Clams and Mussels with Chorizo

It's not common but happens for the both of us to be relaxing in our own ways on a warm summer day and that neither of us have thought of a dinner plan. And it is common in this situation that T gets a hankering for Clams & Mussels.

Being a born and bred northwesterner... clams & mussels... it is almost a given of sorts. They are very commonly enjoyed by folks living on the Puget Sound. It would be a shame to not indulge in these amazing bivalves if they are available at your back door as they are here.

So on this particular evening clams, mussels and some chorizo sounded perfect. G was willing. Being a Midwestern bred kind of guy G didn't grow up with this dish but he's learned to enjoy it.

We always purchase our seafood at Metropolitan Market when we can. We went and picked up some manila clams, mussels and Mediterranean mussels and some of their ground chorizo for our bivalve feast.

It's a simple meal. We cook the chorizo and drain it. Then chop garlic, shallot, fresh herbs from our garden and sweat them out in a combo of butter & olive oil in a dutch oven.

Our tiny patio herb garden gets lots of use during the summer

Add back the chorizo.

Then we add 1 cup dry white wine and 1 cup chicken broth. Bring it to a simmer and add the mussels & clams. Cover. Once they start to open we turn off the heat.

We serve ours with a good grilled baguette to soak up the wonderfully flavored broth.

On this night we enjoyed our clams & mussels with a red Spanish blend of Monastrell and tempranillo from the Jumilla region of Spain. Which is where some of our favorite Spanish wines come from. This was a new winery to us but it was very good.

It was a great, quick, with little fuss kind of summer patio meal.

Recipe:

Clams & Mussels with Chorizo

1 lb. manila clams

1/2 lb. Mediterranean mussels

1/4 lb. ground chorizo

4 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 shallot, minced

3 Tblspn. chopped thyme & basil

1 Tblspn. butter

1 Tblspn. olive oil

1 C. dry white wine

1 cup organic chicken broth

Cook chorizo and drain. Cook garlic, shallot & herbs in butter & olive oil until translucent. Add cooked/drained chorizo. Add wine & chicken broth. Bring to simmer. Add clams & mussels. Cover. When clams & mussels start to open turn heat off. Serve with a crusty bread for broth dipping.