Clams Casino

Gather the ingredients.

To purge clams of sand and grit, fill a large bowl or pot with 1 gallon of cold water and stir in 2 tablespoons of the sea salt until salt dissolves. Add clams to salted water and let soak in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes or up to 1 hour.

Drain clams into a colander and rinse under cold running water, scrubbing to clean shells. Tap any open-shelled clams, if shells do not close then the clam is dead and should be discarded.

Place clams in a medium clean bowl, cover with a damp paper towel, and set bowl in a second large bowl filled with ice. Refrigerate until ready to use.

Stir together panko and remaining 1/8 teaspoon sea salt in a small bowl; set aside.

Place chopped bacon in a large Dutch oven and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until bacon has rendered fat and is starting to crisp, 6 to 8 minutes. Remove from heat.

Carefully remove about 1 tablespoon of the rendered bacon fat from pot and add to panko mixture in bowl; stir to combine and set aside.

Add shallots to pot with bacon and place over medium heat. Cook, stirring often, until shallots soften, about 4 minutes.

Add wine and clams to pot and cover. Cook over medium, undisturbed, until clam shells have opened, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from heat.

Using tongs, remove opened clams from pot and place on an aluminum foil lined baking sheet; set aside. If any clams are still closed, cover pot and place over medium heat. Cook, undisturbed, 2 minutes; add opened clams to baking sheet with other clams. Discard any clams that did not open.

Increase heat to medium-high. Continue to cook shallot and bacon mixture, stirring occasionally, until liquid has almost completely evaporated, 5 to 8 minutes.

Using a microplane, grate garlic directly into pot with shallot mixture. Stir in lemon juice and crushed red pepper, if using.

Transfer shallot mixture to a small bowl and let stand at room temperature until cool, about 20 minutes. Stir in softened butter until well combined.

Preheat oven to 450 F. Twist and bend tops of clam shells to separate from bottom shells; discard top shells. Using a small spoon, loosen and separate cooked clams from bottom shells, leaving clams in shells. Return clams to baking sheet and spoon about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the softened bacon-shallot butter over each clam. (At this point, clams can be covered and refrigerated overnight.)

Stir together Parmigiano-Reggiano, parsley, chives, lemon zest, and olive oil into panko mixture in bowl. Top each butter-topped clam with about 1 teaspoon of the panko mixture, lightly pressing to adhere.

Bake in preheated oven until panko is light golden brown and crispy, about 5 minutes. Transfer to a platter. Serve immediately with lemon wedges.