Chow Down On Some Chowder
Chowder is a marvelous dish that brings together a meal in a bowl.
Traditionally, chowder is a coarse soup - no stock, no clarifying, just chunks of delicious morsels floating in a pool of cream or milk. Best of all, you can make a great chowder using canned or processed foods, such as canned salmon, tuna or clams, or a thick ham steak you pick up at the deli.
Here are a pair of fast and hearty chowders: one with seafood, the other with ham. To speed things up, you can use frozen, cooked vegetables and pre-shredded cheese. The only caveat is to keep the heat low. Otherwise chowder will curdle and the cheese and meat or seafood will toughen.
Clam Chowder
1/4 pound new potatoes (1 medium or 2 small), halved if small, quartered if medium
1/2 cup baby carrots, cut in half if more than 1 inch long
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup whipping cream
3/4 cup shredded sharp Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup chopped cooked clams with liquid or 1 (6-3/4-ounce) can, undrained
Milk, optional
Salt, freshly ground white pepper
Combine potatoes and carrots in medium pan. Add water to cover. Bring to boil and cook at low boil until vegetables are fork-tender. Drain well. Peel potatoes if desired.
Meanwhile, melt butter in medium pan. Add onion and saute until tender, 5 minutes. Add cream and heat. Do not boil.
Gradually stir in cheese. When melted, add clams with liquid and just heat through. If clams don’t have much liquid, it may be necessary to add a little milk (start with 1/4 cup) so mixture is consistency of thin sauce.
Stir in potatoes and carrots and heat through. Chowder should not come to a boil. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.
Yield: 2 servings.
Ham, Potato and Cheddar Chowder
2 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, quartered
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup diced onion
1 small cored, seeded and diced red bell pepper
1 tablespoon flour
3/4 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
3/4 cup half and half or combination of half and half and milk
1 cup diced ham
Salt, freshly ground white pepper
Cook potatoes in water to cover until tender. Reserve 1 cup cooking liquid and discard remainder. When potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and dice.
Meanwhile, melt butter in medium pan. Add onion and bell pepper and saute until tender over medium heat, about 5 minutes.
Stir in flour. Stir reserved 1/4 cup of hot potato water into pan with onion and cook over low heat, stirring, until thickened and smooth, about 5 minutes.
Stir in cheese, about cup at a time, until melted. Add half and half. Add potatoes and ham and simmer 5 minutes to heat through. Taste. Add salt if needed and pepper to taste. Serve hot.
Yield: 2 servings.