Razor clams with wild boar bacon

A rare and delicious treat

Razor clams are not commonly found in fishmongers. But if you can get your hands on them, there are plenty of ways to turn them into a meal.

Courtesy of Lee Streeton and Mark Hix, the leading chefs at HIX at The Albemarle restaurant, this clam recipe with wild boar bacon and hedgerow garlic is both unusual and extravagant and utilises the finest seasonal British ingredients. Read on for more details...

Ingredients

8 or 12 live razor clams
150g wild boar bacon or normal bacon in one piece
½ glass white wine
A few sprigs of thyme
A few parsley stalks
3 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
50g butter
Handful of hedgerow garlic, chopped

Method

Step 1: Preheat the oven to 150°C/gas 2. Wash the razor clams under cold running water for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the bacon roughly into 1cm pieces, blanch in boiling water for 2 minutes, then drain and set aside.

Step 2: Put the razor clams into a cooking pot with the white wine, thyme, parsley stalks, garlic and salt. Cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook over a high heat for a couple of minutes, giving the occasional stir, until the shells are just starting to open. Drain in a colander.

Step 3: When cool enough to handle, carefully remove the clams from their shells, keeping the shells intact. Cut away the dark looking sac and discard, then cut each calm into two or three pieces. Lay the razor shells in a warm shallow baking dish.

Step 4: Heat the oil in a pan and fry the bacon over a medium heat for a couple minutes until lightly coloured. Add the butter and hedgerow garlic.

Step 5: Arrange the clams in their shells, scattering over the bacon and garlic mixture. Warm through in the oven for a couple of minutes, then serve.

Recipe courtesy of Lee Streeton and Mark Hix at HIX at The Albemarle. Picture Credit: The Albemarle Restaurant.

Tags: Food, Food Month, Recipes