Cold Spaghettini with seashell sauce | Massimiliano Alajmo

Ingredients for 4 people

For the shells

• 250g mussels
• 300g clams
• 1kg well-brushed razor clams
• 250g sea snails (murix brandaris)
• 40g mild extra virgin olive oil
• 1/2 clove of garlic
• 10g chopped fresh parsley
• 25g white wine

Method

Purge the shells in water and salt. Cover the sea snails with cold water and cook them over moderate heat for 40 minutes. Discard the cooking water, shell them, and clean them. Sear separately the mussels, clams, and razor clams in a pan with olive oil and garlic. Combine the parsley, deglaze with white wine, cover, and cook over high heat for 2 minutes. Shell the shells, preserve the cooking water, and strain it through a sieve.

For the shell sauce

• 60g cooked and shelled mussels
• 70g cooked and shelled clams
• 90g cooked and shelled razor clams
• 35g cooked and shelled sea snails
• 75g filtered cooking water from the shells
• 50g mild extra virgin olive oil
• 20g lemon juice
• A dash of soy sauce
• A pinch of salt
• A light grind of Sarawak black pepper

Method

Pour the seafood into the Pacojet® glass along with the cooking water; freeze at -20°C and process using the Pacojet. Emulsify the obtained puree with an immersion blender, incorporating the olive oil, lemon juice, soy sauce, salt, and black pepper.

For the fish tartare

• 60g raw langoustine tails
• 60g raw shrimp tails
• 60g raw lobster
• 40g raw dentex (fish)
• 40g raw red mullet
• 25g mild extra virgin olive oil
• 5g lemon juice
• Salt to taste
• A grind of Sarawak black pepper

Method

Cut the fish into small cubes and season them with olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper.

For the cold spaghettini

• 160g Benedetto Cavalieri durum wheat spaghettini
• A pinch of salt
• 16g clam juice thickened with a little starch
• 18g mild extra virgin olive oil
• 10 drops of soy sauce
• 3g chopped fresh parsley
• A grind of Sarawak black pepper
• 3g lemon juice

Method

Boil the spaghettini for 3 and a half minutes in salted water. Drain them, cool them in cold water, and dry them with a sheet of paper towel.

Salt them and season them in a glass container with the remaining ingredients.

Plating

Place an oiled circular mold (diameter 8.5 cm) on a plate and fill it with the spaghettini and raw fish. Remove the mold and garnish with the shellfish sauce.

Note

The fish tartare can vary depending on seasonal availability. These spaghettini also work well with squid, cuttlefish, amberjack, etc.


Dish Photo: Sergio Coimbra
Massimiliano Alajmo's Photo: Sophie Delauw