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Chances are good you've never thought about grilling clams. Chris Schlesinger and Doc Willoughby think you should give them a chance. Both authors behind the cookbook Grill It! stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about a fantastic way to sear those sea creatures! They start with a foil pan with some butter or white wine on it, place it on one side of the grill. They put the clams on the other side. When the clams are ready, their shells open up. Pour the butter and wine into the clams and enjoy!
(Makes 6 first-course servings; Time: 15 minutes)
· 36 clams, oysters, or (preferably) a combination
· 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
· 1 tablespoon minced garlic
· 1 tablespoon Tabasco sauce, or to taste
· The juice of 1/2 lemon
· Salt and black pepper
· Lemon wedges for serving
1. Build a multilevel fire in your grill (using hardwood charcoal, if possible): Leave one-quarter of the bottom free of coals; in the rest of the grill, bank the coals so that they are about 3 times as high on one side as the other. When the coals are all white and the temperature has died down to medium, 20 to 30 minutes after you light the fire (you should be able to hold your hand about 5 inches above the hot part of the grill for a few seconds), you're ready to cook. Meanwhile, scrub the clams and oysters with a stiff brush, then shuck them and detach them from their bottom shells.
2. Make the barbecue sauce: Combine the butter, garlic, Tabasco, lemon juice, and salt and pepper to taste in a small saucepan and simmer over low heat, cooking the sauce until the flavors have melded and the garlic has lost its raw bite, 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Arrange the mollusks over the hot part of the grill and baste each with a little of the sauce. Cook until the sauce bubbles and simmers for just a minute, then carefully transfer the clams and oysters to a platter and serve at once (be careful; the shells are hot), with the lemon wedges.
