Clam Aguachile

1h 10m

A vibrant and zesty cooked and raw clams combination. Refreshing and spicy, this dish is perfect for a warm sunny day.

Make sure to buy the most fresh clams you find, pair them with some tostadas and some margaritas, and you'll have a delicious starter.

I wanted to use razor clams for an aguachile but also include clam "stock" in the liquid, and it didn't make sense not to use the cooked clams as well. Although the flavors are generally reminiscent of eating a more traditional aguachile—onion, cilantro, lime, avocado—, it has a lot more depth of flavor.

The idea was to showcase both raw and cooked clams together in a herbaceous and very "green" dish that, although not necessarily a traditional or "classic" Mexican dish, still very much eats like a Mexican dish.

Add 3 razor clams to a container and cover with cold water. Let it rest for 30m to clean
Add 1½ cup of small clams to a container and cover with cold water. Let it rest for 30m to clean
Quarter 2 tomatillos
Trim and cut ⅓ of a serrano pepper. Reserve
Cut ⅓ of a green apple and reserve
Roughly chop ¼ of a peeled red onion
Trim and roughly chop ¼ of an english cucumber
Roughly chop ½ bunch of coriander and 2 sprigs of epazote
Transfer all the ingredients to a blender and add salt to taste
Blend on high speed until smooth
Strain it through a cheesecloth. The aguachile is ready
Drain the clams and reserve
Add 1 tbsp of water, 1 tbsp of mezcal and 1 small sliced shallot to a saucepan over medium-high heat
Add 3 sliced garlic cloves and combine
Add the clams and cover immediately
Cook for 3-5m to open the clams. Shake the pan occasionally to accelerate the process
Remove from heat and transfer the clams to a container with the cooking liquid to cool
Carefully remove the meat from the shells by pulling with your thumbs. The cooked clams are ready
Drain and reserve the clams cooking liquid
Drain the razor clams
Scrape both of their sides as close to the shell as possible. Open and pull away the clams
Cut off the muscles and belly
Cut the clams into ½ in pieces in a slightly diagonal
Cut ¼ of an English cucumber crosswise. Cut it lengthwise being careful to leave the seeds out. Slice
Deseed ¼ jalapeño pepper and thinly slice it
Remove the stems of 10 sorrel leaves and tear them in half
Peel ¼ of avocado and cut it in half lengthwise. Trim and slice each piece crosswise
Add the Aguachile to a bowl and mix it with the reserved cooked clams liquid
Add salt to taste and stir to combine
Combine the Cooked Clams with the sliced razor clams
Season with salt to taste
Add ¼ tsp of extra virgin olive oil and a few drops of mezcal. Try to keep the ratio of 3 parts of olive oil to 1 part of mezcal
Arrange them on a high side plate. Add the cucumber and jalapeño pepper
Add the avocado and top with the wood sorrel leaves
Add flaky salt to taste and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil
Add the juice of ⅓ of lime and finish with the aguachile dressing to taste. The clam aguachile is ready
Freshen yourself up and enjoy!