Been craving for clams lately. It does not help that I read
the marketman on a daily basis. Last week, he posted a clam recipe and I started to cry in pain. I wanted it so bad. The pictures were unbereable. It looked so yummy. I promised myself I would try to cook it, soon! Come Sunday, I went to Kam-Man, an Asian superstore a stone throw away from me and got all the ingredients. I got the short neck clams because I do not know the difference of Akegai and short neck. I figured, they look the same. I had to rush because I have to go to work! I also picked belt fish for deep frying for the kids! When I sauteed the ginger and white onions, it was very fragrant as marketman describe, it inspired me. LOL. Here are some pictures... they are not the best as they were taken by Pherry on his iPhone, I was busy cooking.
Did you know that rice wine's alcohol content ranges from 12-17%? That's like 3x the alcohol content of most American beers! Funny thing is, they do come in a disclosure, something like this: intended for cooking, not to be sold as alcoholic beverage. How is that? There were so many brands and the alcohol content is mostly 15%. So, I guess, it is so much easier to get drunk eating my clam recipe than your beer!
My 12% alcohol rice wine
I sauteed the ginger and white onions first, the aroma filled the room. It is this sweet and soothing smell. I guess the ginger does that to me.
As suggested by marketman, wait till brown and put the heat high as possible before adding the clams.
I usually use wok when stir-frying
When all the clams are open, wait just about 3-5 minutes. You do not want to over cook your clams or else, it will be rubbery. Tha's why it is important to crank up the heat so it is quick. At this point, my clams smelled so good. It felt like I was living on the seaside town of Aparri again. You know, that sea salt smell and the breeze! Ok, ok, I am exaggerating. I added black bean sauce and a little bit of cornstarch to make it a little pasty. Then I added oyster sauce. I used Mama Sita's vegetarian oyster sauce. I always buy Filipino items whenever available. I feel I am helping Philippine economy that way. The Mama Sita brand is available at almost all Asian stores.
See the time? I am supposed to be at work by 3pm
Lastly, I poured just a little bit of rice wine, about 3 tbps. Remove from fire. The heat generated should be enough to absorb the wine flavoring! Whoala... serve with white rice! The family's verdict? Delicious!
Marketman's--- with green chilli
Mine... no peppers and green chilli - kids hate peppers!
All this in under 15 minutes. It is so easy yet delicious... try it! It will save you a trip to Chinatown!
Those interested with marketman's original post...
click here. Thanks marketman!
