Spaghetti alle vongole is one of the most popular Italian pasta dishes and immediately reminds you of a holiday at the coast.
Vongole is the Italian word for clams, a shellfish that you can find at the better fishmongers. If you can’t find these, you can use cockles or even mussels.
In the coastal region of Veneto, where the dish originated, two versions are known: made with only white wine or the version we made, with cherry tomatoes and a spoonful of tomato puree.
Spaghetti alle Vongole
A delicious Italian pasta dish with clams or cockles.
Servings: persons
Save
Ingredients
- 300 grams spaghetti
- 2 cloves garlic
- ¼ red pepper if you like your food spicy
- 250 grams cherry tomatoes
- 1 large tbsp tomato puree
- 500 grams clams
- 1 dl white wine
- 2 tbsp parsley finely chopped
- olive oil
- Pepper freshly ground
- Salt
Instructions
- Rinse the vongole under cold running water for about 10 minutes, so that any sand can be rinsed out. Discard any vongole that are broken or left open. Drain the vongole in a sieve.
- Bring water to a boil in a large pan and add a good pinch of salt. Cook the spaghetti al dente according to the cooking time on the package. Then drain it well.
- Meanwhile, clean the garlic and cut it into thin slices.
- Cut the red pepper into slices as well.
- In a frying pan, fry the garlic with the red pepper in a dash of olive oil. Add the cherry tomatoes and fry them until they burst.
- Add the tomato puree and let it fry for another 2 minutes.
- Increase the heat, add the drained clams and shake the pan a few times.
- Deglaze with the white wine and immediately cover the pan with a lid. Let it simmer while covered for 4 minutes. Remove the lid and see if all the shells are open. Otherwise let it simmer for a while. If any clams have not yet opened, remove them and discard them.
- Add the drained spaghetti and parsley, toss this well and season it generously with freshly ground pepper and a pinch of salt if desired.
- Arrange the spaghetti with the vongole in deep plates and spoon over the cherry tomatoes and the cooking juices.
