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Ok, this will be a shorter post simply because it’s late and I can’t fit everything into my day that I want to.

For my birthday today, I got a new laptop, and I am soooo freaking excited to be typing while sitting in the living room, with other people, leaning back, feet up in a recliner, that I can’t even tell you!

Usually I am sitting in a back room that I use as an office, in a fairly decent setting, but separated from everyone.

But - back to my birthday!

So, I wanted to go to this really wonderful local restaurant that serves an incredible duck dish, but some friends of ours went there three weeks ago and the menu had changed.

Huge bummer, because I don’t know where to go now to get duck.

Second choice… a place where I can get seafood at an-oh-not-so-expensive price… Being able to cook almost anything served in a restaurant makes it hard to pay restaurant prices. I don’t even know where to get duck breast, a new mission now that I can’t get it cooked for me locally, but my second choice was seafood. I hadn’t ever been there, but I had driven by this place called ‘Joe’s Crabshack’ many times, so I threw it out there.

What a weird place. It’s a chain around here… but I am not sure what vibe they are going for and I am not sure they are sure either. I digress. I am not here to rate a restaurant, but to talk about food.

I wanted crab as my second choice, without having to shop for and cook it myself, and I would definitely go back.

But, I wouldn’t go back for the crab. I can get fresh (LIVE) crab from ‘The Asian Store’ and cook it myself for 1/3 the price, so why? Why would I go back?\

The Clam Chowder.

Clam Chowder is an art. There is a true understanding of how it should taste… and it should taste a certain way whether it’s Boston or Manhatten. You can do rendition after rendition… you can make it fancy schmancy by adding in liquers, or herbs… you can make it expensive with the type of clam you use, but in reality, when most people order clam chowder, the do not want something DIFFERENT.

They want Clam Chowder.

This is one of those recipes that you want to make as homey as possible. As comfortable and recognizeable as you can. Clam Chowder should taste like clam chowder, not clams in a dill cream liquorice sauce.

Joe’s Crab Shack has an incredible recipe. There are onions, and celery, clams, and potatoes, and all of them are diced in 1/4″ chunks or smaller so you get some of each in every bite. There are no carrots, which (in my opinion) should not be in clam chowder… and no big chunks of bacon either. Bacon flavor, smokey flavor, yes. Chunks of bacon… No.

Also, Clam Chowder is not a potato soup… as many of them turn out to be, but a chowder. Definition: A thick soup, especially one made with seafood or fish.

Thick does not mean big chunks. That’s a chunky soup. Thick means the broth of the soup will coat the back of a spoon.

I love Clam chowder. I worked for a place in Seattle, a regional seafood restaurant chain, and they had both Boston (white) and Manhatten (red) clam chowders. Both were so good, and so hard to choose from that we used to mix them together.

A sort of Bost-hatten… or Man-osten chowder. It was good.

Following is a very base recipe for good old fashioned clam chowder… You can Dr.It Up! any way you like, but this is a great start!

New England Style Clam Chowder

Four slices of bacon
Two small onions chopped
One cup of celery and celery leaves chopped
One Tablespoon of flour
Four cups of fish broth or clam juice
Four medium potatoes, finely diced
Two teaspoons of dry parsley
Two cups of whole milk
Two cups of whipping cream
Four, six and a half ounce cans of chopped clams, with juice

Fry bacon until crisp, not dry and burnt… just done. Set aside, and in bacon fat place the onions, celery and parsley, stirring until translucent. In the meantime, warm the fish broth or clam juice in a pot, just short of boiling. Stir in flour onto the onion mixture and mix quickly by stirring, for one minute. Pour in warmed fish broth or clam juice and continue stirring until slightly thickened. Place in the potatoes and bring mixture to a boil. Turn the heat down and continue to simmer for 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Stir in clams, milk and cream, take the pot off the stovetop and mix until incorporated. When ready to serve heat up and crumble bacon onto the soup.

I like it just like this, or with a little dill thrown in. Not much more.

What about you? Do you have a favorite Clam Chowder recipe?

Tell me about it!