Time: 30 minutes

Serves: 1 quart

  • 4 slices bacon (preferably double-smoked), chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • Juice of 1/2 lemon
  • 1 dozen quahog or chowder clams, scrubbed and soaked to remove dirt
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 2 1/2 cups water

CLAM BROTH WITH BACON AND FRESH THYME

Recipe courtesy Tyler Florence

Put a large pot over medium heat, add the bacon and sauté until the fat is rendered and the bacon is browned, about 5 minutes. Remove the cooked pieces from the pot and drain, then reserve for something else. Add the garlic cloves and lemon juice and cook, stirring, in the bacon drippings for 2 to 3 minutes. Add the clams, white wine, and water and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat, cover the pot, and simmer for 10 or 15 minutes to steam open the clams. Remove the clams from the pot, discarding any that don’t open. Strain the broth into a bowl. Pull the clams out of their shells, chop them, and add to the bowl with the broth.  (Discard the shells.) Use the broth immediately or, if you plan on storing it, put the bowl in a sink full of ice water and stir to cook down the broth. Transfer to a storage container and refrigerate for a day or two, or freeze.

Edited: October 15th, 2009