Peppered Clam Frites

by Ben Lippett, featured in How I Cook

Published by HarperCollins

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Introduction

Mussels and chips, or moules frites as they're known on the continent, are a wonderful thing to eat, but I'm here pitching a new way with shellfish and potatoes. Enter, peppered clam frites.

Peppercorn sauce is a hard-hitting classic and a sauce recipe that I think every home cook should have in their locker. Sure, it's right at home on a piece of seared sirlion or a filet mignon, but for me, it has plenty of applications away from the classic steakhouse serve.

As featured in

How I Cook

Image of Ben Lippett's Peppered Clam Frites — Photo by Sam A Harris

Ingredients

Serves: 2

FOR THE PEPPERCORN SAUCE

1 tablespoon black peppercorns
4 shallots
1 garlic clove
25 grams thyme sprigs (tied into a bunch)
4 teaspoons green peppercorns in brine
50 millilitres bourbon whiskey or brandy
500 millilitres good-quality fresh fish or chicken stock
250 millilitres double cream
25 grams chives
15 grams fresh tarragon
1 lemon
olive oil
fine sea salt

TO SERVE

1 kilogram live clams (cleaned)
fine sea salt
300 grams French fry-style chips

Method

Peppered Clam Frites is a guest recipe by Ben Lippett so we are not able to answer questions regarding this recipe

Start with the sauce. Tip the black peppercorns into a dry frying pan and toast over a medium heat for 4–5 minutes, or until they’re fragrant and the pan is starting to smoke a little. Tip into a mortar or a spice grinder and crush very coarsely. I like to leave plenty of texture in the pepper here – you want to know it’s there in a good peppercorn sauce.
Peel and finely dice the shallots and peel and finely grate the garlic clove. Place a large sauté pan over a medium-high heat and add a healthy dose of olive oil. Once hot, add the shallots and thyme with a pinch of salt and cook for 3–4 minutes until just translucent and the edges are starting to caramelise. Add the garlic and cook for just 1 minute before adding the black pepper and green peppercorns. Cook for another minute to marry the spices with the shallots and garlic before adding the whiskey or brandy and reducing to a glaze. Be careful when you’re adding the alcohol to a hot pan – if you’re cooking over gas, it’s likely that the alcohol will flare up and flambé. That’s fine, and quite fun – just be prepared! Once the alcohol has almost entirely evaporated, add the stock, bring to the boil and reduce by two-thirds. You want things pretty rich here, so don’t be shy. Finally, add the cream, bring back to the boil and reduce again. You’re looking for a café au lait colour, nothing too dark, but a sauce with plenty of body. Have a taste: don’t be tempted to fully season the sauce at this point, the clams are going to deliver some salinity to the dish, so hold off until they’re in the mix. If you want to adjust the pepper, add some extra from the mill.
Give your clams a very good rinse under running cold water. Agitate them in a bowl under a running tap to wash away any excess grit or sand that might be trapped within the shells. Discard any clams that are open and won’t close or have cracked shells. Cover again with cold water, add 1 tablespoon of fine sea salt and stir through the clams. Leave for 15 minutes. The salt will encourage the clams to open and release any last grit. Wash again, drain and set aside.
Prepare the chips according to the package instructions. I find an air fryer is an excellent cooking vehicle for oven chips, but a standard fan-assisted oven, set at around 220°C fan/240°C/460°F/gas mark 9, will do a fine job, too. Be sure to spread your chips out evenly across one or even two baking trays to ensure maximum crisp. We want them crunchy! Alternatively, you can fry them.
Once your chips are about 3 minutes from being perfect, bring your sauce back to the boil. Once very hot, tip in the clams and add a lid. Cook for 3–4 minutes, shaking the pan now and then, until all the clams have opened and are fully cooked. Finely chop the herbs and add them to the pan along with the grated zest and juice of the lemon. Have a taste and adjust the seasoning.
Fill large bowls with handfuls of chips and then spoon the saucy clams over the top, saturating the chips with the sauce. Serve with napkins and get stuck in.

Additional Information

CHEF'S TIP
It's very important to check that the clams you're cooking are alive! If they're open when you buy them, give them a sharp tap on your work surface or any flat surface. If the clams are alive, the shell will gently close. If they're dead they'll remain open. Similarly, any clams that do not open after the cooking process should also be discarded.

SHOOT FROM THE HIP
Mussels are a little cheaper than clamsand will make a fine replacement if they're easier to get hold of. This might depend on the time of year as well as what your fishmonger has on the counter. Mussels are in season from September through to late April. Make sure you use fresh, live clams or mussels, not the precooked rubbish that comes in vaccumm bags.