Elevated Clam Pasta With White Wine As Inspired By The Accidental Intoxication In The Classroom

Riding on the high from my eggsperiment with the Saffron Prawn Pasta, I was assaulted with a ton of ideas to elevate the recipe. The first thing I thought was, ok, I need-s to dunk it in wine. I was in luck, because a sweet couple dropped by my house post Christmas and brought me a Sauvignon Blanc.

As I was thinking of other ingredients to make the recipe richer, I was reminded of a time where I was caught in the center of this EPIC MASS INTOXICATION in school where it dawned on me that I was the one holding the smoking gun. Storytime!!!

So we were in Form 5 (17 years old) and preparing for the moment we go to school for. To take the penultimate test that would foretell if we were going to be successes or outcasts in the society (of course we learned over time that the real recipe for success is grit and determination). But I digress.

There was a form wide History tips & revision in the school hall scheduled for the day, it could be after recess, I can't be sure.

But somehow that day, I convinced my classmates that we should have my leftover Sparkling Wine bottles from Chinese New Year and they were game. (Could you tell where this is going?)

We enjoyed the first bottle immensely. Grapey, sweet and thirst-quenching.

We were drinking from plastic party cups and everyone was hooked, they wanted the second bottle...but of course! So I opened the next bottle and we took a sip of that. As I was sipping it, I thought, "hmm this doesn't taste like the first bottle...it tastes more serious".

Just when we finished the bottle, it dawned on me that I had fed alcohol to my classmates and I felt a sinking feeling to the depths of my innocent soul because I had given banned substance to some uhmm people with strong views against alcohol and of course bringing a banned substance to SCHOOL!!!! I remember my friends propping their heads against the wall complaining about feeling faint. "Eh..kenapa rasa pening-pening macam ni ahh..."

~Me freaking out in my thoughts~

My mind raced to the night before school when I double-checked with my dad if there was alcohol in the second bottle and he said NO, in his soft confident voice. Oh gawd, what have I done??

When everyone finally realised that we have Turned Up in school, we decided that we should discard the evidence, far away from our class.

And because we probably stank of alcohol, we thought it best that we do not participate in the History revision at the hall. So yeah, a lot of us were just in the classroom, nursing a hangover. I'm not so sure if we did all that well for our SPM History paper to be honest.

~Also me leaving the scene of the crime~

Fry some pearl onions until they become translucent, then add garlic cloves.

Add butter.

Add a pinch of saffron. Followed by cream.

Now dunk in wine..maybe quarter bottle.

Add mixed grounded pepper to elevate the taste further.

Now lay the Udang Galah (fresh water prawns), wait for it turn red first, flip it and then add clams

Mix in some mustard. This is actually optional because the dryness of the wine can balance out the cream actually.

Remove the seafood and set aside. Balance with some sugar.

Add clam shell pasta that is about 85% done.

Now this is the most important part of all. What we are doing here is really to use the gravy to cook the pasta through so that it absorbs all the goodness from the gravy.

When the pasta is about 95% done, add edamame and chives. Keep folding them together.

The pasta's taste profile is about to be completed here...notice when you taste the gravy after after adding edamame and chives...it becomes more earthy yes?

Finally add chopped spinach and parsley into the mix.

This is the second most important part to the dish - to recap the most important part of this dish is the technique of reducing the gravy as you cook the pasta. Second most important part is adding chopped spinach and parsley as you turn the heat off and fold them into the pasta.

Keep folding for a few seconds.

For those who love these big-headed fresh water prawns, you must dip some of the roe and mix it with the pasta. Your mind will be blown!

What I love about this pasta is that it is has complex flavours, rich but balanced, not fishy but has a great seafood flavour grounded by earthiness from the spinach and edamame.

Hope you enjoy making this pasta!

Recipe serves 2:

Prep time: 30 mins

Cooking time: 25 mins

Ingredients:

2 large fresh water big-headed prawns

350-400g clams

3-4 handfuls of clam pasta

Large handful of pearl onions (you can substitute with normal onions but pearl onions absorb the gravy so well and they're so sweet, you'd enjoy them in this dish)

5-6 cloves of garlic

1/2 wine glass of white wine

2 handfuls of peeled edamame

1 cup chopped spinach

200ml cream

2 tbsp butter

A pinch of saffron

2 tbsp chives

Mixed grounded pepper, salt and sugar to taste