Urban Clam BakeFor the last couple years I have gone to Bar Harbor for a long weekend with friends and had a clam bake on the rocks by the ocean. If you have known me for more than a week or two, I have likely subjected you to photos. It is one of my favorite days of the year. This year the trip to Bar Harbor wasn't in the cards, so I decided to throw myself a clam bake for one on the deck.
Above:
-"Wood" Grilled Lobster with garlic-shallot butter
-Clams in a fennel, white wine and chorizo broth
-Sauteed baby squash with mixed herbs
For the lobster you will need:
-1 or more live lobsters
-Butter
-A couple cloves of garlic, chopped
-1 Shallot, chopped fine
-salt and pepper
Start your grill so it has a chance to get hot. I also used some alder wood chips to give the lobster some smoke flavor (see prior post on getting smoke out of the gas Weber Q). This recipe is really best over a wood fire but the lobster seems to absorb flavor readily and so a little smoke on the gas grill makes a real difference.
Side note: If you are new to smoking woods, check out
Northwoods Smoke of Minnesotta. There is whole world out there beyond hickory and mesquite from the supermarket. As mentioned in prior posts, I am particularly fond of pecan wood.
Kill your lobster (instructions
here) and remove the tail and claws (some fish shops will do this for you cause frankly, its not much fun). Cut the underside of the tail lengthwise but just short of the end fin, so it doesn't separate into two parts and insert bamboo skewers the length of the tail on either side to keep it from curling up on the grill. Crack the claws in several places with the back of a large chef's knife.
Melt the butter, garlic, shallots, salt and pepper in a fire proof sauce pan on the stove.
When the fire is hot and the wood is smoking, place the lobster on the grill cracked side down. I also put the melted butter dish on the grill which adds a little smoke and keeps it handy for when you turn the lobster. After about 3 minutes, turn the lobster parts over and baste liberally with the melted butter mixture. I find a small brush helpful to get the butter into the cracks you made in the claws with your knife. Grill for another 3 to 5 minutes. Remove from the grill and serve with the remaining melted butter.
For the clams, I used a variation on this recipe from Epicurious (
here). My edits:
1. Included some diced chorizo with the fennel and onion
2. Skipped the butter and saffron
3. Used some random variety of clam from fish monger, they were out of little necks
4. Used mixed fresh herbs including: chives, tarragon, parsley and mint. the recipe calls for just the mint.
The whole thing came out very well and I ate most of a baguette just soaking up clam broth and chorizo bits.
For the baby squash:
Cut squash in half and saute with garlic and more of the fresh herb mixture from the clams above. When they are in season, there is nothing else to do.
Season everything to taste and enjoy. I washed it all down with some cold rose.
The pan below the ribs is full of Coors Light and is sitting directly on the burner. The empty can above the grate kept the lid ajar just a bit so that with the burner on low, the grill maintained an even 250F. Without the can, the temp crept closer to 300F. The pecan wood chunks didn't burn much so next time I think I will soak them and place them on the burner below the grate. I left the ribs on for 3 hours and went thru 6 cans of beer. All and all for a first try, it worked pretty well.
