Non-VegetarianCampana cuisine Main Course

Spaghetti alle Vongole

Name: Spaghetti alle Vongole
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 45 min
Yield: 4 servings
Cuisine: Campana
Ingredients: 400 g Spaghetti; 1 kg vongole veraci (carpet clams); 60 ml Extra virgin olive oil; 3 cloves Garlic; 25 g fresh flat-leaf parsley; 60 ml Dry white wine; 1 g dried red chilli flakes (peperoncino); 20 g Fine sea salt

A classic Neapolitan pasta dish of spaghetti tossed with fresh clams, garlic, olive oil, and parsley in a glossy pan sauce.

🇮🇹Italy· Campania

Prep: 30 min
Cook: 15 min
Total: 45 min
Servings: 4
Difficulty: Medium
Calories: 510 kcal

Ingredients

0 of 8 gathered

Servings

400 g Spaghetti — bronze-cut dried pasta
1 kg vongole veraci (carpet clams) — fresh, live in shells
60 ml Extra virgin olive oil — fruity Italian olive oil
3 cloves Garlic — peeled and lightly crushed
25 g fresh flat-leaf parsley — leaves chopped, stems kept whole
60 ml Dry white wine — such as Campanian Falanghina or Fiano
1 g dried red chilli flakes (peperoncino) — crushed dried chilli
20 g Fine sea salt — for pasta boiling water

Equipment

•Large pasta pot
•Wide deep skillet or sauté pan with lid
•Fine mesh colander
•Tongs

Nutrition

Per serving, approximate

Calories: 510 kcal
fat: 12 g
carbs: 74 g
fibre: 3 g
protein: 24 g
calories: 510 kcal

Instructions

1
Soak the clams in cold salted water for thirty minutes to purge residual grit.
2
Lift the clams out carefully with your hands and rinse under cold running water.
3
Bring five litres of water with sea salt to a rolling boil in a pot.
4
Boil the spaghetti until two minutes short of the package al dente time.
5
Warm the olive oil, garlic, and parsley stems in a large skillet over medium heat.
6
Add the drained clams, white wine, and chilli flakes, then cover tightly with a lid.
7
Cook for three minutes until the clams steam open, then uncover.
8
Transfer the opened clams to a bowl, discarding any shells that remain closed.
9
Lift the undercooked pasta directly into the skillet with the bubbling clam juices.
10
Toss the spaghetti vigorously over high heat with a splash of starchy cooking water.
11
Stir in the clams and chopped parsley leaves until a glossy emulsion forms.
12
Serve immediately in warm shallow bowls, spooning the pan emulsion over the pasta.

Chef's tips

Do not add salt to the skillet sauce, as the released clam liquor is naturally savoury. Swirling the pasta in the reduced cooking juices is essential to emulsify the olive oil and starchy water.

Ingredient substitutions

vongole veraci (carpet clams) → palourde clams, cockles, or littleneck clams
spaghetti → linguine or spaghettoni
dry white wine → extra ladle of starchy pasta water with a light squeeze of lemon

Storage

Best consumed immediately; do not store or reheat cooked clam pasta.

Reheating

Not recommended as reheating toughens the clams and breaks the emulsified sauce.

Common mistakes to avoid

•Overcooking the clams, which makes the delicate meat rubbery and dry.
•Salting the sauce before tasting, leading to an unpleasantly salty dish from natural sea juices.
•Adding grated cheese, which overpowers the subtle salinity of fresh clams and is strictly avoided in Italian seafood pasta.

Serving suggestions

Serve immediately in warm ceramic pasta bowls with the cooking juices spooned on top.Pair with a chilled glass of Campanian white wine such as Greco di Tufo or Falanghina.Accompany with crusty durum wheat bread to mop up the remaining garlicky juices.