Email to Cat      

Kitchen Clambake

Source of Recipe

From "The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook" by Ina Garten


Recipe Introduction

"For years at Barefoot Contessa, we made this clambake at the beach. Not only did we have to dig a pit for cooking, but we had to deal with all that wind and sand and darkness. I finally got smart and decided to make a clambake in the kitchen. This is made in one huge pot and it's wonderful served with corn on the cob, a tomato salad, and lots of crusty French bread. And no sand."

List of Ingredients

â—¦ 1 ½ pounds kielbasa
â—¦ 3 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large onions)
â—¦ 2 cups chopped leeks, well cleaned (2 leeks, white parts only)
â—¦ ¼ cup good olive oil
â—¦ 1 ½ pounds small potatoes (red or white)
â—¦ 1 tablespoon kosher salt
â—¦ ½ tablespoon ground black pepper
â—¦ 2 dozen littleneck clams, scrubbed
â—¦ 1 pound steamer clams, scrubbed
â—¦ 2 pounds mussels, cleaned and debearded
â—¦ 1 ½ pounds large shrimp, in the shell
â—¦ 3 lobsters (1 ½ pounds each)
â—¦ 2 cups dry white wine


Recipe

Slice the kielbasa diagonally into 1-inch-thick slices. Set aside. Sauté the onions and leeks in the olive oil in a heavy-bottomed 16- to 20-quart stockpot on medium heat for 15 minutes, until the onions start to brown.

Layer the ingredients on top of the onions in the stockpot in this order: first the potatoes, salt, and pepper, then the kielbasa, littleneck clams, steamer clams, mussels, shrimp, and lobsters. Pour in the white wine. Cover the pot tightly and cook over medium-high heat until steam *just* begins to escape from the lid, about 15 minutes. Lower the heat to medium and cook another 15 minutes. The clambake should be done. Test to be sure the potatoes are tender, the lobsters are cooked, and the clams and mussels are open.

Remove the lobsters to a wooden board, cut them up, and crack the claws. With large slotted spoons, remove the seafood, potatoes, and sausages to a large bowl and top with the lobsters. Season the broth in the pot to taste and serve immediately in mugs with the clambake.

Serves 6 to 8



• I like to use white Châteauneuf du Pape or a good white Burgundy for the clambake and also to serve with dinner. It's an expensive ingredient, but it makes a wonderfully flavored broth.