Linguine with Clams
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Linguine with clams in a garlicky white wine sauce makes an easy and elegant Italian pasta dinner.
Linguine with clams is a classic Italian restaurant dish, and it’s also one of the simplest, most affordable pasta dishes you can make at home. I know cooking shellfish, like clams and mussels, can be intimidating to the uninitiated, but I promise they are the easiest thing in the world to cook — and once you try it, you’ll wonder what took you so long! For this dish, you can do all of the prep and make the clam sauce in the time it takes to boil the pasta, so dinner is done in 30 minutes. To complete the meal, toss a salad, warm some crusty bread, and pour a few glasses of the same white wine used to make the sauce.
Looking for more classic Italian restaurant pasta dishes? Try my penne all vodka, bolognese, and lasagna.
What you’ll need to make Linguine with clams
HOW TO PREPARE THE CLAMS
The recipe calls for Littleneck clams, which are readily available at most supermarkets. They are usually sold in a mesh bag because they are alive and need to breathe. If your fishmonger places them in a plastic bag, remove them from the bag immediately when you get home from the supermarket and place them in a bowl (uncovered) in the refrigerator.
To prepare the clams, first, check that they are alive by making sure all of the shells are tightly closed. If any clams are open, gently tap them against the countertop; if they are alive, they will close their shells. Discard any clams that do not close their shells or that have cracked or chipped shells.
Next, place all of the clams in a bowl and cover them with cool tap water. Let the clams sit for 20 minutes to an hour. During this time, the clams will expel sand from inside their shells. When you’re ready to cook, lift each clam from the water and rinse it, scrubbing if necessary, to get rid of any grit from the surface. (Note that most supermarkets sell farm-raised clams, which are already quite clean, so you may not find a lot of grit or sand.)
How To Make Linguine with Clams
In a large pot over high heat, bring 4 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of kosher salt to a boil. Add the linguine and cook according to package directions until just shy of al dente. (The pasta should still be firm to the bite since it will cook another minute or two in the sauce).
Reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking water, drain the linguine in a colander (do not rinse).
Meanwhile, prep all of the ingredients for the sauce.
In a very large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the shallots and garlic and sauté until just golden, about 30 seconds.
Add the wine, red pepper flakes, 3/4 teaspoon kosher salt, and 1/4 cup of the parsley.
Toss in the clams, then bring to a simmer.
Cook, covered, until the clams open, 6 to 8 minutes. Discard any unopened clams.
Add the drained pasta to the sauté pan with the clams. (If you don’t have room for everything in one pan, transfer the clams to a plate and cover to keep warm. When ready to serve, add them back to the pasta on a serving platter).
Increase the heat to medium and cook the linguine with the clams, tossing occasionally, until the pasta absorbs most of the sauce and is just tender, 1 to 2 minutes. If necessary, add some of reserved cooking water to keep moist.
Remove the pan from the heat. Add the butter, lemon zest, lemon juice, and the remaining 2 tablespoons of parsley; toss to coat.
Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, lemon zest and/or lemon juice, if necessary. Transfer the linguini with clams to a serving dish or bowls and serve.
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Linguine with Clams
Linguine with clams in a garlicky white wine sauce makes an easy and elegant Italian pasta dinner.
Ingredients
- Kosher salt
- 1 pound linguine
- 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
- ½ cup finely chopped shallots, from 2 shallots
- 6 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
- 1 cup dry white wine, such as Pinot Grigio, Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc (see note)
- ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 pounds Littleneck clams (40 to 45), scrubbed
- ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 teaspoon lemon zest, from 1 lemon, plus more to taste
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, from 1 lemon, plus more to taste
Instructions
- In large pot over high heat, bring 4 quarts of water and 2 tablespoons of kosher salt to a boil. Add the linguine and cook according to the package directions until just shy of al dente (the pasta should still be firm to the bite since it will cook another minute or two in the sauce). Drain in a colander (do not rinse), reserving ½ cup of the cooking water for the sauce.
- Meanwhile, in a very large sauté pan over medium-high heat, heat the olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the shallots and garlic and sauté until just golden, about 30 seconds. Add the wine, red pepper flakes, ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, clams, and ¼ cup of the parsley; bring to a simmer and cook, covered, until the clams open, 6 to 8 minutes. Discard any unopened clams.
- Add the pasta to the sauté pan with the clams. (If you don't have room for everything in one pan, transfer the clams to a plate and cover to keep warm. When ready to serve, add them back to the pasta on a serving platter). Increase the heat to medium and cook the linguini with the clams, tossing occasionally, until the pasta absorbs most of the sauce and is just tender, 1 to 2 minutes. If necessary, add some of reserved cooking water to keep moist. Remove the pan from the heat. Add the butter, lemon zest, lemon juice, and the remaining 2 tablespoons of parsley; toss to coat. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, lemon zest and/or lemon juice, if necessary. Transfer to a serving dish or bowls and serve.
- Note: When cooking with wine, select a bottle that is inexpensive (under $10) but still good enough to drink. Avoid "cooking wines," which are salty and include additives.
Pair with
Nutrition Information
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- Per serving (6 servings)
- Calories: 627
- Fat: 22 g
- Saturated fat: 6 g
- Carbohydrates: 67 g
- Sugar: 4 g
- Fiber: 3 g
- Protein: 33 g
- Sodium: 920 mg
- Cholesterol: 61 mg
This website is written and produced for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and the nutritional data on this site has not been evaluated or approved by a nutritionist or the Food and Drug Administration. Nutritional information is offered as a courtesy and should not be construed as a guarantee. The data is calculated through an online nutritional calculator, Edamam.com. Although I do my best to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Furthermore, different online calculators provide different results depending on their own nutrition fact sources and algorithms. To obtain the most accurate nutritional information in a given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients used in your recipe, using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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I made this recipe and almost followed it to the T. I live in Arizona, so finding clams this time of the year, is pretty impossible. Instead, I used baby clams in the can. Two cans of them and clam broth with more baby clams. Everything else I followed your instructions. This recipe is amazing and my husband commented it was the best linguini and clams he’s ever had. I felt the exact same way. We traveled along the eastern coast 2 years ago. We had so many wonderful seafood dishes, as you can image. Also, many dishes of linguini and clams and your recipe knocked them all out. I can’t wait to have a dinner party and share this outstanding recipe with my guests. Thanks for sharing your recipe, I feel secure in making/sharing this with them.
This dish makes my wife weak at the knees. Shes not a fan of clams so used shrimp instead super super good. Brined the shrimp shell off in super salty water in fridge for 2 hours before hand, make sure to buy shell on and de vein and peel yourself before brining makes all the difference. Followed exact recipe but sub the clams for the raw brined shrimp.
This recipe is amazing. The whole family loved it. I made it with the 1lb of pasta as instructed but I had ~5lbs of clams because I bought them from Costco – for $20 by the way. Because I had more clams than the recipe called for I added a splash more wine and 1 tablespoon extra lemon just and it was lovely. It made generous portions for 4 people.
I followed your instructions and when my husband tasted it, he said “marry me”! I look forward to trying more of your recipes!
I loved this recipe. Made it for the first time this weekend for guests and was told it was better than restaurant seafood they’d had!! Seafood makes me nervous but this was so easy. My grocery store only had 1 pound of clams so I added wild caught shrimp in at the end and it was delicious with the sauce. I think I would’ve preferred all clams though they were my favorite part. Seriously great recipe!
Oh my! Soooooo easy and so delicious! For sure keeping this recipe!! Thanks
Love this recipe-especially the lemon juice and zest!
Made this using one pound of fresh fettuccini and it was a family hit! Absolutely delicious blend of flavors. I followed the recipe as written and will make this again for sure!
First time I made linguini with clams. Delicious!
Tasty dish, but trés cher!! (Pricey)
45 clams alone cost me $40. You should at least write in the option to substitute frozen shelled clams; a much more affordable option at less than half the price.
Additionally, the pasta instructions are split up is such that the the last part, about saving some of the liquid, completely surprised me. I had already strained the pasta by then. As it turned out, that didn’t matter, per my next comment.
Lastly, the pasta soaked up none of the liquid no matter how long I let it sit. Had to drain it off before serving.
Hi Jenn,
I prefer vongole, would that work and how much since they are smaller?
Thanks and Happy New Year
Sure, Libbe, they should work and I’d stick with 2 pounds. Enjoy!
My husband made this for New Year’s Day lunch and it was delicious. He followed recipe exactly except for the addition of additional clams. Perfecto! Will make again.
For the first time in my life I made spaghetti and clams from scratch last week. I was like OMG this is the perfect recipe! This week I bought clams again and even told my instacart person that I found the perfect spaghetti and clams recipe when she commented on the sale on clams. I could not find my original recipe, but found yours and used it. It is more perfect than my “perfect” recipe last week. SOOO yummy. This is the ultimate spaghetti and clams.
Thank you for sharing
I love this recipe! I’ve made it a few times! We are lucky to have access to fresh clams! So delicious!
This recipe was delicious. And easy to make. We really loved it. I used egg noodles because they were the only wide past I had in the house. They paired very well with lemony buttery white wine sauce and kept their texture beautifully when cooked further in the sauce. The recipe was very balanced in flavour without one thing overpowering another. So yummy! I’m thinking that I might add a tin of clams (drained) with the pasta at the end, for further clam flavour. Or maybe use their liquid in the sauce and if it’s salty use unsalted butter? I’m letting this recipe for sure!
Hi Sandra, Glad you liked it! Feel free to add a can of clams if you’d like, but I wouldn’t include the liquid as it will make the dish too salty.
Can I use chopped canned clams instead? If yes, how many ounces?
Sure, I’d guesstimate that you’ll need about 12 – 16 ounces. Also, keep in mind that canned clams are higher in sodium than fresh. I would omit the salt in the sauce and add it to taste at the end (and I’d drain any juice from the can). Hope you enjoy!
We have been making the linguini with clams for a while now and we always stick with your recipe. We love it!! John C
Absolutely fantastic! One of my family’s favorite dishes I make. Thank you! ❤️
This is the first recipe of yours (but not last) I have prepared and it was fabulous! I followed it exactly as directed- I think the recommendation to cook the pasta al dente and letting the sauce be absorbed into the pasta was key. All I know is that it was so flavorful I can’t wait to make another of your recipes.
Growing up on Long Island, I am spoiled with fresh seafood and good Italian food. After being gifted about 3 dozen clams, straight from the bay, I decided to try to make my first pasta/clam dish. Grant you, I am not a novice cook, but as I said, good Italian food is all around me, so why make it? And clams? Well… I usually shuck them straight out of their shells and eat them raw. Three Dozen was way too many to eat like that so I found this recipe and gave it a whirl. I will NEVER buy this dish again. This recipe was spectacular! The key (to me) was to under cook the pasta (as directed) and then finish cooking the pasta in the sauce (as directed). Holy cow, the way the pasta absorbed the juices and flavors, Oh my….you will never taste anything as amazing as this recipe. I happen to like lemon, so I added extra zest, and to me it was perfect! I HIGHLY recommend!