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1. In a large Dutch oven or casserole with tight-fitting lid, heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil over medium-high heat until very hot. Working in batches, cook the pork until golden brown on at least two sides, about 10 minutes per batch, reducing the heat if it threatens to burn. Transfer to a bowl. Toss the pork generously with salt and set aside.
2. Let the Dutch oven cool slightly and place over medium heat. Add half of the onion and half of the minced garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, until pale gold at the edges, about 8 minutes. Add the wine, scraping the bottom of the pot to loosen any browned bits. Simmer gently until reduced by about one-third, about 5 minutes. In a bowl, combine the tomato paste and water, stir to dissolve, and add to the pot. Stir in the bay leaves, thyme, paprika, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and the pork and any accumulated juices. Bring just to a simmer, cover the pot, and cook until the pork is tender, about 1 1/2 hours, adjusting the heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer.
3. Rub the bread slices with the garlic halves and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Toast or broil the bread until crisp but still tender inside and set aside.
4. Add the mustard greens to the pork stew a handful at a time, stirring until each handful wilts. Stir in the sweet pepper paste and a few generous grindings of black pepper. Cover and keep warm over low heat.
5. In a medium saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, heat the remaining 1/4 cup olive oil over medium heat. Cook the remaining onion and minced garlic, uncovered, until pale gold at the edges, about 8 to 10 minutes. Add the cockles, raise the heat to high, cover, and steam, shaking the pot occasionally, until they open, 3 to 4 minutes. (If you're using littleneck clams, they'll take a little longer.) Discard any that don't open.
6. Transfer the entire contents of the saucepan to the pork stew, stirring gently to combine without knocking the cockles from their shells. Cook gently for 1 minute, adding salt if necessary. Divide the stew and broth among 4 warmed shallow soup bowls, distributing the cockles attractively around the bowl. Drizzle each serving with additional olive oil and sprinkle with the cilantro. Garnish with the garlic toasts and serve immediately.
Make Ahead:
The dish can be prepared through Step 2 up to 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate. Reheat gently and proceed as directed.
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With Portuguese food on the lighter side, it's long been an automatic response to pull the cork on a bottle of the affordable, food-friendly, and crackling-crisp Vinho Verde. And very good with this dish it is. But we threw a ringer from across the border in Galicia, Spain, into our tasting, and we loved it even more with the pork and clams: Albariño. Made wholly from the grape by the same name (which is a sometime component of Vinho Verde itself), Albariño manages a trick rare in a dry white wine: It is full of rich fruit flavor and briskly refreshing at the same time. One favorite was the Fillaboa Albariño. Perhaps surprisingly, there is very good Albariño being grown at the southernmost end of the Napa Valley. Ask your merchant for Havens Albariño. |
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1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. Lightly oil the surface of a large baking pan. Arrange the pepper, cut side down, in the pan and roast for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until their skins have blackened in spots and the peppers are tender. Remove the peppers from the oven and, when cool enough to handle, peel and discard the skins.
3. Put the peppers in the jar of a blender and add the remaining ingredients. Blend at medium speed for 1 to 2 minutes or until a smooth purée forms, pausing occasionally to scrape down the sides of the jar. Transfer the mixture to a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
Make Ahead: Though it's best made the day of use, this paste can be made a day or two ahead and stored, tightly covered, in the refrigerator. |
