As an alternative to mussels whilst they are out of season, clams offer your customers the shellfish hit they want on a warm summer night.

Manila clams are medium sized, with yellow, white, and brown colours. Their common name is palourde clams. They are a chef’s favourite choice because of their sweet taste, along with their ease of opening after being steamed. They also have a long shelf life in comparison to other shellfish, and will aesthetically complement any plate due to their beautiful shell colours. These clams offer a real taste of the sea with their fresh, salty aroma.

Preparation: 25 minutes

Cooking:

Serves: 2

Ingredients

  • Clams - 700gm per person
  • Dry cider - 100ml
  • Red onion finely diced - 50gm
  • Rapeseed oil - 20ml
  • Fresh thyme stalk - 1
  • Dry cured streaky bacon cut into strips - 30gm
  • Chopped flat leaf parsley - 5gm
  • Streaky bacon for garnish -

Method

Full ingredients

Plus Icon

1. Heat a heavy-bottomed pan big enough for the clams to cook in.

2. Add onion, bacon and rapeseed oil. Sweat until soft.

3. Add cleaned clams and thyme stalk, cover with a lid, and gently shake for 1 minute.

4. Add cider, bring to boil, and reduce by half.

5. Taste cooking liquor and season, gently place in serving dish (discard any clams that have not opened).

6. Scatter with chopped parsley and crispy streaky bacon.

Have a question about this recipe?

Speak to our knowledgeable team for further info on portion sizes.

You may also be interested in...

Species

Clams – Palourde

Clams – Palourde are also known as Carpet Shell Clams. Clams are molluscs and are cultivated on the South Coast of the UK, in the North East Atlantic.

Cod

What's In Season

Seasonality Chart

Many factors influence the seasonality of fish and seafood. Our Seasonal guide to fish availability shows the full list of species available each month and acts as a guide in order to assist with your menu planning.

Farmed sole with clams dish

Recipes

En papillote baked farmed sole with clams

En papillote baked farmed sole with clams served with Isle of Wight heritage tomatoes, and a warm rapeseed, white wine and lemon dressing.