history & traditions Introduction
Pasta Wednesday was born in the middle of Covid, when the world felt confined, but our shop was busier than ever. With a brand-new kitchen ready just in time, our Managing Director, Rosario, began cooking a different pasta recipe each week—showcasing our authentic, high-quality produce while turning a challenging season into a creative tradition.
In each Pasta Wednesday post, we’ll share the recipe along with the products that bring it to life. But we’ll go deeper too - exploring the history and traditions behind the dish to uncover why it holds such an important place in Italian cuisine. The goal? To help you create your own authentic slice of Italy at home, and to enjoy every step of the journey. This will help you to make classic recipes, with ingredients that you can easily find in our shop, with creative twists suggested by our staff! So, onto the first recipe Linguine alle Vongole!
capturing the essence of Naples Linguine alle Vongole
This dish has its roots in Naples, a vibrant coastal city where clams have been a staple of local cuisine since ancient times. While Neapolitans have long enjoyed clam-based broths, soups, and stews, the first recorded version of this pasta dish appeared in 1839, written by Ippolito Cavalcanti, the Duke of Buonvicino.
His recipe used spaghetti, with linguine becoming the popular adaptation we know today. The method remains beautifully simple: steam the clams until they open, add classic flavors like garlic, salt, and pepper, then finish the pasta directly in the clam broth—capturing the essence of Naples in every bite. Whilst this dish is a classic, you can experiment in any way you wish! Try adding chillies to up the heat or use a different pasta shape to the mix.
linguine alle Vongole Ingredients
200g Linguine (Barilla, De Cecco, Granoro etc.)
100g Cherry tomatoes (on the vine is best)
3 Garlic cloves, crushed
600g of Clams
100ml White wine
15g Parsley, destemmed and finely chopped
One Chilli (optional)
let's get cooking! Instructions
In a large saucepan over medium heat, add some Olive Oil (roughly 2 tablespoons). Add a garlic clove, crushed, and parsley stems. Cook until fragrant and the garlic is cooking.
Add the clams, white wine and stir well. Cover the pan to steam the clams for around 5 minutes or until the clams are fully open and cooked.
Remove the clams from the pan and keep the liquid for later use.
Once the clams are cool enough for handling remove the meat from the shells. Leave a few in the shell for decoration.
Cook the linguine until just before al dente, in well salted water.
Using the same pan from before, bring to medium heat and add some Olive oil ( roughly 2 tablespoons). Add the garlic (chopped), Chilli (chopped), Parsley leaves (finely chopped) and halved cherry tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes start to break down.
Add back the liquid from earlier and the Linguine. Stir until fully coated and serve!
Make sure to remove any unopened clams! This can cause illness!
An easy step by step method to create this mouthwatering staple of Neapolitan cuisine. The key to this is freshness and quality of ingredients. This pairs beautifully with traditional dry Italian wine such as Verdicchio or Frascati.
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