Casa de Kei: Asari Garlic Butter

INGREDIENTS

1 pound Manila clams (I used fresh ones from the Farmer's Market)
1/4 yellow onion, diced small
2 Santa Fe peppers or jalepenos, de-seeded, diced small
2 stalks of lemongrass, cut bottom part off, diced small
1 cup white wine
1/2 stick unsalted butter
5 cloves of garlic, chopped
4 tblsps live oil
8 sprigs chopped parsley

METHOD

1. Soak asari (clams) in cold water for 45 minutes to extract excess sand in the clams.

2. In a saute pan, heat olive oil over mid-high heat. Once the olive oil is hot, right before smoke point, toss in garlic, onion, peppers, and lemongrass.

3. Stir until everything is slightly carmelized.

4. When everything is cooked, add butter and let it melt. Add wine, reduce for one minute.

5. Strain clams, add into pan. Put a lid on the pan for about 5 minutes or until the clams open.

6. Plate and garnish with parsley

Next time I will probably use a sake/mirin mixture instead of wine and mitsuba instead of parsley.

Toast a fresh baguette for dipping. Enjoy!

*Kid Skwid is a sous chef at Spago restaurant in Beverly Hills. On his rare days off, he enjoys riding his bike around LA and going to the beach. Follow him on Instagram (@kidskwid5) to see his gourmet breakfasts at Casa de Kei.