linguini with clam sauce
Stephen Davis PhillipsIn The Italian Kitchen, acclaimed chef and cookbook author Marco Canora teaches viewers to cook classic Italian favorites, such as the dish he demonstrates in this video: Linguine With Clam Sauce recipe.

Marco starts the dish by cooking the clams. He heats up a pot and adds garlic, chopped parsley and some pepperoncini (careful, they're very spicy), followed by white wine and the clams. Once covered, they'll steam open and release their juices.

While the clams cook, he starts the water for the pasta and begins working on the sauce. The base of the flavor is a soffrito -- basically, a mixture of vegetables. In this case, he uses onion, fennel and celery diced finely in a food processor. He cooks the soffrito until the vegetables are soft, then adds a good amount of olive oil (don't be afraid to be generous; it helps coat the pasta). Crushed garlic and a pinch of dried oregano are next.

Now it's time to work with the clams. He drains them, collecting all of the juices in a bowl, then pops the clam meat out of the shells and chops up the clams. He adds them to the soffrito mixture along with the reserved clam juices, then cooks the sauce over high heat to thicken it. Additional olive oil helps the sauce come together, and he also adds fresh chopped parsley and a bit of lemon to brighten the flavor. When the pasta is not quite al dente, he drains it and adds it to the sauce, using tongs to move the pasta around until it's fully coated. He adds a little black pepper and the dish is ready to serve.

Get Marco's recipe for Linguine With Clam Sauce recipe.

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