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Bacon, butter, white wine and soft clams… a delicious combination! If there’s anything that’s going to cover the clams — it’s should be BACON! Ditch the old-school Clams Casino recipe that’s usually covered with a soggy, tasteless breadcrumb mixture. This is a simple Clams Casino Recipe with Bacon. It makes for a great appetizer and everything cooks in the oven.
Why This Clams Casino Recipe Is So Good
- It’s a classic dish, reimagined.
- Instead of soggy, tasteless breading, try topping your Clams Casino with crisp, smoky bacon.
- Garlicky butter is spiked with a little white wine, grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley.
- Easy to make, all ingredients cook at the same time.
- A crowd pleasing appetizer!
Ingredients For Clams Casino
- Clams (scrubbed)
- Unsalted butter
- Dry white wine
- Fresh parsley
- Garlic clove
- Parmesan cheese
- Bacon
- Lemon wedges
- Rock salt
How To Make This Clams Casino – Step by Step
- Preheat the oven to 400F with one oven rack in upper third of the oven and the other in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil. In the first rimmed baking sheet, arrange the bacon slices in a single layer. Bake in oven in the center rack while you proceed with the next step.
- In the other lined baking sheet, arrange the fresh clams in a single layer. Place this in the upper third of the oven. Bake for 6-7 minutes, until the clams have opened. Larger, cherrystone clams will take a little longer. Carefully remove the baking sheet with the clams (be careful, there may be juices in the pan) to a large bowl, along with the juices to let cool. You can return any unopened clams back to the oven for another minute or so, to see if they open. Discard any closed clam that has not yet opened.
- Arrange a big spoonful rock salt on the still-lined baking sheet in 24 small piles, one for each clam. When the clams are cool enough to handle, pry open the clam shells and discard the top shell of each clam. Collect the clam juices as you go in a medium bowl. Use a paring knife or small spoon to loosen the clam from the bottom shell. This will make it easier to eat. Transfer clams onto the rock salt bed, snuggling it in, so that the rock salt stabilizes the clam. Repeat with remaining clams.
- To the reserved clam juice bowl (double check for any shell bits), mix in the melted butter, wine, parsley and garlic. Season with salt and pepper, to taste (also, remember you have salty bacon and Parmesan to add as well). At this point, I like to check on the bacon, to make sure it’s crisping up nicely. If the bacon looks done, go ahead and remove it.
- Spoon a little of the butter mixture into each clam half. Top each clam half with the grated Parmesan cheese. Bake the clams in the upper rack for 5 minutes, until the butter is bubbling a bit. The bacon should be perfectly cooked at this time, too. Remove the clams and the bacon from the oven. Cut the bacon into 24 pieces, top each clam with the bacon. Serve with lemon wedges.
What Are Clams Casino?
Clams Casino are a “clams on the half shell” appetizer traditionally made of chopped clams, bread crumbs and bacon. Originating in Rhode Island, this New England style appetizer is popular all over the United States, and there are a number of versions of Clams Casino.
A Delicious Appetizer
This Clams Casino recipe is a great appetizer if you are looking to impress with little effort! The combination of bacon and clams is tongue pleasingly delicious. At first bite, you get hit with the crispy, smoky pork, but after a second or two, the clam’s saltiness come through.
The Difference Between Littleneck Clams and Cherrystone Clams
Let’s talk about the different kind of clams you can use for this elegant appetizer. My favorite shellfish to use in this Clams Casino recipe or either littlenecks or cherrystone. Cherrystone clams are around 2 to 3 inches in diameter and average between three and five per pound. Little Necks, the smallest hard shell clam also known as having the sweetest taste, usually have around 10 to 12 clams in a pound. They measure about 1 to 2 inches across and are the more expensive of the two types.
Top Tips For This Clams Casino Recipe
- Use rock salt or crinkled aluminum foil as “nests” to stabilize the clams.
- The bacon cooks the same time in the oven as the clams. Just keep an eye on the bacon to make sure it doesn’t over cook.
- At Step 5, if the bacon still needs a bit more time (especially if it’s thick-cut bacon), go ahead and move it to the upper rack and let it finish crisping up.
- It’s a good idea to use a paring knife, small spoon or clam knife to loosen the clam from the bottom of the shell. This will make it easier to eat.
Check Out These Other Delicious Recipes
- Shrimp Wonton Recipe in a Spicy Sichuan Sauce
- Gyoza Recipe (Japanese Pan-Fried Dumplings)
- Oven Barbecued Chicken Wings Recipe
- Spicy Shrimp Skewers
Have you tried this Clams Casino recipe? Feel free to leave a star rating and I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
Clams Casino
Ditch the old-school Clams Casino recipe that's usually covered with a soggy, tasteless breading. This is a simple Clams Casino Recipe with Bacon, and everything cooks in the oven.
Ingredients
- 24 clams littlenecks or cherrystones, scrubbed
- 3 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 3 tablespoons dry white wine
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
- 1 clove garlic finely minced (I like using a garlic press)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 3 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
- 4 slices bacon
- lemon wedges for serving
- rock salt for cooking
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F with one rack in upper third of the oven and the other in center of oven. Line two baking sheets with aluminum foil. In the first baking sheet, arrange the bacon slices in a single layer. Bake in oven in the center rack while you proceed with the next step.
- In the other lined baking sheet, arrange the clams in a single layer. Place this in the upper third of the oven. Bake for 6-7 minutes, until the clams have opened. Larger, cherrystone clams will take a little longer. Carefully remove the baking sheet with the clams (be careful, there may be juices in the pan) to a large bowl, along with the juices to let cool. You can return any unopened clams back to the oven for another minute or so, to see if they open. Discard any unopened clams after that.
- Arrange a big spoonful rock salt on the still-lined baking sheet in 24 small piles, one for each clam. When the clams are cool enough to handle, pry open and discard the top shell. Collect the clam juices as you go in a medium bowl.
- Use a paring knife or small spoon to loosen the clam from the bottom of the shell. This will make it easier to eat.
- Place the clam onto the rock salt bed, snuggling it in, so that the rock salt stabilizes the clam. Repeat with remaining clams.
- To the reserved clam juice bowl (double check for any shell bits), mix in the melted butter, wine, parsley and garlic.
- Season with salt and pepper, to taste (also, remember you have salty bacon and Parmesan to add as well). At this point, I like to check on the bacon, to make sure it's crisping up nicely. If the bacon looks done, go ahead and remove it.
- Spoon a little of the butter mixture into each clam half. Top each clam half with the grated Parmesan cheese. Bake the clams in the upper rack for 5 minutes, until the butter is bubbling a bit. The bacon should be perfectly cooked at this time, too. Remove the clams and the bacon from the oven.
- Cut the bacon into 24 pieces, top each clam with the bacon. Serve with lemon wedges.
Notes
Use rock salt or crinkled aluminum foil as "nests" to stabilize the clams.
The bacon cooks the same time in the oven as the clams. Just keep an eye on the bacon to make sure it doesn't over cook.
At Step 5, if the bacon still needs a bit more time (especially if it's thick-cut bacon), go ahead and move it to the upper rack and let it finish crisping up.
Use a paring knife or small spoon to loosen the clam from the bottom of the shell. This will make it easier to eat.
Nutrition
Calories: 137kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 4gFat: 12gSaturated Fat: 6gCholesterol: 29mgSodium: 188mgPotassium: 40mgFiber: 1gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 390IUVitamin C: 3mgCalcium: 35mgIron: 1mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!
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