RECIPE: LUCA CIANO’S CLAM AND BOTTARGA SPAGHETTINI

Chef Luca Ciano is a man mad about bottarga. He believes it adds a punch of flavour to any dish, especially when it comes to pasta, like his specialty spaghettini, served with clams, courgette, confit garlic and bottarga. Don’t believe us? Give this indulgent recipe a whirl for yourself – you’ll find the recipe for 4 below. Ingredients 12 garlic cloves, peeled 60 ml extra virgin olive oil 1 teaspoon black peppercorns 1 bay leaf 1 sprig thyme 350 g spaghettini 1 spring onion, thinly sliced 2 large zucchini, seeds removed, thinly sliced on an angle 400 g clams, purged 120 ml dry white wine salt and pepper 100 g Salumi Australia Bottarga, grated 2 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Method 1 To make the garlic confit, in a deep pot, add oil and garlic making sure that the garlic is fully submerged. Add peppercorns, bay leaf and thyme. Bring to a simmer or to 90 ̊C (190°F) making sure that the oil does not boil. Cook for over an hour or until soft. Set aside. Remove herbs and peppercorns. 2 Bring plenty of water to the boil in a large pot, (11⁄2 teaspoons of rock salt to 1 L/32 fl oz of water for 100 g/31⁄2 oz pasta). When boiling, add pasta and stir well. Cook until al dente. 3 Meanwhile, heat the oil from the garlic confit in a large frying pan When hot, add scallion and cook for 2 minutes. Add zucchini and cook for further 2 minutes. 4 Add clams and white wine. Cover with lid and cook until clams have opened. Remove the lid, add garlic (confit) and toss. 5 Drain the pasta and toss with the sauce until most juices have been absorbed by the pasta. Season to taste. 6 Serve with Bottarga and freshly chopped parsley.