Here’s what you'll need 

12 cherry stone clams 

1/2 lb tomatillo's 

1 small Spanish onion, roughly chopped 

3 cloves of garlic 

1 jalapeño 

a nice handful of cilantro (depending how strong you like it) 

2 T olive oil 

2 limes, juice and zest 

1/2 cup 

salt and pepper to season 

1/2 lb chopped cured pork belly (you can use bacon or pancetta as well) 

The salsa verde is used as not only a sauce but a cooking liquid too, so were gonna tackle that first. Some people use fresh tomatillo's, some people boil or steam them; I personally like to char them on a cast iron pan to get ‘em nice and golden. But before I drop my tomatillos in, I start to brown off my pork. I like to do this first so it seasons the pan for our salsa verde. Similar to a tomato minus the aggressive acidity, they do have quite a nice sweetness to them. We’re almost caramelizing them during this step. Once we have a nice color going, Ill throw in the onion and smashed garlic just to brown it off and release its oils. Then everything gets transferred to a blender, as well as the jalapeño, and pulsed. If we were making a salsa verde for a dipping sauce or condiment I would almost puree this mix, but since its going to be the sauce and a main component here, were just gonna pulse the tomatillos to a loose chop so we still have some nice chunks. Pour into a bowl to cool and add the olive oil and lime, seasoning to taste.

If you don't like salsa verde then we need to re evaluate your palate. I put this shit on everything: tacos, eggs, meats, fish (obv's), vegetables, potatoes and I could keep going. It’s just so fresh! Ripe tomatillos, mild in acidity with a bunch of herbs and lime, are so rich in flavor they just heighten anything you're eating, almost the ultimate garnish. And they can be adjusted and manipulated to so many different tastes. 

Put about 1/2 cup of salsa verde and 3 tablespoons of water in a shallow pot and bring to a simmer. Then add your clams and pork and cover for about 6-8 minutes. You can use little neck clams here if you'd like, their cook time will be quicker but make sure you thoroughly clean them. The thing with littlenecks is they tend to trap a lot of sand inside; you can eliminate this by soaking them for a few hours in cold water with corn meal. The clams start to do their job and "clean" the water as bivalves do, spitting out the dirt and sand to take in the cornmeal. Don't worry about your pan burning with that little water and the tomatillos. Shellfish release a lot of liquid, so they'll be plenty of juice left to dunk your bread in. Once your clams open up you're all finished, serve with a nice chunk of day old bread and you're ready to go!

Tags: seafood, clams, shellfish, surf and turf, recipe, recipes, spring, pork, Mexican