Spaghetti alle vongole with Nduja

Spaghetti with vongole and ‘nduja, a spicy Calabrian salami paste

Ingredients

400 g spaghetti (or spaghettoni or linguine)
60 ml (¼ cup) good quality extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
1-2 garlic cloves, unpeeled, bruised (or peeled and finely chopped if you prefer)
1 bird’s eye chilli, or to taste, thinly sliced
2 tbsp ’nduja (see note)
5-6 parsley stalks, finely chopped
150 ml dry white wine
1 kg vongole, rinsed
sea salt, to taste
chopped parsley, to serve

Instructions

1. Fill a large saucepan of salted water and bring to the boil. Drop the pasta into the boiling water and stir through so it doesn’t get stuck to the bottom of the pan. Cook until almost al dente, stirring occasionally.

2. While the pasta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the garlic, chilli, ’nduja and parsley stalks, stir to combine and let it sizzle for about 15 seconds. Add the wine and vongole and simmer for 2 minutes or until the alcohol has evaporated. Taste for salt and adjust accordingly, keeping in mind that vongole will add their salty kick to the dish. Cover with a lid and steam the vongole for 2- 3 minutes to open up and release their beautiful juices.

3. When the pasta has cooked to about ¾, transfer straight out of the water into the pan with the vongole, dragging along some of the pasta cooking water (enough that the spaghetti can finish cooking until al dente and to allow the sauce to become creamy in texture). Remove from the heat, add the chopped parsley and a drizzle of extra oil if you wish, toss to combine well, then serve immediately!

Notes

• ‘nduja is a type of spreadable salami from Calabria you can purchase here

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