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Loading...New Haven's iconic white clam pizza skips the tomato sauce and lets briny fresh littlenecks, garlic-scented olive oil, and dried oregano shine over a thin, charred crust. Inspired by the coal-oven pies at Frank Pepe's, it is one of America's great regional pizzas.
Prep Time30 mins
Cook Time10 mins
Total Time40 mins
Servings4
Yield2 small pizzas (4 servings)
Nutrition Facts
Per serving (estimated)
- 470 kcalCalories
- 16 gFat
- 2.5 gSaturated Fat
- 58 gCarbs
- 2 gFiber
- 1 gSugar
- 22 gProtein
- 780 mgSodium
- 320 mgPotassium
- 60 mgCalcium
- 5 mgIron
- 8 mgVitamin C
- 120 mcgVitamin A
Ingredients
For the dough
- 3 1/2 cups (440 g) '00' or high-gluten flour
- 1 1/2 tsp (5 g) instant yeast
- 2 tsp (10 g) fine sea salt
- 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) cool water
- 2 tbsp (30 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
For the topping
- 2 lbs (900 g) fresh littleneck clams, scrubbed
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) good extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
- 5 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
- 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes (optional)
- Flaky sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper
- Lemon wedges, for serving
Directions
- Make the dough: whisk flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Add the water and olive oil and stir into a shaggy dough, then knead 8 to 10 minutes by hand or 6 minutes in a stand mixer with the dough hook until smooth and elastic.
- Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise 1 1/2 to 2 hours at room temperature until puffy. For deeper flavor, cold-ferment 24 to 48 hours in the fridge, then bring to room temperature. Divide into two equal balls and rest 30 minutes uncovered.
- Shuck the clams over a bowl to catch the liquor, lifting each meat off the bottom shell and dropping it into the bowl. Strain the reserved liquor through a fine-mesh strainer; you should end up with about 2 cups shucked clams and roughly 1/3 to 1/2 cup clean liquor.
- Make the garlic-clam oil: warm the 1/4 cup olive oil with the sliced garlic in a small saucepan over low heat 3 to 4 minutes until the garlic is fragrant and just turning pale gold, do not brown. Remove from the heat and stir in the dried oregano and the reserved clam liquor.
- Heat your oven to its hottest setting, ideally 500 to 550°F, with a pizza stone or steel on the middle rack for at least 45 minutes. A screaming-hot surface is the closest home substitute for coal-oven char.
- Stretch each dough ball on a lightly floured surface into a 10 to 12 inch round, keeping the edges slightly thicker to form a small rim. Transfer to floured pizza peels.
- Drizzle each round with about 2 tablespoons of the garlic-clam oil, spread out to the edges, then scatter half the clams over each in a single loose layer. Season with a pinch of flaky salt, cracked pepper, and optional red pepper flakes.
- Slide the pies onto the hot stone or steel and bake 6 to 9 minutes, until the rim is blistered and charred in spots and the bottom is crisp and lightly spotted.
- Slide finished pizzas onto a cutting board, immediately scatter with the chopped parsley and a final drizzle of good olive oil. Cut into squares or wedges and serve hot with lemon wedges for squeezing over the top.
Cook’s Notes
- Use the smallest, freshest littlenecks or topnecks you can find; pre-shucked clams lose the briny liquor that defines this pie and often taste metallic.
- For the classic Pepe-style version, skip the cheese entirely. A light shower of grated pecorino romano is the common modern variation, and Sally's Apizza-style uses a thin layer of low-moisture mozzarella.
- Always strain the reserved clam liquor through a fine-mesh strainer to catch any grit or shell fragments before it goes onto the pie.
- A pizza steel preheated at your oven's maximum temperature for a full hour gives the closest home approximation of coal-oven char; a cast-iron skillet turned upside down on the bottom rack also helps.
- Eat this pizza hot, straight from the oven. The crust softens quickly and the clams are best just-cooked, so reheating leftovers in a dry skillet beats the microwave.
