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Steamed Clams with Sake
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Steamed Clams with Sake

by Divina P in Test Kitchen

Clams cooked with garlic, ginger and sake. This recipe uses the minimal of ingredients to bring out the rich fragrance of the sea from the shellfish.

Serves
4
Active Time
15 mins
Total Time
15 mins

Step 1: Soaking the clams

Soaking the clams
  • 1 cup non-iodized/unrefined/sea salt*
  • 3 quarts water
  • 2 lbs clams

Combine the salt and water. Then, add the clams and soak them in a cool, dark place for a few hours to remove the grits and sands until ready to use.

Step 2: Draining the clams

Draining the clams

Drain the clams through a colander and rinse them, scrub with a brush if necessary.

Discard clams that are open (even after tapping them) or that have broken shells. Then, drain well.

Step 3: Cooking the clams

Cooking the clams
  • 4 garlic cloves
  • I inch piece fresh ginger root
  • 1/2 cup sake

To cook the clams, first peel and chop the garlic and ginger.

In a deep heavy-based saucepan, combine the garlic, ginger, sake and the clams.

Cover and cook over a moderate heat until all the clams have opened, about less than 5 minutes. Stir the clams once to ensure that they all open and cook evenly.

Related Drill-downs

Step 4: Finishing the dish

Finishing the dish
  • Green onion or cilantro leaves
  • Japanese soy sauce, to taste (optional)

While the clams are cooking, chopped the green onion or cilantro leaves. Add these to the cooked clams. Discard any clams that are closed.

Check for seasoning. Add soy sauce if necessary, then remove from the heat.

Serve clams hot with the cooking liquid.

Serve with plain steamed rice or green-tea scented rice with vegetables.

Also, place an empty bowl on the table for discarded shells.

Notes

*If you have access to clean seawater, use it.

CHOOSING CLAMS:
Look for clams that are tightly closed with no cracks (chipped, broken or damaged). Never choose a clam that is open. The smaller the clams, the more tender the flesh.

PREPARING CLAMS:
When you purchase clams, make sure you unwrap them at home and place them in salted water so they can breathe. The clam pushes salt water and sand out of their shells. When ready to use, pull the clams up and out of the water and to the colander and then rinse and scrub them with a firm brush to remove any additional sand. You may want to change the water a few times during the day.

COOKING CLAMS:
Cook clams in a large sauce pot or pan in a single layer so they open and cook at the same time. Otherwise, give them a stir once in a while. Taste them before adding any salt. Most of the time, they don't need additional salt at all.

SERVING CLAMS:
Serve the clams at once while they're still hot. The clams toughen as they cool.

VARIATIONS:
Cook the garlic and ginger (plus chopped shallots) with a little bit of oil to release the aromatic flavors before adding the clams and the sake.
Cook the the garlic and ginger (plus chopped shallots) in butter and before serving the clams, finish with more butter and serve with a warm crusty bread instead of rice.

NUTRITION:
Clams are a good source of iodine and selenium. These trace minerals are needed for the production of thyroxine, a thyroid hormone.

Comments

Thanks for the Chef Notes - Nice Job!

This is the kind of effort that will help all Rouxbe users. Thanks Divina!

by Joe G | May 21, 2008 4:50pm | Permalink
scrumptious clams

I have prepared the steamed clams with saki twice now and both times they are a huge hit. I take an oblong plate and put a soup bowl on one end and a glass of warmed saki on the other and the bowl is of course full of clams.

by Ruth H | 21 days ago | Permalink

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