Clams with rice crackers

By: Andreas Pohl, Tracey Lister
From: Vietnamese Street Food
Serves: 6
Photographer: Michael Fountoulakis

Shelled, frozen baby clams, available in most Asian supermarkets, work very well with this dish. The more exotic razor clams make an excellent alternative.

In Vietnam, large rice crackers, roughly the size of a vinyl record, are sold at local markets or by roaming street vendors. Outside Vietnam they can be purchased in Asian supermarkets. Heat them in an oven or over a grill and they will puff up within seconds.

Ingredients

Quantity	Ingredient
60g	cellophane noodles
	oil, for frying
2	lemongrass stems, thinly sliced, white part only
1	long red chilli, thinly sliced
500g	shelled baby clams
or 1.3kg	clams in their shells, (see note)
5	spring onions, thinly sliced
1/2 handful	mint, chopped
2 teaspoons	fish sauce
1/3 teaspoon	freshly ground black pepper
6	large rice crackers

Method

Soak the noodles in hot water for 10 minutes, then drain and cut into 2 cm pieces.
Heat a little oil in a wok. Stir-fry the lemongrass and chilli for 1–2 minutes, until fragrant. Add the shelled clams and toss for 2–3 minutes. Add the spring onion, mint and noodles and continue tossing. Lastly, add the fish sauce and pepper. Season with salt, if necessary.
Serve the clams on a platter with the rice crackers. To eat, place a small amount of the clam mixture on a piece of rice cracker.

Note

If you are using clams in their shells, roughly chop 1 long red chilli and 1 lemongrass stem. Add to a saucepan with 375 ml of beer. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 10 minutes. Add the clams, cover and simmer for 3–5 minutes, until the clams have just opened. Cool slightly, then remove the clams from their shells. If the clams are large, cut them in half.