How to make a broiled seafood combination featuring clams casino
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Making delicious restaurant style meals at home is really easier than you think, and dishes like a seafood combination are not only perfect for that intimate dinner for two, but also for a party of eight, It’s all in the timing!
Ingredients can vary depending on what’s available and what you like, but a standard seafood combo, usually has, Flounder, scallops, shrimp, and some form of crabmeat, other than that whatever else you like can be an added bonus. In my restaurant days, we stuffed the shrimp with crab imperial, or sometimes the dinner would include a small lobster tail and that would be stuffed with crab imperial. In my restaurant days, Clams Casino was king and I made one of the best clams casino you’ll ever have, and there were always a few on any seafood combo I served.
I don’t know when clams casino lost their popularity, and it’s a rare occasion to find them on a menu. For those of you that have never had them, you really need to make them. The next time you friends or family over make two dozen and watch them disappear, I promise you they will be the hit of the evening! If you’re pressed for time, you can make the clams up ahead of time, they store well and can even be frozen. I’ll let you in on a little secret to opening clams easily too!
For another seafood dish, be sure to try my delicious Italian Baccala cod dish.
If your stuffing clams, throw them in the freezer for about an hour, rinse them under cool water and just slip a knife in and they open like magic! Now this only works for stuffing clams, please don’t use this method for clams on the half shell! While we’re talking about clams, I want to mention that you need to be sure your source is reliable, small bags of clams will always have a tag on them, telling you when and where they came from, it’s the law! This is true for mussels too. If your buying clams or mussels by the dozen and they’re on display, you can ask to see the tag that came off the original container. Only buy shellfish from reliable sources you trust!
My seafood combo was very basic with 3 shrimp, 4 scallops, a small piece of flounder with some jumbo lump crabmeat, a half a dozen mussels, and of course my clams casino. I placed all my seafood (except the crabmeat and clams casino) in a baking dish with a little water in the dish, and spooned a little melted butter over the seafood and a sprinkle of old bay, place in a 350-degree oven for about 20 minutes. I kept the casino in a separate dish because they needed a few minutes under the broiler, after their time in the oven.
The crab meat I gently sauteed in melted butter and topped the flounder with the crab meat when I was ready to serve dinner. Make your favorites sides, a small salad, and you’ve just saved yourself about 65% of what the meal would have cost you if you had gone out to dinner.
Clams Casino
Ingredients
- 24 Top neck clams-cleaned
- 8 ounces Butter
- ½ pound Bacon thinly sliced
- 1 Large Red Bell Pepper- small dice
- 1 Large Spanish or Va dahlia Onion -small dice
- ½ cup grated Romano Cheese
- 1 teaspoon Oregano
- ½ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 1 Tablespoon fresh Italian Parsley finely chopped
Instructions
- Chop the onion, and bell pepper into a small dice
- Slice the bacon slices about ⅛ of an inch thick.
- place the butter, bacon, peppers, and onions into a medium sauce pan and cook on low heat for about 15-20 minutes.
- Remove the pan from the heat and add the grated Romano, black pepper, Oregano (and always use dry, fresh oregano does not work as well) and the chopped parsley. Mix well.
- Place into the refrigerator and stir it occasionally so all the ingredients stay well blended, until the butter has firmed back up. This will take at least 2 hours, so give yourself time.*
- Take the clams out of the freezer, and rinse them in a bowl with running water for about 5 minutes.
- Open your clams with the blade of a knife, just be careful!
- Take a spoonful of the prepared Casino mix and make a nice mound of it on top of the clam, pressing it into the clam firmly with your hand. Repeat this process until all of the clams are stuffed.
- Now place your clams in a casserole, there will be butter run off, so we don’t want that spilling into your oven.
- Place the clams into a 375 degree oven for about 15 minutes, then finish for about 5 minutes under your broiler or until the bacon and tops begin to get nicely browned.
Chris colfer says
Hi chef
Can I use white wine in this recipe?
If so when and how should I incorporate it
Also my girls and family members love your crab imperial!
Thank you chef dennis.
The Colfer family from n j
Chef Dennis Littley says
hi Chris
I’m happy to hear you have been enjoying my crab Imperial recipe.
if you’re talking about the white wine in the broiled combo, you can add some to the pan your cooking the seafood in. That will also help it from drying out. But I wouldn’t add any to the clams casino.
bungon says
Come to say “Happy New Year 2012 to chef Dennis ” !!!…. and hope you will be the popular chef on foodbuzz forever, because you always to be top 9 …I love seafood like this but I have spicy chili sauce with seafood too ,it’s easy just have garlic ,thai red chili ,lime juice,fish sauce and some sugar.. that’s it….
Elin says
Chef Dennis…Happy New year !!! and congrats on Top 9. I enjoyed your romantic story in Paris with Lisa…a day to remember…those fireworks and your first new year eve’s kiss ! 🙂 ….before I got carried away..your seafood combination looks good and you have managed to make me drool away 🙂 Have a great day Chef !
Happy When Not Hungry says
Wow this looks amazing! I def have to try clams casino. Looks fantastic!
Peggy says
Thank you so much for sharing your sweet New Year’s Eve story with us Dennis! Lisa is a lucky lucky gal =)
Especially with being served dinners like this!
Apron Appeal says
Have you been back?! Someday I’ll go back to Paris and take my husband with me. The next time I won’t squander the food opportunity on steak and french vanilla ice cream….I was two young the first few times to realize that the food that looked strange could actually be AMAZING.
Chef D says
yes I’ve been 3 times to my favorite city, but its been too many years since our last trip, I keep telling my wife when I retire I want to spend a month in Paris, everytime I’m there I discover something new.
Happy New Year!
Jess says
Everything looks great, my mouth is watering! Thank you for sharing and congrats on Top 9. 🙂
Chef D says
Thank you Jess!
Sheri says
Your story was beautiful! And the dinner…awesome!! I made a seafood dish also but not nearly as perfect looking as yours. And, Wegman’s really is so wonderful. I love just about everything about that store! Happy New Year!
Chef D says
Happy New Year Sheri! The only thing I don’t like about Wegmans is how much I spend each trip, I always find too many good things!
Sheri says
True, but I try to comfort myself with the fact that it’s all whole, good foods that I find there. It’s just worth it. 🙂
Dara says
This looks amazing. There is just nothing better than fresh seafood. I agree that it’s incredibly important to know where your seafood comes from. I consult the Blue Ocean Institute – which keeps track of farming methods, endangered populations of wild caught species and mercury levels. It’s a great resource for making informed choices. http://www.blueocean.org/seafood/seafood-guide
Sandra says
Congratulations on Top 9 and Happy New Year!
Alyssa says
What a great, romantic meal! My husband loves clams, so I’m sure he’d really like this one. I hope you had a Happy New Year (we’re old fuddy duddies, so we didn’t stay up to midnight!)
Ann says
This looks amazing – I wish I wasn’t allergic to seafood! Next time you decide to do Disney – let me know! I maintain an annual pass and live a short drive away – I’d love to meet you & Mrs. Chef Dennis!
Chef D says
thanks Ann! I would love to come back down, its been so long since weve done any traveling, we are really due! I will certainly let you know when we can schedule some Mickey time!
Emily @ Life on Food says
What a wonderful memory! I would love to spend New Year Eve or really any day in Paris. I think it is the most perfect city in the world.