Spaghetti allo Scoglio (Italian Seafood Pasta Recipe)

Method18 steps

1. 1

   Step 1: Check the 1 kg live clams and discard any with cracked shells or shells that stay open when tapped. Rinse them under fresh running water. Put them in a bowl with plenty of cold purging water and the handful of coarse salt. Leave loosely covered in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour, preferably 2 hours, to purge.

   Cold clam purge · 120 minUses 1 kg live clams, in their shells · Fresh water for rinsing clams · Plenty of cold water for purging clams · 1 handful coarse salt for purging

   
2. 2

   Step 2: Lift the purged clams from step 1 out of the water, leaving the grit behind, and discard that water. Put all the clams in a pan, cover and cook over high heat for about 3 minutes, until their shells open. Discard any that remain closed after cooking.

   Open clams · 3 minUses All purged clams from step 1

3. 3

   Step 3: Pour the cooked clams and their released liquid from step 2 through a very fine strainer into a clean bowl. Keep the filtered clam juice separately from the cooked clams for the sauce.

   Uses Cooked clams and liquid from step 2

   
4. 4

   Step 4: Remove most of the cooked clams from step 3 from their shells. Keep the shelled clam meat together for the sauce, and keep a few cooked clams in their shells in a separate bowl for the final garnish. Refrigerate both until needed.

   Uses Cooked clams from step 3

5. 5

   Step 5: Check the 1 kg live mussels and discard cracked shells or mussels that stay open when tapped. Scrub the shells under fresh running water and pull away the beards.

   Uses 1 kg live mussels, in their shells · Fresh water for cleaning mussels

   
6. 6

   Step 6: Put all the cleaned mussels from step 5 into a separate pan, cover and cook over high heat for about 3 minutes, until their shells open. Discard any that remain closed after cooking.

   Open mussels · 3 minUses All cleaned mussels from step 5

7. 7

   Step 7: Strain the cooked mussels and liquid from step 6 through a very fine strainer. Remove most mussels from their shells, keeping the shelled meat for the sauce and a few cooked mussels in their shells separately for garnish. Refrigerate the meat and garnish until needed. Reserve the filtered mussel juice for another use.

   Uses Cooked mussels and liquid from step 6

   
8. 8

   Step 8: Separate the tentacles from the bodies of all 300 g whole squid. Remove the innards and clear internal cartilage, then remove the eyes and beak from the tentacles. Rinse the edible bodies and tentacles with fresh water.

   Uses 300 g whole squid, weighed before cleaning · Fresh water for rinsing the cleaned squid

   
9. 9

   Step 9: Peel the skin from the cleaned squid bodies from step 8 and cut them into rings. Keep the edible tentacles with the rings and refrigerate until making the sauce.

   Uses All edible squid from step 8

   
10. 10

    Step 10: Remove the heads and shells from all 300 g whole shrimp, then remove the dark intestinal veins. Refrigerate all the peeled, deveined shrimp until step 15.

    Uses 300 g whole shrimp, weighed before peeling

11. 11

    Step 11: Wash and chop all 200 g cherry tomatoes. Wash and finely chop the leaves and tender stems of the small bunch of parsley (1 small bunch). Keep the tomatoes and parsley separately for their later uses.

    Uses 200 g cherry tomatoes · 1 small bunch fresh parsley

12. 12

    Step 12: Heat all 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a wide, deep pan. Sauté the 2 peeled whole garlic cloves until fragrant. Add the whole red chili and all the prepared squid rings and tentacles from step 9. Cook over medium heat for about 2 minutes, stirring.

    Cook squid · 2 minUses 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil · 2 peeled whole garlic cloves · 1 whole fresh red chili · All prepared squid from step 9

13. 13

    Step 13: Raise the heat under the squid mixture from step 12 and add all 150 ml dry white wine. Stir and let it bubble until the sharp wine aroma has subsided. Add all the shelled clam meat from step 4 and shelled mussel meat from step 7, keeping their reserved in-shell garnishes separate, then lower the heat.

    Uses Squid mixture from step 12 · 150 ml dry white wine · All shelled clam meat from step 4 · All shelled mussel meat from step 7

14. 14

    Step 14: Add 1 ladle of the filtered clam juice from step 3 and all the chopped tomatoes from step 11 to the seafood base from step 13. Reserve the rest of the clam juice. Cook over high heat for about 10 minutes, stirring, until the tomatoes soften and the sauce comes together.

    Cook tomato sauce · 10 minUses Seafood base from step 13 · 1 ladle of filtered clam juice from step 3 · All chopped tomatoes from step 11

15. 15

    Step 15: Add all the peeled shrimp from step 10 and all the chopped parsley from step 11 to the sauce from step 14. Cook over medium heat for about 3 minutes, until the shrimp are firm and opaque throughout and the squid is cooked through; continue if needed. Lift out and discard the whole garlic cloves and chili.

    Cook shrimp · 3 minUses Sauce from step 14 · All peeled shrimp from step 10 · All chopped parsley from step 11

16. 16

    Step 16: Bring a large pot of pasta water to a boil and salt it. Add all 350 g uncooked spaghetti and cook until 3 minutes short of the package cooking time. Lift the partly cooked pasta directly out of the water with tongs or a pasta strainer.

    Uses Water for boiling spaghetti · Salt for pasta water · 350 g uncooked spaghetti

17. 17

    Step 17: Transfer all the partly cooked spaghetti from step 16 directly into all the seafood sauce from step 15. Toss over high heat for about 3 minutes, until the spaghetti is al dente and coated. If the pan becomes dry before the pasta is ready, add a little of the reserved filtered clam juice. Taste and add finishing salt only if needed.

    Finish pasta in sauce · 3 minUses All partly cooked spaghetti from step 16 · All seafood sauce from step 15 · A little reserved filtered clam juice, only if needed · Finishing salt only if needed

18. 18

    Step 18: Gently warm the reserved cooked in-shell clams from step 4 and mussels from step 7 with the completed pasta from step 17. Divide the pasta and sauce between 4 plates, arrange those cooked shellfish on top and serve immediately.

    Uses All completed pasta from step 17 · All reserved in-shell clam garnish from step 4 · All reserved in-shell mussel garnish from step 7