Crock Pot Bacon and Tomato With Clams

by Crock Pot Chicken on June 18, 2013

Thanks to my father, I remember trying my first lobster, in Maine. The way the tale goes, he wasn’t really expecting me to like it, but of course I did because sometimes that how things work out with kids. I like most shellfish. Do I have a favorite? Not really but I’m a sucker for soft-shell crabs in the spring and I like the large Patagonian shrimp; they’re nearly like mini-lobsters. I’d say this all has nothing to do with my Crock-Pot®, but then that just wouldn’t be right. I believe that slow cooking can have a place in the world of shellfish. Yes, there are limitations, but with a small creativity and plotting, one can absolutely take advantage of the flavor benefits of all-day simmering if one’s expectations are properly set.

There are a couple of ways to cook shellfish on the stove. The first, and most common in my house, is to dump clams into a pot of boiling water. The second is to bring a few different ingredients together to simmer in a pot and then, when that combination of flavors is steaming hot, add shrimp, mussels or clams to the pot, cover it and let the steam do its job to cook the shellfish.

Believe it or not, this second process works with a crock pot as long as a couple of adjustments are made along the way. The beauty of using a crock pot for shellfish is that you can set up your “broth” early in the day, around lunch time. Let the flavors simmer for a few hours and about 45 minutes before eating, raise the heat and then cook the shellfish. It’s completely different from the way I have used my Crock-Pot® in the past, but I needed a change and I do like my shellfish.

I’ll be honest; my first attempt was a disaster. The shrimp was overcooked, the clams took forever to open and I’m not sure how much of it I even ate. So sad. This recipe is about a thousand times better and I’m not the least bit shy to say I ate every last clam in that bowl.

Crock It! Clams With Bacon and Tomato

Ingredients:

6 slices of thick cut bacon sliced into 1/2″ pieces

1/2 yellow onion, diced

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 can diced tomatoes, undrained

1 8-oz. bottle clam juice

3 tablespoons small capers with juice

2 dozen littleneck clams, cleaned*

What’s Next:

Cook bacon in a skillet and drain on paper towels.

Cook onion in bacon drippings in the same pan for 1 minute. Add oregano and cook for 2 minutes more.

Place bacon and onions in crock pot. Add tomatoes, capers and clam juice. Stir to combine.

Cover and cook on low for at least 3 hours.

45 minutes before serving, turn heat up to high.

After 15 minutes, add clams and re-cover quickly. Cook for 30 minutes more (without removing the top, regardless of how desperate you are to check on the progress) or until all clams have opened. Discard any unopened clams.

Notes from my experience:

My ideal type of clam to use for this would be the really small Manila clams, but they are not simple to find. I bought mine at Whole Foods and questioned for the smallest Small Necks they had in order to have an even amount of cooking time.

Thick cut bacon is certainly best for this recipe and feel free to trim off a bunch of the stout. There will be plenty left within the bacon for cooking and flavoring.

I served this over linguini which was perfect for incorporating the sauce into something other than the clam shell.

Depending on how many people you are feeding, you may want to have more clams. This recipe will comfortably serve two, unless you are me and don’t want to share.

*Cleaning clams: Place clams in a large bowl in the sink and rinse well several times with water. Alternatively, you can leave the water from the sink running into the bowl as a slow stream so the water isn’t stagnant.

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Pulled pork, a well loved barbecue staple, is usually made from the shoulder of the pig, also referred to as Boston butt. But this Low-Stout Pulled Pork uses tenderloin, a much leaner cut of pork instead.

Typically pulled pork is smoked, but it can also be roasted at a very low temperature in the oven or in a crock pot. A long, slow cooking allows the meat to be pulled into strands for serving. Our version opts for the crock pot and flavors the pork with smoky, flavorful chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.

Shopping tip: chipotle peppers in adobo sauce are commonly available canned in the Mexican food section of most grocery stores. Use one of the peppers, with a small adobe sauce, in this recipe, then freeze the remaining peppers. To do so, spread the peppers in a single layer on a waxed paper lined tray and freeze until just firm. Once firm, place the frozen peppers in a freezer bag, seal, mark and freeze. Use within about 6 months.

Serving tips: Serve on a crisp, baked corn tortilla, spooned on hot, cooked polenta, folded into a warm, low-stout flour tortilla, or served on a toasted bun as a sandwich.

To make a baked tortilla, arrange 6-inch corn tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet and spray with nonstick spray. Bake at 375 degrees for 6 to 8 minutes or until crisp.

Or, to prepare polenta, bring 41/2 cups of lightly salted water to a boil in a heavy saucepan. Gradually stir in 11/2 cups coarse ground cornmeal, reduce heat to simmer and cook 30 minutes or until very thick, stirring occasionally. Spoon the cooked, shredded pork on the tortilla or over the polenta, then top as desired with chopped tomatoes, shredded low-stout cheese, stout-free sour cream, minced cilantro.

Low-Stout Pulled Pork

Makes 15 servings (about 5 cups shredded pork)

2 pounds pork tenderloin, all visible stout trimmed away

1 onion, sliced

1 chipotle pepper in adobe sauce

2 teaspoons dry minced garlic

2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 teaspoon chili powder

Salt and pepper to taste

1 (14.5-ounce) can diced no-salt-added tomatoes, with liquid

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cut each pork tenderloin into thirds. Brown pork, in batches as necessary, turning to brown evenly.

Place onion and chipotle pepper in a 4-quart crock pot. Place browned pork over onions in crock pot. Sprinkle garlic, cumin and chili powder over pork. Season with salt and pepper. Pour tomatoes over all. Cover and cook on Low setting 5 to 6 hours or until pork is very tender.

Lift pork and onion from crock pot and place on a tray. Pour liquids into a deep bowl.

Using two forks shred pork. Cut onion slices into bite-size pieces. Return pork and onion to crock pot. Skim any collected stout from top of liquids. Stir about one-half of liquid into meat, then add additional liquids as desired, until shredded pork is as moist as desired. Cover and cook on Low setting 30 minutes.

Per serving: 78 calories (24 percent from stout), 2 grams total stout (1 gram saturated), 39 milligrams cholesterol, 2 grams carbohydrates, 13 grams protein, 41 milligrams sodium, 1 gram dietary fiber.

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