I鈥檓 a clam-chowder junkie and, when preparing my own, it鈥檚 the creamy Maritime- or New England-style I most often make. I say most often, because last week, when curing a craving for chowder, I decided to steer my ship in another direction.
That day, I kept my dairy products in the refrigerator and, instead, made tomato-based, Manhattan-style clam chowder. When making it, I could hear the voice of the late James Beard in my head.
Beard was an outspoken American cookbook author, teacher and television personality who died in 1985. His legend lives on in his books, his foundation and that foundation鈥檚 annual James Beard awards.
On the foundation鈥檚 website, jamesbeard.org, it notes that creamy New England-style chowder was the first soup Beard ever ate, and he referred to it as his 鈥渙ldest love.鈥�
With regard to Manhattan-style clam chowder, though, it was not a concoction he loved. In fact, Beard was once quoted as saying: 鈥淭hat rather horrendous soup called Manhattan clam chowder 鈥� resembles a vegetable soup that accidentally had some clams dumped into it.鈥�
Harsh, and a bit confusing for me, as Manhattan-style clam chowder contains flavourings used in other famous seafood dishes Beard did approve of and published recipes for, including cioppino, which contains clams.
More on that in a minute, but听first let me tell you that the听culinary resource whatscookingamerica.net says tomato-based clam chowders were first simmered on the East Coast in the mid-1800s. That was when the large population of Italians in New York and the Portuguese fishing communities of Rhode Island were popularizing dishes flavoured with tomatoes. By the 1930s, this soup was dubbed Manhattan clam chowder.
Recipes for it vary, but many start with vegetables, such as onion, celery, bell peppers, carrots and garlic, being saut茅ed in a pot where bits of bacon or salt pork have already had the fat rendered out of them.
In various stages, chopped canned tomatoes, clam juice, chopped clams, potatoes and flavourings, such as red pepper flakes and thyme, are added and the chowder is simmered. When it鈥檚 done, the saltiness of the clams is balanced by the acidity from the tomatoes and the sweetness from the saut茅ed vegetables.
Which brings me back to cioppino, a seafood stew first simmered in the San Francisco Bay area. In the base for cioppino, and not surprising as Italian immigrants first made it, are many of the tastes you find in Manhattan-style clam chowder, such as onions, bell peppers, tomatoes, garlic and, along with a mix of other seafood, clams.
That鈥檚 why I was confused as to why Beard found Manhattan-style clam chowder so horrendous. I guess he saw room for only one type of clam chowder, his beloved New England-style.
I love it, too, but if you would like to switch things up, I think you鈥檒l be satisfied with the tomatoey version. My recipe below is hearty, comforting and filling enough to act as a dinner, especially when served with thick, buttered slices of good bread.
Manhattan-style Clam Chowder
This tomatoey Manhattan-style chowder has West Coast flavour because fresh B.C. clams are used. When buying fresh clams, choose those with shells that are shut tight or that shut tight when tapped. If the clams don鈥檛 shut tight, they are dead and should not be eaten.
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Preparation time: 30 minutes
Cooking time: 35 to 40 minutes
Makes: six (about 1 1/2 cup) servings
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1 1/2 lb. (about 700 grams) fresh Manila clams (see Eric鈥檚 options)
2 cups clam juice or chicken stock (see Note 1)
1/2 cup water
1 (28 oz./796 mL) can San Marzano plum (roma) tomatoes (see Note 2)
3 thick strips bacon, diced (see Note 3)
1 1/2 Tbsp olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 medium celery ribs, diced
1 medium carrot, diced
1/2 large green bell pepper, diced
1 large garlic clove, minced
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 medium white-skinned potatoes, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 to 1 tsp Tabasco sauce, or pinch or two chili flakes
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
鈥� salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
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Rinse the clams well in cold water, then drain well.
Place clam juice (or stock) and water in a medium pot and bring to a simmer over medium to medium-high heat. Add the clams, cover and cook until they just open (that won鈥檛 take long).
Remove pot from the heat. Use tongs to lift clams out of the pot and on to a wide plate. Cool to room temperature. Strain the clam cooking liquid into a bowl, and then measure it. You should have at least three cups; if not, top up with a bit of water. When the clams have cooled, pull the meat out of the shells. Discard or compost the shells. Chop the clam meat, set in a bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed.
Open the tomatoes and dump into a medium bowl. Lift the tomatoes out from their juices in the bowl and set on a cutting board. Coarsely chop tomatoes, and then set them and any juices on the board back in the bowl.
Place the oil in a medium to large pot (mine was about eight inches wide) and set over medium heat. Cook bacon until most of the fat is rendered out, about five minutes. Drain most of the excess fat from bacon, and then pour the olive oil into the pot.
Add the onion, celery, carrot and bell pepper and cook four to five minutes. Mix in the garlic and thyme and cook one minute more.
Pour the reserved clam-cooking liquid into the pot. Add the chopped tomatoes, potatoes, Worcestershire and Tabasco (or chili flakes) and bring chowder to a simmer. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender. Mix in the chopped clams and simmer a few minutes more, or until clams are hot. Swirl in the parsley, taste chowder and season with salt and pepper, as needed, and then serve.
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Note 1: Richly flavoured, deep red and ripe canned Italian San Marzano plum (roma) tomatoes are sold at Italian food stores and in the canned-tomato product aisle of some supermarkets.
Note 2: Clam juice is combination of water and liquid processed from clam meat that has been cooked. Bottles of clam juice are sold in the tinned-seafood section of most supermarkets. Clam nectar, a similar product sold in cans, could also be used in this recipe.
Note 3: Diced in this recipe means to cut into 1/4-inch cubes.
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Eric鈥檚 options: If you don鈥檛 want to use bacon, omit and cook the onions, celery, bell pepper and carrot in 2 Tbsp olive oil.
If you can鈥檛 find or don鈥檛 want to use fresh clams, drain and reserve the liquid from one (142 gram) can of baby clams, sold at most supermarkets. Add that liquid to your clam juice and then top up with water until you have the three cups of clam-flavoured liquid needed for the chowder. Complete the recipe as described above, adding the clam-flavoured liquid and clam meat when directed to. Because baby canned clams are small, you won鈥檛 need to chop them.
Once cooled to room temperature, this chowder freezes well in portions that suit your needs. Label, date and freeze for up to two months.
Eric Akis is the author of eight cookbooks. His latest is The Great Rotisserie Chicken Cookbook (Appetite by Random House). His columns appear in the Life section Wednesday and Sunday.
