Decadent Clam&Crab Chowder

Decadent Clam & Crab Chowder!

On a recent trip back to San Francisco I was reminded how beautiful both East and West Coast Clam Chowders are, and how very different they are everywhere you go.

I'm not a fan of overwhelming amounts of potatoes or corn. I want to taste the seafood, but not blended like a Bisque, I really want to taste and bite into it. While we’re at it… Easy on the cream, but not watery.  

This Luscious Chowder is loaded with tons of clams & crab meat, with both fingerling potatoes & corn, less dairy than you’d expect, yet it’s velvety. This version I’ve created is a gorgeous warm weather Chowder, and more perfect for the rainy Spring days as of late. A wonderful reminder that Summer is on the way!

Paired perfectly with Strawberry, Blueberry, & Spinach Salad, and a Pale Ale of course.

This is a stunning dish to Peacock your talents for all to admire as your hosting nearly everything - if you have the time and means- grab fresh clams and show off the shells when serving! For those of you making it at home for an cozy family meal as shown here, you’ll love it just the same, make sure you grab whole clams, as well as lump crab meat, if you can, the whole clams are what’s truly important… Decadent!

This is a milky version rather than heavy cream using beautiful egg yolks to make it velvety.  Of course you can add or take away what you’d like, but it is splendid this way.

Total Time: 1 - 1.5 hours Difficulty: Intermediate Flavor: WOW Factor Serving Entree Size: 4-6

*This is not one that you want to make for the left overs.

** You’ll NOT want to make this dish in advance, it should be day of… it’s easy & Worth it!

Ingredients

• 2 cans (8-10oz) full Clams & Juices - separated
• 2 cans (10-12 oz) Crab meat & Juices - separated
• 2 Hot Italian Sausage Links (=5-6 oz) - casing removed & cubed
• Sweet Sausage is fine
• 4 Egg Yolks
• ¼ cup Brandy (you can by little airplane bottles cheap)
• ****4 cups whole Milk****&
• ****If Lactose Intolerant such as I, substitute 2 cups Evaporated cooking milk (the can stuff) & 2 Cups Lactaid (or variety of). ****
• 1 cup Corn kernels (frozen or can)
• ¾ lbs. Fingerling Potatoes (or white) - cubed
• 4 Celery Stalks - sliced
• ¼ Red Onion - minced
• ½ cup Canned Italian Tomatoes- chopped (if already chopped, drain excess juice)
• ¼ cup Parsley - chopped
• 2 Bay leaves
• 1 tsp Fennel Seed
• 1 Tbsp Thyme
• 1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper Flakes - (You can sub hot sauce)
• 1 Clove crushed Garlic clove
• 4 Tbsp unsalted Butter
• 2 Tbsp Olive Oil - for the browning of Sausage
• Salt & Pepper to taste (careful with salt bc sausage.)

Start with all the mise...

1. Cover the potatoes with plenty of salt and enough water to cover 3 inches.
1. Bring to a boil, cook until just tender enough to eat, keeping shape.
2. Drain keeping the liquid for the soup! It’s going to thicken your soup rather than heavy cream, or mashing the potatoes in.
3. Make sure you do this first because of this. Set aside and put potatoes under cold water so they won’t continue to cook in their own steam.

2. Cut all veg and measure everything out.
3. Open and separate Seafood - Do not rinse. Save all the juice for the soup
4. Cube Pork

Putting it all together...

1. In a large Dutch oven or heavy bottom Stock Pot, heat the oil over Med- High temp. Brown the Sausage lightly.
2. Add Onions, Celery until slightly tender - about 2 minutes.
3. Add Tomatoes, Garlic, Bay leaf, Chili Flake - 1 minute

4. Add ½ the total amount of milk  -let soak in until almost absorbed.
5. Add Potato juice, Seafood broth, Fennel Seeds, Thyme. - bring to a boil.
6. Add rest of the milk. Once it starts to foam - drop it to a slight simmer.
1. Be careful that milk will rise really fast and bubble over, so turn it down right away and scrape bottom of pot not to burn the milk.

7. Once you drop the heat, Temper the egg yolks…
1. In a bowl whisk yolks.
2. Take a ladle full of soup and slowly pour over the yolks while gently stirring in.

You’re tempering the eggs here - bringing them up in temperature and getting them accustomed to what you’ll mix it with so they won’t scramble once hitting the hot broth.

8. Pour the tempered eggs into the soup. Stir in.

This will turn yellowish - Don’t boil keep at a simmer.

9. Add Corn, Potatoes, and Brandy - bring back to a simmer -5 minutes

10. Stir in Seafood. Stir well making sure scrape bottom and sides. The Crab meat will most likely break up and make the chowder a bit grainy… it’s seafood in every delicious bite!
11. Turn heat off.
12. Add pepper & salt- if needed.
13. Sworl in Parsley & Butter.  
14. Let sit for 5 minutes before serving.

*You really should not turn heat back up at this point, it may break. If you’re NOT serving immediately, keep at a very low temperature - not simmering, and cover partially to keep from reducing. For service you can cover entirely after turning heat up to a Med-Low, check on 5-10 minutes until desired temp.

Here served with Country bread, and a beautiful Seasonal salad Strawberry, Blueberry, & Spinach Salad… Which I highly recommend pairing with (beyond the exceptionally high in nutrients and Antioxidants),  every component of this salad was created to complement this soup, which is does perfectly.

There is something about Chowders that take us back to a sentimental time; being a kid with your grandparents, the first time you ate it at the beach, or something else that was significant. I really hope this makes another fond moment to remember, or even nostalgic for your sweet memory.

I look forward to hearing all about it!

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