Portuguese Baked Clams →

Anyone who has spent any time at the seashore in New England, New York, or New Jersey is probably familiar with some version of baked clams, called “stuffies” in Rhode Island, stuffed clams, or the fancier version “Clams Casino”. Depending on where you live in the Northeast, baked, stuffed clams are commonly flavored with Italian seasonings, but the Portuguese fishing communities also have their own take on baked clams. This version pays tribute to the rich culinary tradition of Portuguese fishing communities in the northeast United States. Bom proveito!  

Portuguese Baked Stuffed Clams (revised 1/2025)
Ingredients

• 2 dozen little necks (about 2-3 cups of finely chopped clams) See *Note.

• 1 cup bottled clam broth + 1 cup white wine

• 2 ounces of linguiça sausage

• 2 cloves of garlic minced

• 1 small onion finely chopped

• 1 stick of celery finely chopped

• 1 Bay leaf

• ½ - ¾ cup of fresh breadcrumbs (I used fresh sourdough breadcrumbs; fresh breadcrumbs produce a fluffier final product, but you can sub Panko for an acceptable result. If you use very fine breadcrumbs, the stuffing will be too doughy and not fluffy.)

• 1 jalapeño seeded and finely minced (or ½ each of jalapeño and long red hot peppers)

• A handful of cilantro, thick stems removed, chopped

• ¼ teaspoon white pepper

• Optional: 2 teaspoons of Portuguese Red Pepper Paste

 Preparation

1. Steam the clams in a covered pot of water with some white wine, garlic, and Bay leaf. After 3-4 minutes check the clams and remove each clam as it opens reserving them in a medium bowl until they are cool enough to handle.

2. Reserve ½ cup of the cooking broth.

3. Once the clams are cool enough to handle, separate the shells and remove the clams over the pot of broth to catch any extra clam juice. Keep half of each shell without the adductor muscle attached and place them on a cookie sheet. Reserve the clams in a bowl. (See *Note below)

4. Finely chop the onion, celery, and jalapeño; add the white pepper (and red pepper paste if using) and sauté over medium heat until tender.

5. While the vegetables sauté, chop the linguiça into ½ inch cubes and using a food processor, process until the linguiça is finely chopped; add to the sauté and cook, stirring until the fat renders.

6. Add the chopped clams and cilantro and stir into the onion/celery/ linguica sauté.

7. Add the breadcrumbs and mix; drizzle with the reserved broth and continue to stir until well mixed and heated through.

8. Add a spoonful of the mixture to each clam shell.

9. Cover with foil and cook in a 350 F. oven for 15 minutes; remove the foil and continue to bake for about 5 minutes, or until the breadcrumbs begin to brown.

(Optional: preheat your grill to 350 F. Place the clams on a flat grill pan on the grill covered with tin foil for 15 minutes; remove the foil and continue to bake for another 5 minutes until the breadcrumbs begin to brown.) 

*Note: If using already shucked fresh chopped clams or canned clams, you will need to have previously saved clam shells, or small shallow ramekins. Skip steps 1-3. (24 medium clams equals about 2-3 cups of chopped clams.) In a small saucepan, lightly sauté a clove of garlic in a little olive oil until just fragrant (not brown). Add ½ cup clam juice + ½  cup white wine and a Bay leaf and reduce over med-high heat to ½ cup of liquid. Add the chopped clams to the hot broth and simmer for a minute or two. Strain the liquid into a bowl to reserve; save the clams in a separate bowl.

Wine pairing: white wine like a Chablis, Albariño, Vermentino, Viognier, Soave 

Asian Shrimp Cakes →

I found this recipe in our monthly Costco catalog and adapted it to my tastes. These Asian-inspired shrimp cakes can be served as a delicious light starter, or as a simple meal accompanied by a salad or vegetable of your choice. The original recipe called for mixing the shrimp mixture vigorously for 5-10 minutes to thicken the mixture to make shrimp balls to then flatten and fry. Being a lazy cook, I cut the mixing time in half and use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop the shrimp mixture onto a hot skillet and then slightly flatten each scoop. Much easier!  I highly recommend making your own Duck Sauce, but in a pinch, you can use store-bought duck sauce from your local supermarket. 

Asian Shrimp Cakes
Yield about 10 shrimp cakes 

INGREDIENTS
· 1 pound shrimp (31-40 count)
·  1 small carrot, shredded and chopped into small pieces
·  1/4 cup cilantro, finely chopped
·  2 teaspoons ginger (grated)
·  1 tablespoon minced scallion, white and pale green parts only. Save the healthy green stems to slice thinly for garnish.
·  2 teaspoons dry sherry
·  ½ teaspoon salt
·  1/8 teaspoon ground white pepper
·  2 teaspoons oyster sauce
·  2 teaspoons sesame oil
·  2 teaspoons of jalapeño, minced
·  ¼ teaspoon sugar
·  1 teaspoon cornstarch
·  2 tablespoons plain Panko
·  1 egg
·  3 tablespoons peanut or canola oil (for pan-frying)

 INSTRUCTIONS
1. Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel. Lay them on a cutting board and lightly “smash” them with the side of a knife or cover them with plastic wrap and pound them lightly with a rolling pin; then coarsely chop them so you have ¼ - ½  inch pieces. (If the pieces are too big, the cakes will fall apart when you turn them in the frying pan.)
2. Using a vegetable shredder/peeler, or box grater, shred and then chop a small carrot into small pieces.
3. In a mixing bowl, combine the chopped carrot, cilantro, scallion, ginger, jalapeño, sherry, salt, white pepper, oyster sauce, sesame oil, sugar, cornstarch, Panko, and egg and mix well.
4. Add the chopped shrimp and mix well. If you don’t mix enough, the mixture will be too runny making it difficult to form the shrimp cakes in the frying pan.  Refrigerate the mixture uncovered in the fridge for at least a half-hour to an hour.
5. Heat a flat-bottomed frying pan over medium-high heat (nonstick or cast-iron works well), until it starts to smoke lightly. Add 2 tablespoons of oil and turn the heat down to medium. Use a ¼ cup measuring cup to scoop out the shrimp mixture onto the frying pan. Slightly flatten each mound of shrimp mixture so you end up with patties about ¾ in thick and about 2 ½ - 3 inches in diameter. (If you flatten the patties too much they will fall apart when you flip them.) To avoid overcrowding in the skillet, you may have to repeat this step with the remainder of the shrimp mixture.
6. Fry each side for about 3 minutes, until golden brown, turning over carefully. Add the last tablespoon of oil to the skillet if needed.
7. Serve hot garnished with the reserved green parts of the scallions thinly sliced and homemade Duck Sauce on the side.

Wine pairing: Chablis, Albariño, Viognier, Vermentino, Dry Riesling; chilled Rosé

Adapted from: https://thewoksoflife.com/chinese-shrimp-cakes/#recipe

Seared Scallops with Lemony Pistachio Caper Sauce →

This recipe, adapted from Food and Wine magazine to suit my tastes, can either be served as a starter for a special meal or served along with a green salad for a light meal. The addition of a simple relish of sweet roasted Piquillo Peppers and tangy pickled Jalapeños provides a nice counterpoint to the richness of the scallops and sauce. It’s very easy to make. Give it a try!

serves 4
Ingredients:

• 1-2 anchovy fillets (to taste) coarsely chopped

• 1 tablespoon coarsely chopped pistachios

• 1 tablespoon capers, drained

• 1 garlic clove, coarsely chopped

• 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

• pinch of cayenne

• 12 sea scallops, tough muscle removed

• 2 tablespoons bottled roasted Piquillo peppers minced

• 1 teaspoon bottled pickled Jalapeños minced

• pinch of salt

Preparation:

1. Make the sauce: add the first seven ingredients to a small food processor, blender, or Magic Bullet, and puree until smooth. Set aside for up to 4 hours at room temperature.

2. Make the relish: mix and mash the Piquillo and Jalapeño together along with a tiny pinch of salt.

Photo: c. foodblogchef 2021

3. Cook the scallops: salt and pepper the scallops and sear them on a lightly oiled, very hot cast-iron skillet. Two minutes per side. Don’t move them until you flip them. Remove from the heat and plate.

4. Plate: place 1 tablespoon of sauce on a small plate, spread it, and place 3 scallops atop the sauce on each plate. Top each scallop with a small amount of sauce and a ¼ teaspoon of mashed Piquillo-Jalapeño relish.

5. Garnish with snipped curly parsley and serve with crusty bread for sopping up the delicious sauce.

Wine pairing: Sauvignon Blanc, Vermentino, Verdejo, or Chablis would all work with this rich, tangy dish.

https://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/warm-seafood-salad-pistachio-and-capers

Mexican Shrimp Cocktail →

When I lived in Mexico, I fell in love with the various regional versions of shrimp cocktails, especially from the Yucatán and Oaxaca in the south. So much so that I still prefer homemade “Mexican style” cocktail sauce to the bottled stuff available at your local market. If you would like to try an alternative to the typical ketchuppy shrimp cocktail served here in the States, give this version a try. I simplified the original recipe from the New York Times to make it more accessible without sacrificing the wonderful tangy complexity of the sauce. Buen apetito!

Mexican Shrimp Cocktail
Serves 6 as a starter, or 4 as a light meal with a green salad.

Ingredients for the sauce:

• 2 tablespoons green olives, chopped

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

• 1/4 cup ketchup

• 1/4 cup chili sauce

• 2 teaspoons fresh oregano (or ¾ teaspoon dried)

• 2 tablespoons parsley, roughly chopped

• 1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper, roughly chopped (more if you want more heat)

• 1/4 cup fresh lime juice

• 1/2 cup Clamato juice (or ¼ cup clam juice; ¼ cup bottled tomato juice)

• ½ an eight-inch Anaheim chile roasted, peeled, seeded, and chopped; half reserved (see *Note)

Ingredients for the pico de gallo:

• 1 cup tomatoes, seeded and diced

• 1/2 cup white onion, diced

• 1 teaspoon garlic, minced

• 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped

• 2 teaspoons minced jalapeño

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

Ingredients for the seafood:

• 1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and diced

• 1/2 reserved Anaheim chile, roasted, peeled, seeded, and diced

• 1 pound large shrimp (16-20 count) peeled, deveined, and boiled for two minutes, drained and plunged into cold water; 3 per person as an appetizer, or 5 for a light meal. Substitute medium shrimp if you prefer.

Preparation:
1. Purée the sauce ingredients in a blender until smooth. Pour into a medium bowl.
2. Add the pico de gallo ingredients to the sauce.
3. Delicately fold in the avocado and shrimp. Spoon into ice cream-sundae or martini glasses and serve with warm tortilla chips.
4. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

*Note: place the chile under the broiler until charred (2-3 minutes per side). Put the chile on a plate and cover with another plate. Wait 5 minutes, uncover and the skin should peel off easily. Slice the chile lengthwise and scrape out the seeds.

*Note: for a great light summer meal, serve with a mixed green salad with a bit of crumbled goat cheese or Mexican cotija dressed with a light vinaigrette alongside the cocktail.

Wine pair: my first choices would be a Rosé, Chablis, or a Chardonnay/Viognier blend that would stand up to and complement the complex acid and spice in the cocktail. Stay away from heavy oaky Chardonnays or overly minerally whites.

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/campechana-extra-mexican-seafood-cocktail
Adapted from Levi Goode at Goode Company Seafood in Houston.