Stuffed Clams (“Stuffies”) Recipe and Cooking Tips

Stuffed clams, known as stuffies in New England, are a popular appetizer consisting of chopped clams, aromatics, fresh herbs, breadcrumbs, and Parmesan cheese. Stuffed clams bake in the oven or under the broiler until the mixture is golden brown. Serve stuffed clams on the half-shell with lemon wedges, hot sauce, and cocktail sauce. Jump to recipe.

Some types of clams work better for stuffed clams than others. Chowder-size quahogs are the most popular, but butter clams, horse neck clams, or other larger varieties work, too. Avoid using small clams, like cherrystone or littleneck clams, because they are too small to chop into smaller pieces.

Additionally, while canned clams would work to bulk up the filling, it’s ideal to use fresh clam meat.

Clams hold sand and dirt inside and outside the shell, so clean them thoroughly before cooking. Learn how to clean clams below:

1. 1. Prepare a large bowl. To purge clams of sand, fill a large bowl with a mix of cold water and sea salt. Match the salinity of seawater by mixing one-third of a cup of salt with one gallon of water.
2. 2. Soak the clams. Let the clams soak in the salted water for twenty minutes to an hour. The clams will purge sand from their shell.
3. 3. Remove the clams from the water. You should see plenty of sand at the bottom of the bowl. Lift the clams out of the water and transfer them to another bowl or container. (Do not dump the clams into a strainer because you will cover them in the sand.)
4. 4. Scrub the clams clean. Using a stiff-bristle brush, clean the clam shells of any dirt or barnacles.
5. 5. Rinse the clams. After scrubbing, rinse the clams with cool water.

Use the three tips below for making stuffed clams:

1. 1. Bake the clams on a bed of rock salt. Clamshells are rounded, so they tend to wobble or lean to one side. To ensure the clams bake evenly and the stuffing remains inside the shell, pour rock salt onto a rimmed baking sheet or baking dish and nestle the stuffed clams in the salt. Bake the stuffed clams as usual, and serve the stuffed clams on the bed of salt, too.
2. 2. Mix up the stuffing ingredients. There are a few staple ingredients for stuffed clams, like bread crumbs, garlic, and fresh herbs, but there is room for customization. Add bell peppers, onions, and Italian cheeses, like Asiago, pecorino, or Parmesan cheese.
3. 3. Steam the clams ahead of time. Chopping clams is easier with cold clams, so steam the clams in a mixture of garlic, clam juice, lemon juice, and white wine a day ahead and let the clams chill in the refrigerator during that time. Remove the clam meat from the shells, but save the shells for baking the stuffed clams.