
Steps
Chop the clams roughly with a knife.
👉 I used the frozen clams, and I chopped them while they were still partially frozen. This method of chopping the frozen block is very convenient. The seawater I added before freezing will be useful in cooking.
Chop garlic and parsley and put them in a pan with a drizzle of oil (a couple of tablespoons).
Add the chopped clams and let them flavor in the pan with the garlic and parsley over high heat.
Add the tomato passata.
👉 Today I used the frozen tomato from the summer, but bottled passata (like coarse passata) or canned tomatoes (passed through a food mill or chopped in a processor) are also fine. And a different amount than I mentioned in the ingredients is okay, you can adjust to your taste according to how ‘red’ you like it. 😊
Cook for half an hour or a little more with the lid half closed.
During cooking, soften with a little water or adjust the oil if necessary, evaluating the need according to the type of tomato passata used and the amount of clam water possibly present.
While the clam sauce cooks, bring pasta water to a boil.
👉 This time I cooked spaghetti, but this red clam sauce is also fantastic with fresh pasta, especially egg tagliolini. When I have a chance to photograph our polenta with clam sauce, I’ll put the photo here. (Update: see photo at the end of the recipe! 🙂).
When cooked al dente, drain and toss the pasta directly in the sauce pan.
☝ Those who wish can season with a sprinkle of pepper or make the dish spicy by adding a piece of chili.
Plate and serve immediately.
😋
Here it is, as promised, our polenta with clam sauce.
It’s one of those dishes I think about when it snows, but also every time it rains and the wind blows, when it inevitably comes to mind “today calls for a plate of polenta with clams”.
And in those cases, having a small jar in the freezer is essential. 😊
Enjoy your meal!
Salt-Free Tips
The presence of clam water, or seawater, makes adding salt to the sauce unnecessary. But I suggest taking advantage of this naturally flavorful clam sauce to eliminate (or even just reduce) salt from the pasta cooking water. 😉
For those who don’t know yet, I cook without adding salt. If you’re curious to know more, I’ve recounted everything in this article. 😊
If you are interested in reducing or eliminating salt, always remember to:
▫ Reduce salt gradually, the palate must slowly adapt and not notice the progressive reduction.
▫ Use spices. Chili, pepper, curry, nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, cumin…
▫ Use aromatic herbs. Basil, parsley, oregano, thyme, sage, marjoram, rosemary, mint…
▫ Use seeds. Sesame, pine nuts, almonds, walnuts…
▫ Use spicy vegetables or fruit. Garlic, onion, lemon, orange…
▫ Use my salt-free vegetable granules
▫ Prefer fresh foods.
▫ Avoid cooking in water, prefer cooking methods that do not disperse flavors (griddle, foil, steam, microwave)
▫ Avoid bringing the salt shaker to the table!
▫ Allow yourself an occasional indulgence. It boosts morale and helps you persevere.
If you do not want or cannot forgo salt:
▫ You can still try my recipes by salting according to your habits.
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