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4.50 from 2 votes

Vongole Pasta - Spaghetti alle Vongole!

Servings: 2 Servings

Ingredients

To Get Pasta Started

  • 2 Servings of Spaghetti Noodles
  • 2 cloves of Garlic
  • ½ teaspoon (!) Dried Red Chili Pepper
  • 300-500 grams Fresh Clams (2 big handfuls)
  • ⅓ cup White Wine (We used Chardonnay)
  • 2 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil

When Stirring To Make Emulsion

  • 3 Soup Ladles of Pasta Water (Use more if needed)
  • Few drizzles of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • Few pinches of Salt (Optional, if needed)

Instructions

Boil Water

  • Fill a pot with water. Don't need to add too much water - just enough to submerge the noodles. Then season the water with a generous amount of salt. Place on high heat and bring to boil.
  • Check the back of pasta packaging for recommended cooking time. Reduce it by 2 minutes and set a timer. Place noodles in and cook al-dente. We'll finish in the frying pan.

Make Sauce

  • Dice Garlic (2 cloves) into thin pieces. Then chop a Dried Red Chili Pepper into very small pieces (we need ½ teaspoon).
  • Take out a large frying pan. Place on Medium heat. Add in Extra-Virgin Oil (2 Tablespoons). Once the oil is hot, add in the diced Garlic and Dried Red Chili Pepper pieces.
  • Once the garlic starts sizzling and gets fragrant, add in the fresh Clams. (The oil will splatter around a bit - it's okay!). Then quickly add in the White Wine (⅓ cup) and close the lid. Let the clams steam and open up.
  • Once the clams open, use kitchen tonsils to pick the spaghetti straight from the boiling pot and transfer it directly into the frying pan. Then scoop in Pasta Water (3 Soup Ladles) worth.
  • Now raise the frying pan to a HIGH heat. Then vigorously stir the pasta around - so that it soaks in the clam juice and pasta water. Do this for 1 minute.
  • Now add in a few splashes of extra-virgin olive oil. Continue to vigorously stir until you see the juices turn into a creamy texture. (Note: If the pasta sauce turns dry, add in a few more scoops of the pasta water).
  • After a total of 3-5 minutes of stirring, you should have a creamy pasta noodle. Turn off the heat. Give it a quick taste. If slightly bland, add in a few pinches of salt.
  • Plate and garnish with freshly chopped parsley. Bon Appetit!