Description
Enjoy this easy Calamarata Pasta with Clams and Chickpeas made with fresh clams, cherry tomatoes, chickpeas, and parsley. A simple Italian-inspired seafood pasta that’s perfect for any night of the week.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 500 g fresh clams, cleaned well
- 400 g Calamarata pasta (or ditali or shell pasta if unavailable)
- 250 g boiled chickpeas, drained
- 227 g cherry tomatoes, quartered
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- 1 medium carrot, finely diced
- 1 medium onion, finely diced
- 1 celery stalk, finely diced
- 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
- 2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped, plus a few extra sprigs for serving
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Rinse the 500 g fresh clams thoroughly under cold running water, discarding any that are cracked or remain open after being tapped.
- Heat 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a large pan over medium heat.
- Add the 1 crushed garlic clove, cook for about 30 seconds until fragrant, then add the 500 g fresh clams.
- Cover the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, shaking the pan once or twice, until the clams have opened. Discard any clams that stay closed.
- Stir in 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley, then remove the pan from the heat.
- Reserve several clams in their shells for serving. Remove the remaining clams from their shells and set aside.
- Carefully strain the cooking liquid through a fine sieve lined with paper towel or cheesecloth to remove any grit. Set the liquid aside.
- Heat the remaining 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil in a large skillet.
- Add the 1 diced carrot, 1 diced onion, and 1 diced celery stalk.
- Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until softened.
- Add the 227 g quartered cherry tomatoes and cook for another 3 to 4 minutes, allowing them to soften slightly and release their juices.
- Stir in the 250 g drained boiled chickpeas and pour in the reserved clam cooking liquid. Simmer gently for 5 minutes.
- Meanwhile, bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil.
- Cook the 400 g Calamarata pasta according to the package directions until al dente.
- Reserve about 1/2 cup of pasta cooking water, then drain the pasta.
- Add the cooked pasta and shelled clams to the vegetable mixture.
- Toss gently until everything is evenly coated. If needed, add a splash of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce.
- Taste and season lightly with salt if needed. Be careful because the clam liquid is naturally salty.
- Scatter over a few extra sprigs of fresh parsley, top with the reserved clams in their shells, and serve immediately.
Notes
Prepared, tried, and tested by Saverio
