Clams, pig’s cheek & pastis

Ingredients

• 750g clams
• 200g cured pig’s cheek (or pancetta)
• 1 fennel bulb, trimmed
• 4 leeks, trimmed
• 200g butter
• 5 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 tsp fennel seeds
• 225ml white wine
• 50ml pastis

Method

Begin by purging your clams several times in salty water to draw any grit out. This must be done a number of times in order to have clean clams. Once done, keep refrigerated.

Cube the cured pig’s cheek and fry in a pan until crispy, set aside

Finely dice the fennel and leeks into 3mm cubes. Add to a pan with 100g butter, plus the garlic and fennel seeds. On a low heat, cook the vegetables until soft. This should be a slow process, as you don’t want to colour or brown the leeks. Once soft, set aside.

Put a pot on the hob at full heat with a lid ready at hand. This pot should smoke when it’s hot enough to use but be careful not to overheat it. Quickly add the clams, crispy pig’s cheek, fennel and leek mix, white wine, pastis and the remaining 100g butter, then fit the lid.

Move the pan around as to mix everything together but keep it on the heat. After a few minutes, remove the lid and see if all the clams have now steamed themselves open. If they have, great, you’re ready! If not leave them on the heat for a little longer.

Serve in a bowl. There should be a nice buttery, aniseedy broth around the clams. Finish with crispy pig’s ears or simply eat with a baguette.

Image: Caranina Rose