How to Make a Garbage Can Clam Bake

The grand tradition of the clambake is not limited to New England--and they aren't all held on the beach around a pit you dig in the ground. I first enjoyed the warm rewards of the clam bake in the middle of Washington D.C. due to the ingenious efforts of a favorite uncle. Provided you've got a way to get a few baskets of absolutely fresh seafood, you can use the same system.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderate

Things You’ll Need:

• Brand new galvanized garbage can
• Spigot for drainage
• Steel chicken wire
• Burlap or other loose-weave, natural fabric
• Charcoal or hardwood
• Shell fish
• Fish fillets
• Fresh corn
• Chicken

1. Get a brand new 30 to 60 gallon galvanized garbage can and scrub it out well. Punch a hole near the bottom seam and install the spigot to drain water after the clam bake is over. Make two round screens to fit inside the can by crumpling chicken wire to fit. The first chicken wire baffle should fill up the bottom six inches of the can. Punch holes with a large nail or punch around the can about four inches from the bottom of the can to provide ventilation for the fire. Fold up the next bunch of chicken wire to fit a little further up the can so that it doesn't set right down on the other.
2. Provided you've located a source for fresh shellfish and other fruits of the sea, decide what you want to include in your clam bake. Try fresh sweet corn, rubbed chicken (cut into individual pieces), clams and oysters. In some places on the upper East and West coasts, the chicken is replaced by lobster and there were those further down Chesapeake Bay who substituted soft shell crab. You can clean the corn and rub the chicken the day before but the seafood should be absolutely fresh. If you're adding corn, remove the silk and soak the corn, husk and all, with the burlap in a bucket of salt water overnight.
3. On the morning of the clam bake, set the garbage can outside on solid ground or a sturdy base away from overhanging trees and buildings and start a fire in the bottom. Whether you use hardwood or charcoal, you want to let the fire burn down to a red hot base before putting food on. Leave another grownup to stoke the fire and watch it burn down to a bed of hot coals. Have the bucket of clams and whatever fish, oysters, mussels, scallops, or other seafood standing by.
4. When the fire is ready, carefully insert the second chicken wire platform and put a layer of well-soaked burlap down. Start loading ingredients, beginning with a layer of water-soaked corn and layering fish or chicken with the corn and top with a layer of wet burlap. Spread the shellfish on top of the lower layer or put in an open metal mesh basket and top with another layer of burlap. Sprinkle with saltwater several times throughout the afternoon.
5. Poke about six holes in the garbage can lid to draw the heat upward and put the top on the can. About four hours later, check to see how the clam bake is doing. If you start your clam bake around noon or shortly thereafter, you should be ready to eat as the sun starts to set. Take the serving plates to the cooker and remove the contents with long-handled tongs--the can will still be hot but you should be able to manage easily enough. Set out salt and pepper, butter, lemon and lots of napkins and your dinner is ready. When the fire is completely out and the can is cool, remove the racks and hose them off and scrub out the inside of the can.

Tips & Warnings

• For extra sturdiness, particularly for corn or chicken, get a circular barbecue grill from the hardware store and suspend it on top of the second bunch of chicken wire by tying one end of a wire to its rim and the other to a handle of the garbage can. Do this on both sides and you'll have a pretty solid platform.
• Remove the burlap as you remove contents. Traditional clam bakes use wet sea grass, which is disposable and doesn't dry out as fast.
• In all fairness, this project can be dangerous and is not for kids. My father and Uncle DeWitt would have been the first guys to come home with a turkey fryer if they'd been around when they first came on the market. Keep a water supply handy when you start that roaring fire in the morning and keep a careful eye on it as it cooks.