You HAVE to make linguine with clamato sauce this summer because it is the perfect light seafood pasta for lunch or a light dinner. Linguine with clams is one of my absolute favorite recipes, but I prefer it when it starts to get cold out for some reason. I have this craving for tomatoes once the warm weather hits so we developed linguine with clamato sauce.
The best clams are available from September through April. In my mind, it's linguine with clams in the Fall and linguine clamato in the Spring. I always try to make a protein to put on the side of my pasta, to match the carbs, but clams are surprisingly high in protein. Each clam packs a punch of 2.5 grams of protein!
Pick yourself up a bottle of white wine or just a seltzer with lemon to enjoy with this sauce as the weather begins to warm up. There is no cheese in this dish, just toasted breadcrumbs to give you that same texture we miss without the cheese. Typically, seafood is not paired with cheese in Italy. But we're not in Italy and it's not 1700. Cheese is readily available now. Seafood and cheese weren't usually available in Italy in the same place. But now we get what we want when we want it. Although, I still maintain that this seafood pasta should be cheese-less, do what you please. Just try the toasted breadcrumbs first!
Ingredients for Clamato Sauce
- ½ lb linguine
- 2 dozen clams
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 4 anchovies
- 2 tbsp tomato pasted
- 1 cup white wine
- ½ cup starchy pasta water
- ½ cup toasted breadcrumbs
Substitutions
You could substitute parmesan for the breadcrumbs. But as I said before, I don't recommend cheese with this one!
As for the anchovies, everyone always asks if they can leave them out. Again, I wouldn't recommend that, but if you do, add a little salt to the sauce to make up for it.
If you can't find fresh clams, you can use canned clams but the sauce will be slightly thicker. Just add the clams at the same time you did in this recipe and you won't need to remove them from the pan to stir the linguine in. You also won't need to cover the pan to cook them because they will already be cooked.
Making Linguine with Clamato Sauce
The sauce is relatively easy to make. Linguine with clamato sauce is quick and it's easy to learn to cook fish. It's almost impossible to screw up. You don't even need an instant-read thermometer. This is a seafood dish you will not forget.
Scrubbing and purging the clams
Purging the clams is the most important step in the recipe. It doesn't DO anything special to your recipe, but if you don't do it, it will ruin everything. Not purging the clams will result in a dish filled with sand and grit. Unless you like chewing sand, please, PLEASE purge them. I have made this mistake enough times to know.
Start by scrubbing the clams under cold running water. Then place them in a cold and salty ice water bath. The clams will purge all of that gritty sand. Allow them to sit for 30 minutes, then change the water and let them sit for another 30 minutes.
Making the Sauce
In a shallow saucepot, add 2 tablespoon of olive oil and bring to medium heat. Add the garlic and anchovies once the olive oil is shimmering. Saute until the garlic is fragrant. The anchovies will melt away into the oil slowly. Add cherry tomatoes and gently use a wooden spoon to help them break down. Saute for 5-8 minutes until the tomatoes begin to break down.
Bring a pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add linguine and boil until just before al dente. You'll have to cook the linguine while we're making the sauce. We need that starchy pasta water to thicken this sauce up.
Add white wine and bring to a simmer. Steal ½ cup of pasta water from the linguine and add it to the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes. Remove clams from the ice bath and rinse them in a strainer removing any of that leftover sand and grit. Add them to the pot and cover for 3-4 minutes or until all of the clams open. Discard any clams that do not open on their own.
Remove the clams from the pot and set them aside. Stir the linguine into the sauce. Let the pasta simmer in the sauce for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and return the clams to the pan. Serve with toasted breadcrumbs.
Toasted breadcrumbs
Toasted breadcrumbs are so easy and a great addition to seafood dishes. Simply place a small pan on the stovetop on medium heat. Add your desired amount of breadcrumbs and toss until they become toasted. They will quickly change to a browner color. This works best with real breadcrumbs.
Linguine with clamato sauce is such a light and refreshing seafood pasta. It's a great way to change up your normal diet and recipe and introduce your family to something new! Switching up what you do at home is the best way to stop yourself from ordering out, if that's something you're trying to do less of. When we eat the same old thing all the time, we get so bored and HAVE to eat out. Everything is good in moderation, but there's nothing like the smell of a home-cooked meal.
If you're looking for more pasta with shellfish, check out some of our other fantastic fish recipes!
Shrimp Fra Diavolo with Linguine
Garlic Anchovy Pasta with Toasted Breadcrumbs
Mussels in Tomato White Wine Sauce
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📖 Recipe
Linguine with Clamato Sauce
Ingredients
- ½ lb linguine
- 2 dozen clams
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
- 4 anchovies
- 2 tablespoon tomato pasted
- 1 cup white wine
- ½ cup starchy pasta water
- ½ cup toasted breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Scrub the clams and then purge them in cold salted water for 1 hour changing the water after 30 minutes
- In a shallow saucepot, add 2 tablespoon olive oil and bring to medium heat. Add garlic and anchovies once the olive oil is shimmering. Saute until garlic is fragrant. Add cherry tomatoes and gently use wooden spoon to help them break down. Saute for 5 minutes.
- Bring a pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add linguine and boil until just before al dente.
- Add white wine and bring to a simmer. Steal ½ cup of pasta water from the linguine and add it to the pot. Simmer for 5 minutes. Rinse clams in a strainer and add them to the pot and cover for 3-4 minutes or until all of the clams open. Remove the clams from the pot and set aside, as you stir the linguine into the sauce. Let the pasta simmer in the sauce for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and return the clams to the pan. Serve with toasted breadcrumbs.
Joe
Phenomenal recipe. Love the red clam sauce. Toasted bread crumbs on top for the win!