Clam Pie

Lunch | Italian

Prep time: 1 min Cook time: 10 min Servings: 4

This is a take on the iconic New Haven clam pie with fresh clams, garlic, vermouth, and a hit of chilli on a thin, charred base. It has a thin, chewy crust stretched onto a hot stone, topped with raw shucked clams, garlic, olive oil, and Pecorino, then cooked in a very hot oven (or pizza oven) until the edges char and the clams steam in their own juice. There's no tomato sauce on this pizza. The briny, savoury liquid the clams release as they cook is the sauce. This version adds a splash of vermouth and a hit of chilli flakes to build on that base without covering it up.

The prep will take a bit of time, you need to purge the clams in salted water for at least 30 minutes to draw out the sand, and shucking them raw means they cook directly on the pizza and release their liquid into the topping rather than being pre-cooked. For the dough, I've used my New York-style pizza base which is high-hydration, stretches thin, and blisters in a very hot oven. In a pizza oven at 350°C the pies take 2 to 2½ minutes; in a home oven at maximum with a preheated stone, allow 6 to 10 minutes

Ingredient Notes

Fresh baby clams: Please buy fresh clams for this one, it does make a difference. The clams are shucked raw and go onto the pizza uncooked, so they need to be alive when you buy them. Look for clams that are tightly closed or close when tapped. Baby clams (also sold as vongole or pipis depending on availability) work well here as they’re small enough to cook through in the short bake time. Ask the fishmonger whether they’ve already been purged: if so, just rinse and shuck. Discard any that are open and don’t close when tapped, or any with cracked shells.

Dough: Follow my New York-style pizza for the base or you can purchase fresh pizza bases from some delis or speciality stores. I recommend making it yourself though as I think it's a good skill to learn.

Vermouth: Dry vermouth adds a subtle herbal, wine-forward note to the clam topping without adding obvious alcohol flavour, which cooks off in the hot oven. It also lightly seasons the clams and helps keep the toppings moist during the very short bake. A dry white wine is a direct substitute. If you don’t have either, skip it and season the clams well with salt and black pepper before they go on.

Pecorino: Pecorino Romano is a hard, aged sheep’s milk cheese with a sharp, salty flavour that suits the briny clams better than Parmesan. It’s used in small amounts here: enough to add depth and form a slight crust without overwhelming the seafood. Grate it finely on a microplane so it melts quickly in the high heat. Parmesan is a reasonable substitute and will give a milder, nuttier result.

Equipment

Pizza oven or oven with pizza stone or cast iron pan
Pizza peel (or large flat baking sheet)
Large bowl (for purging clams)
Colander
Clam or oyster shucking knife
Small bowl
Chopping board
Grater or microplane

Ingredients

½ quantity my New York Style Pizza dough
Topping
1kg fresh baby clams, scrubbed clean
45g sea salt
4 cloves garlic, finely crushed
60ml (¼ cup) olive oil
40g finely grated Pecorino
10ml (2 tsp) Vermouth
sea salt and black pepper, to season
large pinch chilli flakes
chopped flat leaf parsley and chilli flakes, to serve

Directions

Prep dough
Follow dough instructions in my New York Style pizza dough - https://www.andy-cooks.com/blogs/recipes/new-york-style-pizza
Prep clams
To purge the clams, dissolve sea salt in 1.5L (50.7 fl oz) cold water in a large bowl.
Place the clams in a colander that will fit inside the bowl and place in the water, ensuring they are fully submerged. Refrigerate for at least 30 mins up to overnight, changing the water every few hours if it becomes too cloudy and once the clams have purged sand.
Drain clams and rinse thoroughly under cold running water.
Shuck clams and place in a colander to drain briefly.
Toppings and cook
Preheat a pizza oven to 350°C (660°F).
Stretch the dough on a lightly floured surface to fit your pizza peel or baking surface.
Combine garlic and oil in a small bowl. Spread some on the pizza bases, then sprinkle with some pecorino and chilli flakes.
Toss the clams in the vermouth and season with salt and pepper. Arrange the clams on top and sprinkle over some more pecorino.
Slide onto the pizza peel and bake for 2 - 2 ½ minutes, turning occasionally for even cooking, aiming for a crispy bottom and golden topping.
Sprinkle over some parsley and chilli flakes, then slice to serve.

Recipe notes

Chef Tips

Purge the clams properly

The salted water purge draws out sand and grit the clams have filtered through their shells. Use cold water with about 30g of salt per litre (close to seawater concentration) and keep the clams submerged in a colander inside the bowl so expelled sand settles below them rather than back onto the shells. Refrigerate rather than leaving at room temperature. Thirty minutes does most of the work; overnight gives the best result. Clams from a good fishmonger may already be purged, but another 30-minute soak won’t hurt.

Get the cooking surface fully up to temperature first

Whether you’re using a pizza oven or a home oven with a pizza stone, the cooking surface needs to be fully preheated before the pie goes on. In a home oven, preheat the stone or cast iron pan at maximum temperature for at least 30-45 minutes. A cold or underheated surface produces a pale, soft base rather than the crisp, blistered result the recipe needs. Slide the pizza directly onto the hot surface using a peel or the back of a flat baking tray.

Storage

Clam pie is best eaten straight from the oven. The base loses its crispness quickly and the clams don’t keep well once cooked. Make the dough ahead and refrigerate it, but cook the pies to order and serve immediately.

FAQs

Can I use tinned or frozen clams? Tinned or pre-cooked clams can be used but won’t give the same result: they’ve already released their liquid and won’t steam on the pizza the way raw clams do. If using tinned, drain well and add them towards the end of the bake to avoid overcooking.

What if I don’t have vermouth? Substitute with a splash of dry white wine, or skip it entirely and season the clams well with salt and black pepper before they go on. The clams provide plenty of flavour on their own.

Can I cook this in a regular home oven? Yes. Heat a pizza stone or heavy cast iron pan in the oven at its maximum temperature (around 240°C/465°F) for at least 30-45 minutes. Bake for 6-10 minutes until the base is crisp and golden. You won’t get the same char as a pizza oven but the result is still very good.