Cataplana is a Portuguese seafood dish, popular
on the country's Algarve coast. It is also the name of the special
cookware used to prepare the dish, which is traditionally made of
copper and shaped like two clamshells hinged at one end and able to
be sealed using a clamp on either side of the assembly.
Clams
800
g
Ham
100
g
Onion
200
g
Garlic
3
cloves
Tomato
(large)
1
Red or
green pepper
1
White
wine
50
ml
Olive
oil
50
ml
Tabasco
sauce
to
taste
Salt,
sugar, and pepper
to
taste
1.
Scrub the clams well in cool water,
pile in a large deep kettle, add the cold
water and salt.
Let the clams stand in the cold water about
1 hour.
2.Chop the garlic. Slice
the onion, pepper and tomato into rings.
Slice the ham in thin strips. Take a
cataplana (if you don't have one, use a
large heavy saucepan with a tight fitting
lid). Cover the bottom with onion rings.
Then add chopped garlic, sliced pepper,
tomato, and sliced ham.
3.Mix together 4 the olive
oil, white wine, salt, sugar, pepper, and
Tabasco sauce in a separate bowl. Pour the
mixture over the vegetables and ham in the
saucepan. Cover with the lid and bring to a
boil.
4.Rinse the clams under the
tap and add them to the saucepan. Cover and
cook slowly for 8-10 minutes. When ready,
toss together serve immediately.
5.The dish is served in the
cataplana or the saucepan that was used for
cooking it.Carry the cataplana to the table,
open, and ladle into large soup plates. Be
sure to put out a large bowl for empty clam
shells.
