Clams substitutes

Scrub, pull off any beards, and steam in the same wine, garlic and oil the clam recipe calls for. Add them 2 to 3 minutes later than you would clams, because they open faster.

Best for

linguine alle vongole, cioppino, paella, steamed clams, chowder

Mussels release plenty of liquor, which is why this swap works where others fail. The differences are real but pleasant: the meat is plumper, softer and sweeter, and the broth is less mineral and slightly more savory, so a vongole made with mussels tastes rounder and less sharply of the sea. Cut the pasta cooking water you add, since mussels give up more liquid.

Add the juice early so it reduces into the sauce, and stir the clam meat in during the final minute so it does not toughen.

Best for

linguine alle vongole, clam chowder, clam dip, clam fritters, weeknight cooking

This is the honest everyday answer and it makes a very good pasta. The meat is chewier and less sweet than fresh, and it can be slightly rubbery if it sits on heat. What you lose most is the theater of the open shells. Do not throw away the juice: it carries almost all of the flavor, and without it the dish is just garlic and oil.

Treat exactly as clams but cook a minute less, since the shells are smaller and the meat is tiny.

Best for

linguine alle vongole, paella, steamed shellfish, seafood stews

Essentially interchangeable, and in Spain and Italy they are used in the same dishes. Cockles are smaller and a touch sweeter with a delicate bite, so you get more shells per pound and less meat per shell. Grit is more common in cockles, so soak them in salted water for 30 minutes before cooking.

Reduce the clam juice into the sauce first, then add the shrimp for the last 2 minutes. Two ingredients, because clams were doing two jobs.

Best for

linguine alle vongole, chowder, paella, seafood pasta

The shrimp handle the chew and the clam juice handles the brine, and together they get you surprisingly close. Skip the juice and the sauce tastes sweet, oily and flat, because shrimp release almost no liquid. The one giveaway is flavor direction: the dish tastes of shrimp, which is sweeter and less mineral than clam.

Add them off the heat at the very end, letting the residual warmth cook them through in a minute or two.

Best for

clam chowder, creamy soups, seafood pasta, gratins

In a chowder, scallops are excellent: soft, sweet and creamy against the potato. They are much sweeter than clams and have no mineral edge at all, so season the pot with extra salt and, if you have it, a splash of clam juice. They will turn tough and squeaky if they simmer, so never boil them.

Tear oyster mushrooms into clam-sized pieces, brown them hard in oil so they firm up, and simmer the kombu in the wine or stock for 10 minutes before building the sauce.

Best for

vegan vongole, shellfish allergy versions, vegetarian chowder

The chew is genuinely close, which surprises people, and the kombu supplies a clean marine saltiness that mushrooms alone cannot. Be honest with yourself about the result: it tastes of the sea and of mushrooms, not of clams. A pinch of kelp powder or a few crumbles of toasted nori at the end sharpens the effect.