|
Chef Andy Husbands
of Tremont 647,
Sister Sorel, and Rouge
Visit his restaurant website:
Tremont 647,
Boston
Andy Husbands' Spanish-Style Pan Roasted Clams
 A good appetizer is like the starter's gun at a track meet, like the "... and they're off!" of a horse race, like a warm-up band for your favorite act.
It should be groovy, fun, exciting. It should say, "You think this is good? Just you wait.
Why do we like appetizers so much? Perhaps it's about our short
attention span; an appetizer is a sound bite, a movie trailer, a short story. Or perhaps it's because they remind us of a party in their communal friendliness, like tapas or dim sum. Appetizers can go one of two ways:
simple, like stinky cheese and bread, or layered with flavors, like Tibetan momos dipped in a mild soy sauce
and then a hot scriracha. Either way, they should do what the French call "amuse bouche" (amuse the mouth), making it smile at the taste it just had -- and salivate at the thought of what's to come. Spanish-Style Pan Roasted Clams with Sherry, Shallots and Lemon
Serves 4 as an appetizer 2 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
16 Woodbury's awesome clams, washed well to remove all sand
4 shallots, minced
1/4 cup sherry
1/2 cup water
2 Tbs. butter
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 cup flat leaf, Italian parsley leaves, washed and dried
1 lemon, cut into 8 wedges
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a cast iron pan or heavy sauté pan place the oil and put over medium high heat. Add the clams and
swirl in the pan for 1 minute. Add the shallots, cook for another minute then add the sherry. If you are
using a gas stove the sherry may ignite so be careful. This is okay, it's only the alcohol burning off. Cook for 30 seconds more then add the water and butter and place pan in the oven. Let cook for 4-6
minutes until all the clams have opened. Remove from the oven, place in bowl, season with salt and pepper and garnish with lemons and parsley leaves. Serve hot.
This is great with big croutons to soak up the sauce, It's also excellent with your favorite pasta.
|
