Just like in football, most chowder fans are loyal to one team: Team Thick and Creamy (New England) or Team Tomato (Manhattan). I’m from Chicago, so unless there’s an Italian Beef chowder I have yet to discover, I take no side. But I will say that seafood chowders are the originals: They get their name from French fishermen returning to shore and tossing part of their catch into a community chaudière—cauldron—to be turned into the fishermen’s welcome home feast.
A good chowder, no matter if it’s got tomatoes, chicken, corn or clams, must have a great foundation. This is the core of the chowder—developing flavors from the start by cooking down and concentrating aromatics at the beginning, then adding the liquids. Without that, the end result would be flat. And your kitchen wouldn’t smell nearly as good either.
Here’s how to get that something into your chowder (or any soup, actually) and how to perfume your house with the smell of comfort:
How to Make Chowder Magic
1) Sweat, Sweat, Sweat
Getting a really good sweat on your vegetables is half the battle. This is where the flavors in the vegetables start to shine. In a large, heavy pot over a medium-low flame, warm a few glugs of olive oil or a few pats of butter. Add the onion, diced vegetables, a few dashes of salt, any spices or dried herbs, and cover the pot. Let it cook, covered, over a low heat, stirring every few minutes. You’ll notice that every time you take the lid off, the vegetables have become more fragrant. It’s okay if they start to caramelize a bit and stick to the bottom of the pan. When the vegetables begin to soften around their edges and glisten (about 10 minutes), add the minced garlic and let it sweat for 1 minute more.
2) Singer (pronounced sahn-jay)
This is a French technique used to thicken—it will give your chowder great body. Sprinkle a light, delicate layer of flour over the vegetables in the pot; the more flour, the thicker it will be. In culinary school, my instructor, Chef Francois, taught us to add flour by sight: “When you singer, it should look like the first snow of the season over the vegetables.” Stir and continue to cook on a low heat (about 5 minutes). A golden crust will build up on the floor of the pot.
3) Deglaze
Turn up the heat on the pot to medium-high. When the vegetables are really cooking and you can hear them sizzling, pour in the wine all at once. This is called deglazing. While the wine bubbles away, the caramelized, crusty bits on the bottom of the pot will release into the vegetables. To be sure you’re getting all the good stuff, use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom as the wine cooks away. Now you’ve got a simple but flavorful foundation (or fond in French) for your chowder.
4) Simmer Away
When the wine has nearly evaporated entirely, add the stock. Now’s the time to add sturdy fresh herbs (like rosemary, thyme, bay leaves). Bring it up to a boil, then turn it down and let the chowder simmer on gentle heat for at least 20 minutes, or up to an hour, depending on how much tolerance your ingredients have to being cooked. For instance, bacon can go right in there at the start, but you’ll want to add fish or shellfish 5-10 minutes before serving to avoid overcooking. Just before serving, finish with cream or delicate fresh herbs (like dill, parsley, or tarragon) to preserve their delicate flavor.
Rad Recipes
In honor of this weekend’s game, here are two chowder recipes, one fit for Giants fans and the other for New Englanders. Both recipes are made with the same technique as described above. They’re so flavorful that you could even skip the clams if you’re vegetarian.
A Note about Clams:
Clams need to be scrubbed under cold water—really scrubbed—to get all the dirt out of the thin grooves on the shells. They can be added directly to the chowder or cooked ahead of time and removed from their shells. To cook ahead, simmer 1” of water in a large saucepot. Toss in the clams and simmer just until they open. If they don’t open, discard them. You’ll have a delicate and flavorful clam broth in the saucepot that can be strained and added to the chowder.
Manhattan Clam Chowder
Serves 6-8
In lieu of both potatoes and celery, I like using celery root. It cooks up creamy, gives you fresh flavor, but still keeps the chowder light.
To sweat:
½ cup olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 carrots, diced
1 bell pepper, diced
1 medium celery root, peeled and diced
1 zucchini, diced
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon salt
½ tablespoon red pepper flakes
To singer and deglaze:
2 tablespoons flour
½ cup wine (white or red, your call)
To simmer:
1 28-ounce can of diced tomatoes
4 cups of stock (seafood is best, or use vegetable or chicken)
1 bay leaf
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
12 littleneck or cherrystone clams, scrubbed
8 shelled and de-veined shrimp, cut into bite-sized pieces
To garnish:
Freshly chopped parsley
Oyster crackers
Cook the base of the chowder using the same technique as above. Add the tomatoes when you add the stock and add the clams and shrimp to the simmering base and cover the pot 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley and oyster crackers.
New England Clam Chowder
Serves 6-8
Throw a sweet potato into the mix for color and sweetness. I don’t bother peeling the potatoes because I think the skin adds nice texture.
To sweat:
3 tablespoons of butter
1 small onions, diced
3 sticks celery, diced
2 Idaho potatoes, diced
1 sweet potato, diced
2 leeks, green part removed and diced
1 tablespoon of salt
1 teaspoon of pepper
To singer and deglaze:
¼ cup of flour
½ cup of white wine
To simmer:
5 cups stock (seafood is best, followed by vegetable, then chicken)
12 littleneck or cherrystone clams, scrubbed
3 sprigs of fresh thyme
1½ cups heavy cream
To garnish:
Freshly chopped parsley
Crisp diced bacon
Buttered and toasted bread
Cook the base of the chowder using the same technique as above. Add the clams and cream to the simmering base and cover the pot 10 minutes before serving. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley, crisp bacon and toasted bread.
More from Whitney Chen:
Don't sweat the technique for perfect biscuits
Everything you want to know about poaching eggs
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