Clams with Sherry and Iberico Ham

I LOVE this recipe. The flavoured ham oil coats the clams beautifully and acts as a seasoning agent, whilst the fino sherry brings the whole dish to life. I love cooking with sherry and this is a simple example of how well sherry tastes in sauces. You can use dark sherries such as amontillado and oloroso on roasted meats, dark gravy sauces and marinades whilst fino and manzanilla sherries work well with seafood and creamy sauces. The creamy but full bodied flavour from the fino sherry, contrasts incredibly well with the sweet clams and salty iberico ham. An easy tapas dish, that looks good and tastes better.

Preparation time

5 mins

Cooking time

10 mins

Serves

2 people

Ingredients

500g fresh clams
2 tbsp of extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
50g iberico ham, finely chopped
100ml fino sherry
1 tbsp finely chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

Method

Pre-heat your wood-fired oven to to 200°C/400°F
Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a medium sized frying pan and place in the oven to heat up. Add the iberico ham and fry on a gentle heat until crispy. About 2 minutes. Drain and set aside.
In the same pan, heat the remaining oil with the chopped garlic. Once the garlic starts to jump, add the clams and stir well to coat them in the garlic oil. Pour the fino sherry, bring the liquid to the boil, cover with a lid and cook on a medium heat until the clams open. It takes about 4 minutes.
Once opened, add the chopped parsley, stir well and serve immediately, sprinkling the dish with the crispy ham

Clams with Sherry and Iberico Ham

Perfectionists in the Art of Wood-Fired Cooking.