Steamed Clams With Jalapeño Butter

I didn't have high expectations. But this was just very delicious. I had small Manila clams which cooked in 4 minutes.

I added some onion and garlic to the bacon fat, and browned the butter for the jalapeños. Delicious.

Easy and tasty, I'll be making this again soon. The jalapeños I used were extra hot, so will cut back on them next time, but the clams were delicious. I used cornmeal as suggested by others to remove the sand; either the clams were sandless to begin with or the tip really worked because there was absolutely no grit (I usually leave them in vinegar and water, which works too). I always use wine with clams, so this recipe was a nice change, and the beer was great with them.

Why butter in the pot? Seems like 2 tsps of butter would not have any flavor effect, and is not needed if you're cooking bacon; and if you're not using the bacon, couldn't you just pour in the beer?

Here's the relatively simple method I've developed of prepping clams. Mix up 6 cups water and 3 Tbsp non-iodized salt, like sea salt or kosher salt. Scrub the clams under cold running water and put them and the salt water in a large bowl. Let them sit for a few hours. Put them in the fridge or throw a few ice cubes in the bowl. When you're ready to cook, take the clams out of the salt water and give them a rinse. You're ready to cook nice, clean clams!

I live on the beach in NH the way we clean clams here is to fill a bucket with sea water add a little corn meal and the clams. The clams eat the corn meal and clean themselves. The result are super sweet clams. Using tap water will kill the clams.

Best way to clean the clams...Scrub with brush. Place clams in a big pot filled with cold water...Sprinkle a bit of corn meal....Place pot with water and clams in sink, under faucet. Allow the faucet to slightly drip water into the pot. This keeps the water moving and the corn meal irritates the live clams, causing them to ever so slightly open up and expel their sand. One could argue that this wastes water (OK), but how often do you steam clams if you don't live on the coast?

Where I live only flash frozen mussels are available. I think they'd be just as delicious cooked this way (mussels vs. clams). Would like to know how to treat them since they're frozen? Thaw? Or put in pot frozen? Thank you to anyone who can advise. I'd rather eat frozen than none at all.

Works fine with mussels too

A friend of mine told me, many years ago, to throw into the soaking water a handful of cornmeal to clean out the clams. I don't know if this really makes a difference, but I've stuck to it, and here in Downeast Maine (on a clam flat), I've always had clean succulent clams (and clam chowder) after soaking for about 3-4 hours and rinsing several times.

I make steamed clams as often as I can... Options: Sauté chopped garlic (in place of the bacon here) and use a crisp white wine, like a Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, instead of beer (although beer works just fine). I finish with fresh chopped parsley tossed in at the end. Also, I throw in a bottle of clam juice for extra broth as the clams steam. It's always a hit – and whatever leftover broth doesn't get sopped up with crusty bread can be made into a fantastic clam sauce later!

Surely not littleneck clams! The only clams steamed in New England are soft-shell clams, with the lovely long neck for hold the clam while you dip it in butter-laden clam broth.

1/4 cup of salt per quart of water, soak the clams for 30 mins so they purge themselves of sand/grit. Good to go!

Absolutely divine. I’m not a beer person so I subbed Chardonnay. I dusted the bowls of clams with chopped cilantro before serving. One of the best, simple things I’ve ever prepared. Costco had live clams that were very clean.