VONGOLE - IT'S ITALIAN FOR DINNER.

Von-goll-ay. It’s also Italian for briny, sweet, tender little clams, ready to toss with chorizo and white beans.

I used to love the crash and tinkle of the fishmonger’s shovel going into the big bin of vongole at the market, their little ridged shells sparkling in the fluorescent light. Then came the soaking, scrubbing, and careful cooking – separate to whatever dish they were destined for, in case the shells dropped grit.

Now, I just buy them in a cryovac bag.

I’m not a big fan of cryovac or plastic generally, but I am a big fan of sustainable sourcing and new technology collaborating to deliver a first-rate product that is highly convenient, completely unromantic, bloody delicious, and ready to cook.

Check out the wild-caught Coffin Bay vongole by South Australia’s Myers Seafood, who has been hand-harvesting (raking) vongole out of the ocean sands since 1968. They are a revelation: pristine, juicy, sweet and briny.

THE CLAM SLAM

This is the key to cooking any sort of bivalve (those with double-hinged shells, such as clams, mussels, pipis, etc). Get the poaching liquid going – you don’t need actually need much to create the necessary steam – and chuck in the shells. Slam the lid on. Stand back. Put the timer on for 2 minutes.

Using two tea-towels, pick up the pan and its lid, and give it a great big bloody shake, then bang it back down onto the stove. This gives everyone a fright, including the clams, which open their shells in surprise.

Now get in there with a pair of tongs and take out the opened shells one by one – but quickly.  Slam the lid back on for another 1 minute, then take out all the opened shells, and just keep going until they all open. Slam, dunk.

VONGOLE, CHORIZO AND BEANS

This recipe is for ready-to-cook vongole, which you can just cook in the chorizo and beans as a one-pot wonder if you like. Or seize back a bit more control over clam cooking times, as I have here, by cooking them separately and combining to serve.  Serves 2.

• Half red onion, finely chopped

• 2 garlic cloves, grated

• 2 tbsp olive oil

• 1 or 2 hot (picante) fresh chorizo sausages, skinned and chopped

• 400 g can white beans, drained and rinsed

• 150 ml white wine

• 150 ml chicken or vegetable stock or water

• 500 g vongole or clams, ready-to-cook

• 2 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped

• Cracked black pepper

Heat the olive oil in a largeish lidded pan, add the onion and garlic and cook down gently until soft.

Add the chorizo, increase the heat and fry until it has browned and dropped its paprika-stained juices.

Add the drained beans and the stock, stirring, then lower the heat to a gentle simmer while you cook the clams.

In a separate pan, bring the wine to the boil (you can throw in any aromatics you like as well – herbs, peppercorns, onion, parsley stems, a random dash of olive oil).

Open the pack of vongole, drain, rinse, and add to the pot. Slam the lid on, and cook for 2 minutes.

Give the whole thing a bloody big shake, then remove the opened clams with tongs.

Cover the pan and cook for another 1 minute. Give the remaining clams a big stir, and remove them as they open.

Strain the cooking juices through a sieve into a bowl, and add them to the beans and chorizo. Bung the heat up, toss the opened clams on top, scatter with parsley, and give it all a big toss. Taste or salt, pepper, chilli, paprika and adjust.

Serve in warm pasta bowls, with black pepper and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.

---

# If you can’t find fresh chorizo (in NSW, look for the brilliant La Boqueria brand), use any good pork sausage and add a decent whack of smoky paprika.

# I love a spoonful of aioli on this at the table, which melts creamily into the juices.

# Time was, we were advised to ditch any clams or mussels that don’t open in the cooking. Now it’s okay to keep them. Prise open, and if it smells good, eat it.

WHERE TO FIND READY-TO-COOK VONGOLE:

I contacted Myers Seafood and Southern Ocean Express for stockists in Mel and Syd for their ready-to-cook Coffin Bay vongole. If you’re elsewhere, ask them for stockists near you.

NSW: Fish In The Family, Foodlink, M&G Seafoods, Southern Fresh Seafood, Trans Tasman Seafood, Martins United.

VIC: Tim and Terry Oysters, Aptus Seafoods, Coburg Fish Market, O'Psaras (Preston Market), Out Of The Blue Seafoods, Ocean Made Seafood, Clamms.

Put out a bowl for shells or you will have to do this: don’t they look like little ocean butterflies?

---

Thanks for dropping by! And thanks to the Southern Ocean Express website, from which I nicked the lovely pic of the loose clams. And special thanks to Terry Durack for sharing his unique and patented Clam Slam.

I would also like to acknowledge the traditional owners of the lands and waters upon which I work, live, cook and play; the Gadigal people of the Eora Nation. I fully support the Uluru Statement from the Heart, and for an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander voice to be enshrined in Australia’s Constitution. It’s about time, folks.