Fregola with clams and cherry tomatoes

Name: Fregola with clams and cherry tomatoes
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 90 min
Total time: 120 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: Semolina coarse 3 cups; Water warm 1 cup; Saffron (1 packet) ½ tsp; Remilled durum wheat semolina to taste; Clams (well purged) 2.2 lbs; Datterino tomatoes 2 cups; Garlic 4 cloves; Lime juice and zest 1; Fresh chili pepper 1; Parsley to taste; Water 1.67 cups; Extra virgin olive oil to taste; Fine salt to taste

Lactose Free

Difficulty: Average
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 1 h 30 min
Serving: 4 persone
Cost: Average

PRESENTATION

Fregola with clams and cherry tomatoes is a first course that encapsulates all the tradition and flavor of Sardinian cuisine. The preparation of this delicacy begins with making homemade fregola, a type of pasta similar to couscous, which is distinguished by its irregular shape and the texture that makes it ideal for being seasoned with flavorful sauces like this one with clams and cherry tomatoes. To make fregola, the typical scivedda, a terracotta bowl, is used which represents the soul of this recipe. Here, coarse semolina is worked with water and rubbed by hand with circular finger movements (hence the name fregola) to obtain small lumps that are then dried in the oven, where they acquire a delicate golden color. Preparing fregola requires patience and a bit of practice, but the final result is a pasta that perfectly absorbs the sauces and releases an extraordinary flavor. Taste the fregola with clams and cherry tomatoes, enlivened by the fresh scent of lime, and also be tempted by these other recipes with fregola:

Fregola with clams and bottarga
Fregola with clams and chickpeas
Fregola with wedge clams
Fregola with seafood

INGREDIENTS

Semolina 3 cups (500 g) - coarse

Water 1 cup (240 g) - warm

Saffron ½ tsp (0.15 g) - (1 packet)

Remilled durum wheat semolina to taste

for seasoning: Clams 2.2 lbs (1 kg) - (well purged); Datterino tomatoes 2 cups (300 g); Garlic 4 cloves; Lime 1 - juice and zest; Fresh chili pepper 1; Parsley to taste; Water 1.67 cups (400 g); Extra virgin olive oil to taste; Fine salt to taste

Preparation

How to prepare Fregola with clams and cherry tomatoes

To prepare fregola with cherry tomatoes and clams, first make the homemade fregola: put the saffron in a small bowl with lukewarm water 1 and stir well until it dissolves 2. Pour some of the coarse semolina into the typical scivedda and start mixing with your fingers, adding the saffron water one tablespoon at a time 3.

Continue rubbing with your fingers in circular motions while adding a tablespoon of water at a time 4 until very small lumps form 5. Finally, dust the fregola with fine semolina and spread it on a baking tray with parchment paper 6.

Bake in a fan oven at 248°F for about an hour 7. Once dried and golden, remove from the oven and let cool 8. Set aside the fregola 9 and prepare the seasoning.

In a well-heated pan, sauté 2 cloves of garlic, a fresh chili pepper, and parsley stems in a drizzle of oil 10. Turn up the heat and add the clams, which you have already soaked and drained 11 12.

Pour half a glass of water 13 and cover with a lid for a few minutes 14, so they all open. Drain the clams in a colander 15.

Collect their liquid in a bowl and then pour it into a pot with 14 ounces of water to create a light broth 16. Shell the clams, leaving some with the shell for plating 17. Cut the cherry tomatoes into 8 parts 18.

In a saucepan, heat a drizzle of oil with a clove of garlic and the chili pepper 19. Add the cherry tomatoes 20 and cook on high heat for a few minutes, then pour in a ladle of the clam broth 21.

Add the fregola and another ladle of broth 22 then season with salt 23. Continue cooking like a risotto, adding the broth little by little only when it has been absorbed. At the end of cooking, remove the garlic and chili pepper 24.

Stir off the heat with a drizzle of oil, add the clams 25 and finish with chopped parsley, lime zest, and juice 26. Mix well and serve the fregola with cherry tomatoes and clams immediately 27!