Clam Chowder
Clam chowder on a cold and soggy day can be a life saver. Cooking it takes your mind off of the cold and dampness surrounding you and the warm hearty chowder warms up your insides. I actually first tried this meal out on my 3rd trip to the Broken Group with a friend of mine who moonlights as a chef. We committed that year to eat only fresh non dehdrated food.
We loaded up with a variety of fresh vegggies and meat from the store with no real meal plan just an Idea of what we like to eat. We did bring along the ingredients though to make clam chowder. Clam Chowder recipes usually call for half & half or whole milk but since we didnt know when or if we would find clams we substituted canned evaporated milk for the half and half. While Keith made the chowder I baked some Beer Bread in the Dutch Oven to finish off the meal. For the bacon you can find shelf stable bacon that does not need to be refrigerated.
When using foraged clams for a meal you want to ensure that there are no Red Tide (Paralytic Shelfish Poision) closures in the area you are harvesting from and that you have a valid shellfish license. You also want to give the clams a day to spit out any sand they were digesting otherwise you chowder could end up being a little gritty. I usually hang them in a mesh bag on a rock wall or from an anchored float.
Ingredients
- 20-30 Clams, Shells Scrubbed Clean
- 3 Slices Bacon
- Half a yellow onion finely chopped
- 1 Carrot sliced
- 1 Stalk of celery halved and sliced
- 1-3 Tbsp flour
- 2 Cups raw potatoes cut into 1/2 inch cubes
- 12 oz can of evaporated milk
- 1 Cup of water
- 1 Tbsp Kerrygold Garlic Butter
- 2 tsp dill
- Salt & Pepper to taste
Preperation
- In large pot saute the bacon, garlic butter, onion, carrot and celery take care not to brown the vegetables.
- Add the can of evaporated milk, and water and slowly bring to boil. Add flour to thicken chowder as desired.
- Reduce heat and add potatoes and simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes begin to soften.
- Add the clams to the chowder and cook until the shells have opened up.
- Serve warm!