An Authentic New England Clambake

Ahhhh…A New England clambake! A wonderful culinary tradition, a wicked lot of work to put on, and still so much fun. This is the story of my family’s most recent clambake, held at my parents' rural home.

About a week in advance, the lobsters, clams, and seaweed were ordered from Colony Farms, a seafood market and wholesaler in Worcester. They were picked up a day in advance and the lobsters kept in coolers, and the seaweed kept wet in a barrel of water. The clams were kept in a cooler, layered with ice and cornmeal. (First the ice, then the clams, then the cornmeal, then ice, clams, cornmeal repeated until the clams are all packed in.) The cooler was tipped to drain, so the clams wouldn't fill up with freshwater which could kill them. . The clams ate the cornmeal, and eliminated the sludge from their bellies, so their bellies became tasty pockets of cornmeal instead of yucky parts to avoid when we ate them. In a group effort, the clams were packed into cheesecloth pouches in which to cook.

A clambake essentially is the creation of a giant temporary outdoor pressure cooker to steam the food. Besides lobsters and clams, we had corn cooked by the same method, soaked in the husk overnight. We also had onions wrapped in foil, which some people apparently like to have at clambakes. (I’m not entirely averse to them, but not a fan—there’s just so much else to eat, so I don't bother with them.)

Here's how the clambake was done, with vivid photos taken by Anna Foss and (my brother) Joe LaCroix, who graciously furnished me with a flash drive of photos to choose from. Thank you.

Dad used the tractor to dig the pit.

The pit was lined with stones, and the fire started with kindling.

After adding the big logs, the fire had to be oxygenated to keep it going. Yes, that is a leaf blower Dad is using. Some “scattered showers” were passing through, and the fire needed all the help it could get.

The guys knocked down the fire. They pushed the remains of the big logs off the fire using brooms and rakes, to expose the hot rocks which cook the food.

A casualty of the knocking-down procedure.

Seaweed on the hot stones.

Then a thoroughly pre-soaked canvas tarp over that.

Then the food was added to the pile. One lobster and a bag of clams was put right near the edge, so one can check for done-ness (if those are done, the others are too) without letting a lot of steam out.

Then the thoroughly pre-soaked comforter that used to be my sister’s (not shown) on top of that, and then the top tarp.

Sand weighed down the edges of the tarp to trap the steam. See how the tarp makes a bubble.

After about 30 minutes, it was time to check the lobsters and clams. They were ready, and so it was time to peel off the tarp and take the food off the pile--using gloves, of course, because everything was extremely hot.

Meanwhile, I was in the kitchen melting four pounds of salted butter in a saucepan in the kitchen. Salted butter is the preferred dipping sauce from clams and lobsters. It sounds like a ridiculous amount, but with 30 people or so, it was all used, and we resorted to margarine (“I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter” (tm) ) when we ran out, but that wasn't quite as good.

Yes, everything was as delicious as it looks!

Shell sculpture!

A great time was had by all.

Clambake Leftovers: Clams in Butter with Scallions

After Saturday's clambake, there was an absurd bounty of leftovers. I took home a 3-cup container of cooked whole clam meat (thanks Mom, Emily, and Danielle for shelling the leftovers), as well as more BBQ chicken than I would usually eat in a month.

Since Chris is dead-set against eating clams that aren't breaded and deep-fried with the bellies removed, those clams were all mine. Here's what I had for lunch.

Clams in Butter with Scallions

2 1/2 cups shelled clams

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) or so of butter

2 scallions, snipped into bits

Melt butter in a skillet on medium-high. If it is unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt. Add scallions, cook until scallions are translucent, stirring frequently. Add clams, heat for about 3 minutes, stir frequently. Voila! It's ready!

I served this on a bed of brown rice. Simple and delicious.

Tonight's Special: Turkey Burger Sliders and Zucchini Shoestring Fries

This is what we had for dinner tonight.

I always stock up on the styrofoam packs of fresh ground turkey when they go on sale at Big Y. With the "Buy 1 Get 2 Free" deal, I get 3 20-ounce packs of meat for $5. So I stick some in the freezer for later, but use some soon after purchase. This may be my new favorite.

Turkey Burger Sliders

One 20-ounce package of ground turkey

Approximately 1 Tablespoon Adobo seasoning with cumin*

Burger rolls or bread slices, cut into quarters

Cheese slices (optional) cut into quarters

Condiments as desired

Thoroughly mix the seasoning into the meat. Refrigerate meat for at least an hour to let spices sink in. With your hands, mix the meat for good measure. Using a 1/4 cup measure, divide the meat into portions for the patties. Not filling the measure all the way to the top, you should get 9 or 10 patties. Smoosh the measured meat into a patty shape and cook in a grill pan, Foreman grill, skillet, or on the grill outside until well done throughout. Make sandwiches with patties and quartered bread and cheese.

*Adobo is a multi-purpose seasoning, found in the Latino foods aisle, made by Goya and other brands. It is a mixture of salt and spices, which comes in a varieties like with or without pepper and with cumin. It is inexpensive and versatile; I use it on home fries, and add paprika (for color, mostly) to make taco seasoning. Of course, if you would rather not add sodium to your burgers, feel free to use your own seasoning of choice.

When I mix and shape the meat, I wear unpowdered medical-type gloves, available at drugstores, so that I don't get meat under my fingernails and don't have to scrub my hands so much afterwards, but have the dexterity of bare hands. I also use these gloves when kneading breads, or to mix large batches of cookie dough with my hands.

Ground turkey also comes in frozen rolls, sausage-shaped plastic bundles. I wouldn't use the frozen rolls of ground turkey for burgers because the meat is too mushy and wouldn't hold together well enough. The ground turkey I freeze at home I usually don't want to wait for to thaw enough to be workable. However, the frozen ground turkey is great for shepherd's pie, American chop suey, stroganoff, and other dishes where a crumbly texture is desirable.

The Zucchini Shoestring Fries didn't come out quite as planned. The end result was similar to fried calamari: a tangled mess of moist fried strands that even tasted sort of like calamari (maybe it was the extra-virgin olive oil). But that was fine with us, since we like fried calamari. My comments and modifications are in italics next to the original recipe.

1 very large zucchini (How large is very large? My zucchini was over a foot long, and thick like the business end of a baseball bat.)
1 teaspoon salt (With such a huge zucchini, I used more than that--about 1 1/2 teaspoons)
Several sprigs of rosemary (If you have rosemary leaves that come in a jar, just sprinkle those in.)
1/2 cup olive oil (Maybe I was using a bigger skillet than the author used, it was more than that, enough to cover the bottom.)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour (lots o' squash warranted more flour, about 1/4 cup)

1. Cut the squash lengthwise into halves, and then cut into 1/4 inch slices, then cut those into 1/8. (This is where I wanted to go to Williams-Sonoma and buy a gadget that does the cutting for me. After cutting it in half lengthwise, I cut the zucchini into "shoestring-y enough" strips.)

2. Sprinkle and toss with salt in a colander and set in the sink to drain for 30 minutes. After draining, squeeze out as much water as you can with your hands. (You may wish to use a paper towel to bundle the squash in when you squeeze it. This recipe comes from an eco-friendly website, and they would rather not promote unnecessary paper towel use. You could also use a clean dish towel.)

3. Heat oil in a skillet–you want the oil very hot, but not smoking.

4. Toss zucchini with flour in a bowl, then add it to the oil in batches. Cook for about 5 minutes until zucchini is just golden, then toss in a few leaves of rosemary. Cook for another minute until zucchini is golden.

5. Drain zucchini on paper towel and serve immediately. (Apparently, this is necessary paper towel use. I wouldn't wreck a dish towel for this.)

I need a cute and clever sign-off catchphrase.

--M

Save the pasta water, save the world...

I have always considered the directions on packages of pasta to require ridiculous amounts of water. Yes, the pasta needs to move freely while it's boiling, but 6 quarts per pound is not necessary. In fact, I checked the Revere Ware pot that my mom always made a pound of 'ronis in, which is now my 'roni pot, and it's a mere 4 1/2 quarts. Ergo, I've been using about 2 1/2 or 3 quarts to make a pound of pasta for nearly two decades, and it's always come out very nicely. What's absolutely absurd and wasteful is that the 9 ounce packages of refrigerated tortellini and ravioli call for 4 quarts (a gallon) of water. I think I might have used a quart (if even that), and they also came out nicely.  One needs only half the water the package calls for (or less) to make good 'ronis. 

In a New York Times article dated February 24, 2009

Harold McGee challenged the conventional method of cooking pasta, which calls for boiling six quarts of water per pound of pasta. He also starts his pasta in cold water, instead of boiling the water then adding pasta. The potential environmental impact is stunning.  

"After some experiments, I’ve found that we can indeed make pasta in just a few cups of water and save a good deal of energy. Not that much in your kitchen or mine — just the amount needed to keep a burner on high for a few more minutes. But Americans cook something like a billion pounds of pasta a year, so those minutes could add up.

My rough figuring indicates an energy savings at the stove top of several trillion B.T.U.s. At the power plant, that would mean saving 250,000 to 500,000 barrels of oil, or $10 million to $20 million at current prices. Significant numbers, though these days they sound like small drops in a very large pot." 

I will still boil the water, then add the pasta, because I can rely on it to come out well. I do turn off the water a couple minutes before the pasta is done cooking, and just let it soak in the hot water.

This article in About.com explains a minimal-water technique for making pasta. I probably won't do it, but it's there for those who want to try it.

If pasta companies changed their box directions to reflect how much water one really needs, more people would conserve water and energy. (Letter-writing campaign?) Given the water situation in parts of the USA, like the fight over the reservoir that currently supplies Atlanta and is drying up, and the need for us to be more self-sufficient and not be beholden to foreign oil, every person and pot of pasta we can get to make these small changes is a baby step forward.