Clam

A Korean stew made with an earthy red chile stock and delicate curds of silky tofu, sundubu is traditionally served in preheated stone bowls. You can re-create that effect by heating a stone bowl or a cast-iron pot in a 400° oven.

Fair to say we're pretty much obsessed with this nut-based (egg-free!) aioli. Try it with walnuts, too.

We've said it before and we'll say it again: When seafood gets top billing, it has to be top quality. Don't even attempt this stew from Rose's Luxury with less-than-stellar stuff.

We're big fans of dipping the grilled bread in the garlic butter sauce. We won't judge you if it dribbles down your chin a bit.

Clams are inexpensive, plentiful, easy to cook, and delicious. And you barely need a recipe—once they open, they’re done.

We give the classic linguine and clams dish an upgrade with roasted almonds.

Almonds are the new breadcrumbs. Their toasty flavor and crunch add just the right contrast to pasta.

For all the types of clams available, there are as many ways to prepare them. Here’s what you’ll find at the fish market, and how to enjoy them

You probably won’t have to salt the sauce itself since the clams are so briny; taste right before serving and serve over fregola.

Most fish markets will sell you the bones you need to make the rich broth, but avoid those from oily fish like mackerel or bluefish, which will overpower the stew’s flavor.

This cioppino recipe uses bottled clam juice, a smart shortcut to a robust broth. Recipe by Tom Moorman and Larry McGuire, Clark’s Oyster Bar, Austin

If paella escaped from Spain, sailed to China, and did some soul-searching along the way, you’d have the namesake dish at Chicago’s Fat Rice. The generous pot of aromatic rice, curry-scented chicken, and (much) more can be traced back to Macau, the former Portuguese colony in China, where it’s almost always served at home. Chefs Abraham Conlon and Adrienne Lo took inspiration from foreign-language cookbooks; their version is a blend of Portuguese and Chinese cooking that Conlon calls “the origin”…

Blanched garlic, which is sweet and mild, is blended with briny clam liquor and olive oil to make a creamy white sauce for this unconventional pizza.

New potatoes are freshly dug and have tender skins; wash them gently so that they don't tear. If they're hard to find, any small potato or fingerling variety will work.

Channel New England with this rich and warming one-pot clam chowder. If fresh clams are unavailable (or you're running short on time), substitute two 10-ounce cans of baby clams and 6 cups of bottled clam juice. This is part of BA's Best, a collection of our essential recipes.

Adapted from The River Cafe Classic Italian Cookbook by Rose Gray, Ruth Rogers, and Michael Joseph. Copyright Rose Gray 2009.