Cedar-Steamed Prawns and Clams with Onion Mayonnaise
Thomas J. Story
Brock Windsor, chef-owner of Stone Soup Inn in Vancouver Island's Cowichan Valley in B.C., cooks seafood Native American-style in a cedar box filled with hot stones. Opened tableside, it smells like a seafood sauna. Our version, made in a roasting pan with a grilling plank or wood chips (but no cedar box or hot rocks), still imparts a woodsy flavor and aroma. You'll need a cooling rack that fits in the roasting pan.
How to Make It
Step 1
1
Rinse a cedar grilling plank* or rinse 3 cups alder or cherrywood smoking chips in a colander. If using plank, set in a roasting pan and weight with a heavy jar. If using chips, put into a bowl and weight with a smaller bowl. Add water to cover plank or chips. Soak at least 6 and up to 24 hours.
Step 2
2
Crack egg into a blender and add vinegar, salt, mustard, and pepper. Whirl to blend. With motor running, slowly pour in oil, whirling until incorporated and mayonnaise is thick. Scrape mayo into a bowl and stir in chopped onion. Chill until serving.
Step 3
3
Preheat oven to 500°. Drain water from plank or chips, saving 1 cup. Set plank or scatter chips in roasting pan, then put a cooling rack on top. Cover pan tightly with foil and bake until very fragrant, about 20 minutes. Heat reserved water until steaming. Arrange clams on board or chips and cover pan, leaving a corner open. Carefully add hot water and close foil. Bake 5 minutes. Add shrimp in a single layer, then bake, tightly covered, until clams open and shrimp are cooked through in thickest part, 6 to 8 more minutes.
Step 4
4
Transfer shrimp and clams to a serving bowl, using a slotted spoon. Scatter slivered onions on top. Serve with onion mayo.
Step 5
5
*Find plank or chips at a grocery store with grilling supplies or at barbecuewood.com
Step 6
6
Note: Nutritional analysis is per serving.
Ingredients
1 large egg
1 1/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2/3 cup grapeseed oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped green onion plus 2 green onions cut into 2-in. slivers
1 1/2 pounds clams in the shell, scrubbed and rinsed
1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, shells on (26 to 30 per lb.), snipped through shell along outer edge and deveined
Directions
Step 1
1
Rinse a cedar grilling plank* or rinse 3 cups alder or cherrywood smoking chips in a colander. If using plank, set in a roasting pan and weight with a heavy jar. If using chips, put into a bowl and weight with a smaller bowl. Add water to cover plank or chips. Soak at least 6 and up to 24 hours.
Step 2
2
Crack egg into a blender and add vinegar, salt, mustard, and pepper. Whirl to blend. With motor running, slowly pour in oil, whirling until incorporated and mayonnaise is thick. Scrape mayo into a bowl and stir in chopped onion. Chill until serving.
Step 3
3
Preheat oven to 500°. Drain water from plank or chips, saving 1 cup. Set plank or scatter chips in roasting pan, then put a cooling rack on top. Cover pan tightly with foil and bake until very fragrant, about 20 minutes. Heat reserved water until steaming. Arrange clams on board or chips and cover pan, leaving a corner open. Carefully add hot water and close foil. Bake 5 minutes. Add shrimp in a single layer, then bake, tightly covered, until clams open and shrimp are cooked through in thickest part, 6 to 8 more minutes.
Step 4
4
Transfer shrimp and clams to a serving bowl, using a slotted spoon. Scatter slivered onions on top. Serve with onion mayo.
Step 5
5
*Find plank or chips at a grocery store with grilling supplies or at barbecuewood.com
Step 6
6
Note: Nutritional analysis is per serving.
