Summer Demands an Easy Baked Stuffed Clam Recipe

When I go clam digging and I am as successful as I was on this particular trip, my favorite clam recipe to cook is baked stuffed clams. Today, I'm going to share how I create this fantastic dish!

Knife Skills
First and foremost, all of the clams need to be cut into small, yet uniformly sized pieces. While you are chopping the clams, it's good to keep a watchful eye out for pieces of shell. You may also feel these unwanted pieces with your hands.

Into the Pan
Calling on your knowledge of basic sauté method is what you'll need to do next starting with melting butter into your pan. For the best baked stuffed clams, make sure that you control the heat so your melted butter isn't allowed to brown in the pan. Once melted, add your chopped clams.

After a few moments, the clams you brought home from your clam digging expedition will release much of the moisture that they have and begin to poach in their own liquid. Watch your temperature to ensure that the clams don't boil or simmer, but continue to poach.

The Thickener
Add enough Panko bread crumbs to soak up some of the liquid as well as a heaping mound of Parmesan cheese. Stir all of the ingredients together and taste it to ensure that you have the correct seasoning in place. Now, your clam recipe is starting to take form!

Seasoning
I like to add basil and oregano, but it doesn't mean that you have to. Make sure that you season your clams to your sense of taste. After the seasoning is just right, I like to add a large quantity of fresh chopped parsley to give it a fresh aromatic flavor.

The Half Shell
Set up some half shells on a sheet pan for your baked stuffed clams and use a portion scoop to get the same quantity of clam mixture out of your bowl and into the clam shells. Using a portion scoop will ensure that your clam recipe cooks consistently for each clam shell.

Percentages
From my clam digging adventure, I ended up using 120 raw clams for my clam recipe which yielded a total of 40 baked stuffed clams. That's 3 whole clams for each baked clam.

The next time you go clam digging, remember that the most flavorful dishes that you cook are made from the freshest ingredients and the simplest cooking methods. I hope that your clam recipe for baked stuffed clams turns out just as flavorful as mine.